Tag: Purdue

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Purdue vs Virginia Tech Preview and Prediction

Virginia Tech took care of business against ODU. What did we learn from that game? Well, we found ourselves a couple of capable receivers in the transfer portal. When Grant Wells is settled in, he’s pretty good. And we have some pretty major issues run blocking. Not mention Virginia Tech still has the best entrance in the world.

SP+ Rankings

Virginia Tech

Overall: 65th
Offense: 84th
Defense: 49th
Special Teams: 59th

Purdue

Overall: 64th
Offense: 53rd
Defense: 81st
Special Teams: 118th

Purdue’s offense is led by Hudson Card, the former Texas Longhorn’s quarterback. After one game, Purdue’s offense looks a lot like the Hokies’ offense. They can pass well but not run the ball. Against Fresno State they ran for 3.6 yards per attempt. Hudson Card had a good day throwing for 254 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Purdue secondary looked putrid against Fresno State. They gave up 371 yards and 4 touchdowns through the air. You can expect them to try to turn those numbers around this week. But after the Hokies offense has a good day through the air last week, you can expect Tech to try to air it out again this week.

Watch out for the return game. Last week, Purdue running back Tyrone Tracy returned a second half kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. A breakdown on special teams could be costly in a close game.

Expect big plays in this game. Both teams are going to try to air it out. In that scenario, I like the Hokies secondary having the advantage. On paper, this looks like a game where the over could hit (O/U 49.5). In an even game, you like to go with the home team especially one with momentum coming off an opening week win.

Prediction: Virginia Tech 31, Purdue 28

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Purdue Q&A with Andrew Ledman of Hammer and Rails

Andrew Ledman is the co-manager for the Purdue SB Nation site HammerandRails.com. You can follow Hammer and Rails on Twitter at @HammerandRails. Andrew joined us this week for a game week Q&A.

Tell us about yourself and your site.

I’m a 2008 and 2010 Purdue grad. Been a fan all my life. I’m the co-manager over at Hammer and Rails. We are the SB Nation site for Purdue athletics. I’ve been writing there since around 2015. 

Tell us about your team this year. What are your expectations for Purdue this season?

Honestly, who knows? We had a lot of turnover in the off-season including the coaching staff. I think most people think realistic expectations or best case scenario is 7-5 or 6-6. The loss to Fresno State this week probably makes 6-6 the best case scenario. The schedule is brutal this year and there are some obvious holes on this team. 

What are your thoughts on playing Virginia Tech?

It’s nice to play a non-conference opponent with a name and a proud tradition. That said, this isn’t my daddy’s Virginia Tech. I don’t really know what to expect from them but I always appreciate heading to a different campus to play a new opponent. 

How do you view the Virginia Tech program?

I don’t think I’m speaking out of school when I say that they aren’t as strong as they used to be. There was a time when playing VT would strike fear in me but right now it’s just not the same. I still expect a hard fought game though, don’t get me wrong. 

Do you think Virginia Tech would be a good fit for the Big Ten at some point in the future?

I think they do make a certain amount of sense educationally, but if this is you sniffing around for an invite just know that I don’t have that kind of power. If I did, it’s Notre Dame or no one. 

What are your expectations for the Virginia Tech game?

I think it’s going to be close. If you watched the Purdue game you saw some really bad secondary play, a leaky offensive line, and some bad receiver play. There’s a hope that some of those things will be fixed when Purdue gets a bunch of guys back from injury, but will that be next week? We just don’t know. 

What’s your prediction for the game?

I think Purdue finds a way to win this one. The offense, though it had difficulties last week, still showed an ability to put points on the board and I think the defense can do just enough for Purdue to pull out a victory.

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Purdue Preview and Prediction

Purdue is the Wake Forest of the Big Ten. It’s true. They went 1-11 in 2013 and 3-9 in 2014. So why should we be worried? Because they need this win really badly. Darrell Hazell is trying to save his job and you know he’s going to pull out all stops to get a big win at home over a name team in Virginia Tech.

Why Purdue will win…

  1. A good running game against inconsistent linebacker play by the Hokies. Specifically, a running QB which seems to always give VT fits.
  2. Strong secondary play with two senior cornerbacks against Brenden Motley who will be making his first career road start.
  3. VT collectively not taking this game seriously and not being ready to play.

Why VT will win…

  1. Bud Foster can always scheme around a young, inexperienced MLB.
  2. Austin Appleby is the type of interception-prone QB that Bud Foster’s defenses feast on.
  3. VT will establish the outside run and will make life easy on Brenden Motley.

This is a really tough game to pick. I think you’ll see some jitters from the Hokies in their first road game of the season. We honestly don’t know who the real Hokies are after a really tough game against the unanimous #1 team in the country and an easy win over an FCS cupcake. I think Saturday is the Hokies first true test. We’ll learn a lot about this team this week. I’m going to go with the Hokies by a narrow margin. If the Hokies come ready to play, they can win by double digits but ultimately I think they make enough mistakes to keep this game close.

Prediction: Virginia Tech 24, Purdue 17

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Purdue Q&A with BoiledSports.com

You can follow @BoiledSports on Twitter and read their blog at BoiledSports.com.

What are your thoughts on your team so far?

Well, so far this season or so far in our lives? Let’s hit the wayback machine for a minute. Joe Tiller took Purdue out of the cellar and made them perennial Big Ten contenders. The glory days for us were Drew Brees and Kyle Orton, with the Boilermakers getting as high as #5 in the nation in 2004. However, it’s been a steady and nauseating decline since then, with Purdue football firmly back in the basement.

Coach Darrell Hazell came in for the 2013 season and while we really like him as a man, he just hasn’t done much on the field yet, with a record of 5-21 – and three of those five victories have been against FCS foes. Purdue is very slowly improving under Hazell, though, so we’re trying to remain optimistic.

Blowing their first game at Marshall has made it tough to envision more than a couple of wins in 2015, though.

What are your expectations going into the VT game?

I’ll be honest… we’ve been worried about this game for a while. Not because Virginia Tech is the powerhouse they once were, but because we know even in “down” years, they’re no pushover. I specifically remember watching their rivalry game with UVA last November and despite being the worse record, Tech took it to the Hoos. They always come hard with a ferocious D and that alone wins you games against programs that are struggling.

How do Purdue fans view VT’s program?

I remember talking to my co-editor after last season and looking ahead to this game and his exact words were, “You don’t want any part of Beamer.” Now, I don’t know if that’s how most Purdue fans view VT, but I think that’s how fans who know CFB do. He may not be the Frank Beamer of old, but he’s still a wily veteran and he’s been in every kind of game you can imagine. There is nothing about this Saturday that will concern or intimidate him or, in turn, his team. That’s how we view it and it makes us edgy.

What is your prediction for the game?

Purdue fans know this game is quite important for our program. A win or, at the least, a good showing gives everyone some hope that things are indeed heading in the right direction. There are still some fans out there with pipe dreams of making a bowl game this year – if it has any chance of happening, this one really feels like it needs to be a win. As for us at Boiled Sports, our official “Predicto” comes out on Friday mornings, but my gut feeling is that this one is a loss for Purdue. I don’t think Purdue’s QB, Austin Appleby, will be able to deal with the defensive pressure VT will bring and the Hokies may score a defensive touchdown or two.