Syracuse Scouting Report: Purdue Boilermakers
Syracuse travels west to West Lafayette, Ind. to meet Purdue in its first Power 5 matchup of the season. Ahead of the game, we spoke with Boiler Upload's Travis Miller to get a scouting report of Purdue.
The Juice Online: Purdue has had a pretty rigorous start to their season with a tough home loss to Fresno State and a marathon win at Virginia Tech due to weather delays. What has been the biggest takeaway from their start?
Travis Miller: I think the best thing we have seen is that the front 7 defensively is pretty solid. It gave up just 11 yards rushing to Virginia Tech, which is the lowest total ever given up by Purdue on the road. It was doing similarly well against Fresno State until late in the second half when they had worn down due to heat, a lopsided time of possession, and a porous secondary.
I really think that Fresno State was the better team of the two. They had a better offense and they were able to answer Purdue all day. Except for the final 7 minutes of the first half Virginia Tech really didn’t come close to scoring, and a big first half interception by Cam Allen set up Purdue’s second touchdown.
There is still a lot to work on and clean up, but I don’t think anyone is overly disappointed with a 1-1 start. Winning on the road at a Power 5 team is never easy and I was very impressed with the poise Purdue showed on Saturday.
TJO: With the offseason coaching staff change, including the addition of offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, how has the transition to the Air Raid offense gone?
TM: So far it has been interesting. I honestly think the run game has improved significantly. Tyrone Tracy as the No. 2 back has been a blessing as he hit on a pair of big runs Saturday, and Devin Mockobee has rebounded well after a rough first half against Fresno State. Hudson Card has also been a much bigger threat with his feet than Aidan O’Connell ever was.
I think Card could be a little more accurate with his throws. He has missed on a couple, including one as Purdue was driving in the final minute against Fresno State that would have been the game-winning TD if it had been on the mark to Deion Burks. He hasn’t had a huge game yet like O’Connell did, but he hasn’t turned the ball over and he has only been sacked twice. Burks and Tracy have the speed to be big play threats, but in reality Purdue is more balanced than it was under Jeff Brohm. Purdue was able to mix it up quite well on its final three drives and was even able to kill clock on the ground, something Brohm’s teams struggled to do.
TJO: Wide receiver Deion Burks was a big play machine in Purdue’s opener, but seemed to take a back seat against Virginia Tech. How does Purdue;s receiver corps complement the run game of Devin Mockobee?
TM: Burks only had the one catch vs. Virginia Tech I think his big performance against Fresno made him a marked man for the Hokies. He has blazing speed and was able to use that for several big plays against Fresno. Purdue wants to get him the ball in space and in stride, because he can really do some damage that way.
The rest of the crew has been solid. Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen hasn’t been flashy, but he had multiple first down catches for Purdue in Blacksburg. Freshman TE Max Klare has been a pleasant surprise and he led the team in receptions Saturday. TJ Sheffield is the most veteran presence on the roster and he has been steady in the slot for a while now. Combined with Mockobee and Tracy’s ability to catch it out of the backfield, Card has been able to spread it around a bit.
The biggest difference is on third down. Purdue struggled to convert on third downs against Fresno. It was better against Virginia Tech, but had a stretch where it failed to convert on seven straight.
In the first two games against FBS competition last year Aidan O’Connell threw 115 passes. So far Hudson Card has only thrown 64. To me, that is telling because Purdue has moved the ball successfully by mixing things up more.
TJO: The rush defense slammed the door on the Hokies ground game last week. What is the key to their success?
TM: Purdue’s edge rushers in Nic Scourton and Kydran Jenkins had big days. Scourton was disruptive all afternoon with 3.5 tackles for loss and a key sack that ended Virginia Tech’s drive after Purdue went in front for good. They never let Grant Wells get too comfortable and there was often no room to run.
Overall the front seven has been solid. They did really well in the first half against Fresno State too, but the Bulldogs had two consecutive long drives in the third quarter that wore them down because the secondary gave up some big third down completions. Fresno State was 11 of 17 on third downs and Purdue could not get off the field. Virginia Tech was 2 of 12, and Grant Wells often struggled to throw an accurate ball on third down because of pressure.
TJO: Dillon Thieneman (team high 17 tackles and two interceptions) and Kydran Jenkins (two sacks, four quarterback hits) lead the Boilermaker defense with their big play ability. How can Syracuse limit their influence on the game?
TM: Thieneman has been a very pleasant surprise, as he is a true freshman that has had an incredible debut. In Ryan Walters’ scheme he is playing a very high safety some 20-25 yards off the line of scrimmage, and he has used his speed to crash down on run plays or get side to side against the pass. His older brothers were walk-ons that eventually became starters are Purdue, but he has been on scholarship since day 1 and has performed very well early on.
Jenkins is benefitting from Scourton being on the other side, plus Khordae Sydnor and Jeffrey M’ba being able to give him a break from time to time. If they can keep Schrader from getting out of the pocket too much (something Mikey Keene was able to do well) it will help Purdue a lot.
TJO: Do you have a prediction for Saturday night?
TM: I think we see another close game like last year in upstate New York. Purdue learned a lot in week 1 and tightened a lot of things up defensively. This was an announced sellout crowd and since installing the permanent lights in 2017 Purdue has defended its home field at night very well. I think we see some offensive fireworks, too. Purdue’s secondary is still a major concern, but I also think Card is heading towards a breakout game. I’ll pick Purdue 31-27.
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