Quarterback
#15 – Ryan Browne: So. – 6-4 210 – Clarkston, Mich. (Venice (Fla.))
Game 1 Stats: Comp 18 – Att 26 – Comp% 69 – Td 2 – Int 0 – Yds 311 – Long 49 – Sack 1
Game 1 Rushing Stats: Att 7- Gain 17 – Loss 12 – Net 5 – TD 1- Long 5 – YPA .7
Game 2 Stats: Comp 14 – Att 23 – Comp% 61 – Td 2 – Int 0 – Yds 170 – Long 29 – Sack 0
Game 2 Rushing Stats: Att 9 – Gain 50 – Loss 0 – Net 50 – TD 0 – Long 12 – YPA 5.6
#3 – Malachi Singleton: So. – 6-1, 235 – Kennesaw, Ga. (Arkansas)
Game 1 Stats: Comp 2 – Att 3 – Comp% 69
– Td 0 – Int 0 – Yds 29 – Long 22 – Sack 0
Game 1 Rushing Stats: Att 3 – Gain 19 – Loss 2 – Net 17 – TD 0 – Long 12 – YPA 5.7
Game 2: DNP
Thoughts
That was an efficient and effective Ryan Browne game. He didn’t get rattled and force things when Southern Illinois came out hot on offense. Instead, he settled in, found open receivers, and kept the offense on track both in the passing and run game. I expected to see him run the ball more against Ball State. I got what I was looking for against Southern Illinois. Purdue needs his legs to help both the run and pass game. Nine carries for 50 yards is the type of production in the quarterback run game that draws up safeties and opens something up over the top.
I was surprised we didn’t see Singleton in this one, but Purdue didn’t put the game away until late and Browne needs all the competitive game snacks he can handle.
Running Back
#45 – Devin Mockobee: Sr. – 6-0, 202 – Boonville, Ind. (Boonville)
Game 1 Stats: Att 14 – Gain 62 – Loss 3 – Net 59 – TD 1 – Long 13 – YPA 4.2
Game 2 Stats: Att 32 – Gain 133 – Loss 7 – Net 126 – TD 2 – Long 12 – YPA 3.9
#22 – Antonio Harris: So. – 6-0, 210 – OR –
Game 1 Stats: Att 3 – Gain 12 – Loss 0 – Net 12 – TD 0 – Long 7 – YPA 4
Game 2 Stats: Att 5 – Gain 26 – Loss 0 – Net 26 – TD 0 – Long 17 – YPA 5.6
# 24 – Malachi Thomas: Sr. – 6-0, 220 – Hartwell, Ga. (Virginia Tech)
Game 1 Stats: Att 2 – Gain 2 – Loss 0 – Net 2 – TD 0 – Long 2 – YPA -1
Game 2 Stats: Att 6 – Gain 20 – Loss 3 – Net 14 – TD 1 – Long 7 – YPA 2.3
Thoughts
That was the game plan I was expecting coming into the season. A heavy dose Mockobee paired with another 20 runs from Browne, Harris, and Thomas. Purdue did what all Big 10 teams should do when faced with a live FCS opponent. No amount of scheming, hustle, or game momentum can prevent a team like Southern Illinois from being steamrolled by Purdue’s offensive line, paired with a human wrecking ball like Mockobee who is going to get you every yard a play is blocked for at minimum.
I would have like to see a few more explosive runs sprinkled into the mix. It’s going to be tough to sustain this type of rushing attack against a team like Southern Cal. Mockobee is going to have to find a way to make someone miss or break a tackle in the open field, and that hasn’t happened yet. Based on his career, it’s more of a matter of “when” than “if”.
Hitting the first long run of the season against the Trojans would do nicely.
Antonio Harris continues to solidify himself as the second choice in the backfield. It looks like Malachi Thomas is more of a short yardage, situation back at this point.
Tight End
#81 – George Burhenn: So. – 6-5, 235 – McCordsville, Ind. (Mt. Vernon) – OR-
Game 1 Stats: Targets 3 – Rec 3 – Yards 48 – Yards After Catch 25 – TD 0 – Long 21
Game 2 Stats: Targets 3 – Rec 3 – Yards 48 – Yards After Catch 25 – TD 0 – Long 21
#44 – Christian Moore: Sr. – 6-3, 250 – Huntington Beach, Calif. (UNLV)
Game 1 Stats: Participated – No Stats
Game 2 Stats: Targets 1- Rec 1 – Yards 2 – Yards After Catch 1 – TD 0 – Long 2
#17 – Rico Walker: Jr. – 6-3, 250 – Hickory, N.C. (Auburn)
Game 1 Stats: Participated – No Stats
Game 2 Stats: DNP
Thoughts
You had your first depth chart shake-up of the season at tight end with Rico Walker, the starter from week 1, giving way to a close to 50/50 split between Burhenn (as a receiver) and Moore (as a blocker). Walker got squeezed out of the rotation as Moore is a dominant blocker and Purdue used him in multiple ways in the run game. He even had a carry!
Meanwhile, Burhenn led Purdue in receptions, yards, and yards after the catch. I’ve been talking about Burhenn’s talent for a couple of seasons. It was nice to see some actual on-field results. He should be a significant factor in the passing game moving forward. It will be interesting to see if Walker can carve out a niche after looking good towards the end of camp.
Field Receiver
#2 – Michael Jackson III: Sr. – 6-0, 205 – Las Vegas, Nev. (Georgia)
Game 1 Stats: Targets 7 – Rec 6 – Yards 72 – Yards After Catch 21 – TD 1 – Long 18
Game 2 Stats: Targets 2 – Rec 1 – Yards 7 – Yards After Catch 4 – TD 0 – Long 7
#12 – Corey Smith: So. – 6-1, 185 – Brownsburg, Ind. (Tulsa)
Game 1 Stats: Targets 2 – Rec 2 – Yards 30 – Yards After Catch 10 – TD 0 – Long 22
Game 2 Stats: Targets 1- Rec 0 – Yards 0 – Yards After Catch 0 – TD 0 – Long 0
Thoughts
Purdue was focused on running the ball, and that cut down on the opportunities for the wide receivers. Jackson also contributed 40 kick return yards and 17 punt return yards. He was second on the team in All-Purpose yards behind Mockobee despite having a quiet game as a receiver. His former team is coming to town this weekend.
Corey Smith didn’t get much run as the 5th choice receiver in a game where the first-choice receiver didn’t have many opportunities.
Boundary Receiver
#6 – Arhmad Branch: So. – 6-0 185 – Festus, Mo. (Festus)
Game 1 Stats: Targets 4 – Rec 3 – Yards 101 – Yards After Catch 41 – TD 1 – Long 49
Game 2 Stats: Targets 4 – Rec 2 – Yards 31 – Yards After Catch 6 – TD 1 – Long 18
#13 – EJ Horton Jr.: Sr. – 6-1, 190 – Louisville, Ky. (FAU)
Game 1 Stats: Targets 4 – Rec 3 – Yards 32 – Yards After Catch 13 – TD – Long 14
Game 2 Stats: Targets 4 – Rec 2 – Yards 17 – Yards After Catch 5 – TD 0 – Long 13
Thoughts
Another game, another touchdown. Branch now has more touchdown receptions this season than he had receptions last season. Again, there wasn’t a ton of opportunities through the air with Purdue focusing on their ground game, but Arhmad made one of his two receptions count for six.
Horton appears to be the fourth-choice receiver behind the starters. It will be interesting to see if that continues once Morrisette returns to the lineup.
Slot Receiver
#0 – Nitro Tuggle: So. – 6-1, 195 – Goshen, Ind. (Georgia)
Game 1 Stats: Targets 4 – Rec 3 – Yards 32 – Yards After Catch -14 – TD 0 – Long 19
Game 2 Stats: Targets 2 – Rec 1 – Yards 29 – Yards After Catch 29 – TD 1 – Long 29
#10 – Jesse Watson: R-Fr. – 5-9, 172 – St. Louis, Mo. (East St. Louis)
Game 1 Stats: Targets 4 – Rec 0 – Yards 0 – Yards After Catch -0 – TD 0 – Long 0
Game 2 Stats: Targets 2 – Rec 1 – Yards 5- Yards After Catch 0 – TD 0 – Long 5
Thoughts
That’s what I want out of my slot receiver. He was available in short yardage situations and managed to turn the ball up field and pick up yards after the catch. That’s going to be his game at Purdue. He’s going to be asked to take short passes and turn them into long gains. He didn’t break anything, but he looked dangerous.
Watson had a chance to notch his first touchdown reception, but couldn’t come up with a tough, but catchable pass in the back of the endzone. He’s another ultra-quick receiver I want to see more of in the short passing game.
Offensive Line
Note: This season, I bit (or bought?) the proverbial bullet and procured Pro Football Focus to provide some insight on the offensive line. The grading scale goes from 0 – 100 (with 100 being the best possible grade).
You can find more information on what these grades mean and how they are determined here.
Left Tackle
#79 – Joey Tanona: Jr. – 6-6, 305 – Zionsville, Ind. (Notre Dame)
Game 1 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 79 – Pass Blk 73 – Run Blk 59 – Grade 64
Game 2 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 79 – Pass Blk 73.9 – Run Blk 59.9 – Grade 64
#58 – Hank Purvis: So. – 6-5, 360 – Wichita, Kan. (UNLV)
Right Tackle
#78 – Bakyne Coly: Sr. – 6-7, 300 – Farmington, Mich. (Lawrence Tech)
Game 1 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 60 – Pass Blk 48.9 – Run Blk 61.2 – Grade 58.8
Game 2 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 79 – Pass Blk 58.4 – Run Blk 57.8 – Grade 58.4
#71 – Marques Easley: R-Fr. – 6-6, 320 – Kankakee, Ill. (Georgia)
Left Guard
#74 – Jalen St. John: Sr. – 6-5, 330 – St. Louis, Mo. (UNLV)
Game 1 PFF+: Snaps – 50 – Pass Blk 25.2 – Run Blk 49.6 – Grade 47.3
Game 2 PFF+: Snaps – 79 – Pass Blk 84.7 – Run Blk 57 – Grade 60.7
#7 – Marc Nave: Jr. R-Fr. – 6-4, 350 – Toledo, Ohio (Kentucky)
Center
#55 – Bradyn Joiner: So. – 6-2, 310 – Anniston, Ala. (Auburn)
Game 1 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 57 – Pass Blk 73.3 – Run Blk 63.1 – Grade 66.6
Game 2 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 79 – Pass Blk 82.5 – Run Blk 59 – Grade 63.2
#62 – Giordano Vaccaro: Sr. – 6-3, 315 – Winnipeg, Manitoba (University of Manitoba)
Right Guard
#76 – Ethan Trent: So. – 6-2, 295 – Carmel, Ind. (Carmel)
Game 1 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 60 – Pass Blk 71 – Run Blk 58 – Grade 56.9
Game 2 PFF+ Grade: Snaps – 79 – Pass Blk 84.7 – Run Blk 58.8 – Grade 62.2
#51 – Mason Vicari: So. – 6-4, 305 – Sacramento, Calif. (UNLV)
Thoughts
PFF wasn’t a huge fan of Purdue’s offensive line in terms of run blocking, but what they didn’t achieve in efficiency, they made up for in sheer volume of runs. Bakyne Coly has been identified as a weak link at right tackle in the first two games. Purdue gave up two quarterback pressures on Saturday, and Coley was tagged with both of them.
Joey Tanoa was the highest-rated lineman on Saturday, with Bradyn Joiner close behind. Jalen St. John was significantly better after what PFF considered a terrible performance in the opener. Ethan Trent was good in pass protection but may struggle to move bodies in the run game.
This unit will be put to the test for the first time next Saturday.
