For the first time since 2016, Purdue has won a season opener.
The Boilermakers defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes 24-20 in West Lafayette on Saturday afternoon.
Going into the game there were more questions than answers for both times. By 7:10 pm it’s safe to say most questions were answered.
Iowa
For the Hawkeyes, the biggest question was how quarterback Spencer Petras would utilize his fully loaded offense. Petras went 22-39 for 265 yards and one rushing touchdown. For the most part, Petras looked rattled. It was his first career start and expectations were rather high for the Californian. He showed a lot of skill on some throws and ultimately Iowa will be fine.
Iowa’s secondary was another big question mark coming in. In the last three meetings with Purdue, they had allowed a different 100-yard receiver and that trend didn’t end today. David Bell torched the Hawkeye secondary for 13 catches, 121 yards, and 3 touchdowns. Milton Wright also went for 7 receptions and 85 yards.
Purdue
The biggest question for the Boilermakers going in was how would Brian Brohm handle calling plays for the first time in place of Jeff Brohm. Brian came out of the gate a little conservative but by the end of the game, the common fan couldn’t tell the difference between the two Brohm’s. Brian put his young quarterback Aidan O’Connell in a position to play loose and relaxed which contributed to the Boiler’s success through the air.
Aidan O’Connell was named the starting quarterback an hour before kickoff which came as a shock to many fans and the media. O’Connell came in against Nebraska last season in replace of an injured Jack Plummer and started the remainder of the 2019 season. O’Connell came out of the gate hot and hit David Bell in the end zone twice in the first half. However, his play stalled before halftime with an interception that led to an Iowa field goal. Then again early in the third quarter with a tipped pass that resulted in his second pick of the night. He was able to put the interceptions behind him though and late in the fourth quarter was able to find David Bell yet again for the game-winning touchdown. His third game-winning drive in his last five games.
When asked what allowed him to be so succesful late in games O’Connell credited his teammates and coaches.
Bob Diaco’s Defense
Purdue has been weak defensively for the better half of a decade and at times today, it looked as if that trend would continue. They struggled to stop Iowa’s run game and got beat deep over the middle as well as in the flats. However, they were able to force a fumble late which led to O’Connells game-winning drive and held the Iowa offense to 3 second-half points.
Sophomore defensive end, George Karlaftis, said after the coming “we didn’t really make any adjustments at half time. We knew that if we could get one more stop that the game would be over so we went out and did it.”
Moving forward
For Iowa, they should be just fine. There’s enough talent on both sides of the ball to be a competitive team and even make a run at the Big Ten West. Once Petras is able to relax and get comfortable their offense is going to be a force to be reckoned with.
For Purdue, this could be a launching pad into the season they’ve been waiting for. The offense was looking good in all areas and the defense came up big when they needed to. They are looking to have head coach Jeff Brohm back next weekend at Illinois. Let’s not forget they were missing All-American receiver Rondale Moore as well. It’s yet to be determined if Moore will be back against Illinois. Brian Brohm when asked said, “I’ll let Jeff handle that one.”
For now, Purdue joins Wisconsin at 1-0 atop the Big Ten West. The Boilers will travel to Illinois next weekend to battle the Fighting Illini.