Purdue wants to stop leaning on Browne’s arm
Five hundred and twenty-three yards, and an asterisk. Purdue put up that number in a 44-19 win over Indiana State last week, with Ryan Browne going 23 of 29 for 317 yards and three touchdowns. The opponent was an FCS program.
Wake Forest, in West Lafayette on Saturday, is a different proposition. Josh Henson, the Boilermakers’ offensive coordinator, is building a plan that puts more weight on the ground.
He has the back for it. Fame Ijeboi arrived from Minnesota and needed 11 carries to gain 87 yards and a touchdown against Indiana State. A 63-yard scoring run came back on a penalty. “He runs with physicality and a lot of body violence. He is not an easy guy to tackle,” Henson said.
Purdue averaged 4.4 yards a carry. Henson wants that number to stay honest on Saturday, in his words, so the offense does not “let the defense dictate the game to us”.
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Wake Forest are 1-0, with one bad quarter to fix
The Demon Deacons beat Akron 38-16 to open the year. They led by 35 before letting two fourth-quarter touchdowns slip. Jake Dickert has spent the week on that stretch.
“What I know about our group is that it’s very mature and it wants to be coached. They want to take in the lessons. They want to see what they didn’t do well, then apply it and get better. The energy and the attitude were really positive,” the head coach said.
The quarterback spot answered its question quickly. Gio Lopez, in from North Carolina, threw for 350 yards and three scores on debut, one of them a 72-yard connection with Louisville transfer Antonio Meeks. Carlos Hernandez left late in the second quarter with five catches for 165 yards and a touchdown, and Dickert says the receiver “will be fine”.
Last look before ACC play starts
Conference games begin for Wake Forest next week. This trip to Indiana is the final non-conference outing, and Dickert has treated it like a dress rehearsal rather than a warm-up.
The series record sits with the hosts. Purdue lead it 4-1 and have won three of the four played in West Lafayette.
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