Purdue football hasn't thrown in the towel even with bowl hopes dashed

ANN ARBOR, Michigan − There were 18 seconds left when Deion Burks scored Purdue football's only touchdown Saturday night.

It was meaningless in the grand scheme of things.

The Boilermakers still lost to Michigan, 41-13.

It wasn't meaningless to Purdue, however, because it showed this team is going to fight until the end.

One thing became clear at Michigan Stadium: Purdue's football season is over in three weeks.

Michigan was too talented, too deep and too much of a juggernaut for the Boilermakers to keep their last desperate grasp at bowl eligibility alive.

Fight as it did, Purdue couldn't keep pace, and that means there's nothing left to play for this season, save for a bucket on Nov. 25.

More: Purdue football coach Ryan Walters doubles down in Michigan sign stealing comments

Purdue refuses to throw in the towel on a lost season.

"We have three opportunities left, and it's up to us to make the most of it," quarterback Hudson Card said. "The guys are focused and trying to build momentum going into next year. We've got three opportunities left, and we've got to take advantage of it."

Purdue's team is bruised and broken.

The depth chart from the season opener Sept. 2 looks nothing like the patched-together project the Boilermakers are running onto the field at times.

Guys who weren't supposed to be on the travel roster suddenly are. Players who never expected to see the field are starting.

And now, a home game against Minnesota awaits Saturday with nothing on the line for Purdue.

More: Grading Purdue football's 41-13 loss at Michigan: Did the offense really got a double-F?

Except pride.

So don't expect the coaching staff to just toss in seldom-used players to see what they can do on game days.

"I am not going to forfeit an opportunity to win a game for gaining experience," coach Ryan Walters said Saturday night.

Sanoussi Kane is a senior, and the Purdue safety has seen the highs and lows of college football in his time with the Boilermakers.

Bowl games. A Big Ten Championship appearance. The conference-only COVID season. Bowl victory against an SEC team. Bowl loss against an SEC team. Coaching change.

When Purdue's postseason hopes died, it was Kane, one of four Boilermakers captains, who delivered a message to the team.

Kane told the team it never knows when a streak will start, when a program will turn the corner.

"A certain point in this program, it's going to be sooner than later, that when we get into these games, it's not going to be Spoilermakers (a reference to Purdue's numerous top-five victories as an unranked team) or anything like that," Kane said. "It's going to be a big-time game, and Purdue has a chance to win it because Purdue is that good. ... Obviously, we have a lot of work to do to get to that point, but it's not unachievable for Purdue to be a big-time program."

Purdue's preseason goals are unobtainable. Its postseason hopes dashed.

But there's still three games: Minnesota at home, at Northwestern and the season finale at home against rival Indiana.

The season isn't over.

"We have three more opportunities with this group in the locker room, and after those three opportunities, this roster will change," Walters said. "We need to take advantage of every moment and cherish every moment."

Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue football falls at Michigan, but continues to fight