Purdue football vs. Nebraska: Scouting report, prediction
LINCOLN, Neb. — Purdue football is coming off a much needed bye week.
With no opponent last weekend, the Boilermakers used that time to rest and reset, healing bumps and bruises, and for some players even worse, form the grind of seven straight weeks of games.
Now Purdue has to prove that week off did it some good with a trip to Nebraska on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m.
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The Boilermakers are now in "playoff mode" according to head coach Ryan Walters, who knows his team needs four wins in the final five games to become bowl eligible.
What is Purdue up against at Memorial Stadium on Saturday?
Scouting the Cornhuskers
It's homecoming in Lincoln and first-year coach Matt Rhule's Cornhuskers squad is trying to win its third straight game.
In the last two outings, Nebraska has allowed a combined 16 points, not necessarily a good sign for a Purdue team that has struggled to score in its most recent two games.
That said, Nebraska's offense has not impressed.
The Cornhuskers have score more than 20 just twice, wins over Northern Illinois and Louisiana Tech. Nebraska hasn't thrown for 200 yards in any game this season and its leading rusher is quarterback Heinrich Haarberg, who is as much a runner as he is a passer.
Hudson Card's health
Speaking of quarterbacks, Hudson Card maybe needed Purdue's bye week more than anyone. The Boilermaker signal caller was injured against Illinois on Sept. 30. Card played through the shoulder pain at Iowa and was sacked six times. For the first time this season, Card wasn't at quarterback once Ohio State got comfortably ahead two weeks ago.
By all accounts, Card is rejuvenated and ready to go at Nebraska.
"I think (Card) feels a whole lot better than he did probably two weeks ago and we need him to go play well down the stretch and try to lead us to some victories," Purdue offensive coordinator Graham Harrell said.
Step back defensively
Purdue's defense appeared to have turned a corner, playing well against Illinois and Iowa in consecutive weeks. Then the Ohio State game happened.
Safety Sanoussi Kane said after that game the team would need to evaluate its defensive performance on tape before speaking on it.
On Wednesday, now having watched the game back, Kane can admit the defense did indeed take a step back against the Buckeyes.
"We just didn't execute," Kane said. "It wasn't about them. It was about us. We didn't execute. That's the bottom line. We got them into third down. We got them into situations. We just didn't execute in those situations."
Maybe a Nebraska team averaging 18.7 points per game is just what this defense needs to bounce back.
Prediction: Purdue 21, Nebraska 14
The Boilermakers have to have this one. It's a must win the rest of the season for Purdue and this is a winnable game. The staff has had additional prep time with no game last Saturday.
If Purdue can solve its woes against running quarterbacks, it will have a chance to win. But the Boilermakers have had plenty of these games come down to the final few minutes and the only win in those scenarios was at Virginia Tech. It's now or never for this year's Boilermakers.
"Going from here on out the next five weeks, we're going to have to be really locked in," Purdue running back Devin Mockobee said. "We're not trying to give up anything else at all. We're trying to go five-for-five the next five weeks."
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 vs. Nebraska: Scouting report, prediction
