Purdue
Boilermakers
Preview 2007
By
Pete Fiutak
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2007 Purdue Offense Preview |
2007 Purdue Defense Preview
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2007 Purdue Depth Chart
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2006 CFN Purdue Preview
There was a time when Purdue was the Big Ten’s rising star.
Thanks to Drew Brees and a thrilling passing attack, the
Boilermakers went to the Rose Bowl and had Big Ten folks worried
about trying to keep pace with the high-octane offense. Somewhere
along the way, however, the idea of generating more balance and more
of a running game kicked in, right about the time when the Purdue
defense went completely into the tank.
Head coach: Joe Tiller
11h year: 75-49
17th year overall: 114-79-1
Returning Lettermen:
Off. 25, Def. 26, ST 3
Lettermen Lost: 17 |
Ten
Best Purdue Players
1. WR Dorien Bryant, Sr.
2. QB Curtis Painter, Jr.
3. DE Cliff Avril, Sr.
4. RB Kory Sheets, Jr.
5. OG Jordan Grimes, Sr.
6. RB Jaycen Taylor, Jr.
7. C Robbie Powell, Sr.
8. OT Sean Sester, Jr.
9. DT/DE Alex Magee, Jr.
10. P Jared Armstrong, Sr. |
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2007 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 8-4 |
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Sept. 1 |
at Toledo |
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Sept. 8 |
Eastern Illinois |
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Sept. 15 |
Central Michigan |
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Sept. 22 |
at
Minnesota |
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Sept. 29 |
Notre Dame |
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Oct.
6 |
Ohio State |
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Oct.
13 |
at
Michigan |
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Oct.
20 |
Iowa |
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Oct.
27 |
Northwestern |
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Nov.
3 |
at
Penn State |
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Nov.
10 |
Michigan State |
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Nov.
17 |
at Indiana |
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2006
Schedule
CFN
Prediction: 7-6
2005 Record: 8-6
Preview
2006 predicted wins |
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9/2 |
Indiana State
W 60-35 |
| 9/9 |
Miami Univ.
W 38-31 OT |
| 9/16 |
Ball State
W 38-28 |
| 9/23 |
Minnesota
W 27-21 |
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9/30 |
at Notre Dame L 35-21 |
| 10/7 |
at Iowa L 47-17 |
| 10/14 |
at Nwestern W 31-10 |
| 10/21 |
Wisconsin L 24-3 |
| 10/28 |
Penn State L 12-0 |
| 11/4 |
at Michigan St W 17-15 |
| 11/11 |
at Illinois
W 42-31 |
| 11/18 |
Indiana
W 28-19 |
| 11/25 |
at Hawaii
L 42-35 |
| 12/29 |
Champs Sports Bowl
Maryland L 24-7 |
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Awful in
2005, the Boilermaker defense didn’t make any big strides in 2006,
giving up 432 yards and 27 points per game. Making matters worse was an
inconsistent offense that put up a ton of yards, but rarely scored
against a defense with a pulse.
Head coach Joe Tiller has to find the right chemistry. He’s had talent
in West Lafayette, maybe not the type you’d find in Columbus or Ann
Arbor, but enough to get NFL scouts sniffing around. However, he hasn’t
been able to find the right mix of personalities and talents to make
Purdue anything special since Brees was in town.
While Purdue has hardly been lousy under Tiller over the last ten years,
this might be his final chance to break through the ceiling. The team
didn’t take advantage of all the experience it had over the last two
years, and it really didn’t make the most of the monster scheduling
break, missing Michigan and Ohio State. Now the two big boys are back on
the slate, there are still questions about the defense, and it’s time
for the offense to start to turn all the yards into more points.
With another team full of veterans and most of the key players returning
on both sides of the ball, there’s no real reason Purdue can’t go to its
tenth bowl game in 11 years. But it’s time the program accomplished
more.
What to watch for on offense: An
unstoppable passing game. Kory Sheets and Jaycen Taylor form a solid 1-2
rushing punch, and QB Curtis Painter is mobile enough to be a rushing
threat, but with Dorien Bryant, Selwyn Lymon, Greg Orton and Dustin
Keller returning, the passing game that ranked sixth nationally last
year should be unstoppable. Now with all the experience, it needs to be
more efficient.
What to watch for on defense: It’s all about creating pressure,
and using speed and quickness to be around the ball. While that’s good
in theory, it doesn’t work when you’re getting steamrolled. All four
starters return to a secondary that should be better, but the front
seven has to be far tougher against the power running teams. Tackles
Mike Neal, Jermaine Guynn, Ryan Baker and Alex Magee have to be nastier
and more productive.
The team will be far better if … there’s more offensive
consistency. The yards were there in bunches, but there weren’t enough
points against the better teams scoring just 17 against Iowa, three
against Wisconsin, none against Penn State, and seven against Maryland.
All were losses. The offense can’t just be good against the lousy
defenses.
The Schedule:
It could be
tough early if the team isn’t awake. Going to Toledo and hosting
defending MAC champion Central Michigan requires some attention, and
then there’s a nasty five-game stretch going to Minnesota, hosting Notre
Dame and Ohio State, going to Michigan, and hosting Iowa. There’s also a
road trip to Penn State.
Best Offensive Player: Senior WR Dorien Bryant. Over the last two seasons, just
one player in America has caught more passes than Bryant, a sure-handed
gnat of a route runner who’s got the speed to go the distance on short
hitch routes. A lethal all-purpose threat, he’s also scored six rushing
touchdowns in his Boilermaker career and is very dangerous on kickoff
returns.
Best Defensive Player: Senior DE Cliff Avril. At 6-3 and 245
pounds, Avril is going to be an outside linebacker on Sundays, but in
West Lafayette these days he’s a menacing rush end, conjuring up
memories of former Boilermaker Akin Ayodele. What he lacks in size and
strength he makes up for with an explosive first step and the long arms
needed to bat away passes.
Key player to a successful season: Junior DT Ryan Baker,
sophomore Mike
Neal and junior Alex Magee (who might move to end). If the Purdue defense is
going to be any better, there has to be more production up the middle,
and it starts with the tackles. The have decent size, good quickness,
and experience, but they have to hold up against the decent running
teams.
The season will be a
success if
... Purdue wins eight games. That might be setting the bar way too low
for a team with an offense like this, but the defense is still extremely
suspect, and the schedule is potentially too nasty to expect any sort of
flirtation with double-digit wins without a few big upsets.
Key game:
Sept. 22 at Minnesota.
Even though games against Toledo and Central Michigan should be tough,
Purdue will be favored, If all goes well against those two, and in the
home opener against Eastern Illinois, the trip to Minnesota could be
vital to bowl hopes. A 4-0 start might be a must with Notre Dame, Ohio
State, at Michigan, and Iowa over the next four games.
2006 Fun Stats:
- Field goals: Opponents 20 of 27; Purdue 9 of 21
- Fumbles: Opponents 35 (lost 17); Purdue 19 (lost 9)
- Average rushing yards per game: Opponents 191.2; Purdue 124.1