Installing new defense, improving run game were top spring goals

MORE: 2021 Spring Football Coverage Central

Spring football 2021 is history.

Purdue capped its 15-session spring season with a third and final scrimmage on Friday afternoon. Brohm says he ran over 100 plays inside Ross-Ade Stadium in game-like conditions, with coaches in the press box wearing headsets.

"I thought it was good to get a lot of plays in a game-like situation with everyone on the sideline and trying to work the mechanics of a real game," said Brohm.

Offseason work will ensue, as the program builds toward its 2021 opener on Sept. 4 vs. Oregon State. Even with spring drills over, programs still are allowed to work hands-on with players.

"We are able to utilize this full next month to work with our guys on the field," said Brohm. "There are two hours a week of walk-throughs that are allowed now that were not in the past. The ability to meet with our guys, the ability to watch video, the ability to continue to work out, study this spring and evaluate that."

Many key players were out most or all of this spring due to injury, including wideouts David Bell and Milton Wright, guard/tackle Cam Craig, tight end Garrett Miller, defensive tackles Anthony Watts and Lawrence Johnson, linebackers Yanni Karlaftis and Jaylan Alexander, center Sam Garvin, safeties Marvin Grant and Cam Allen and cornerback Geovonte Howard. And quarterback Aidan O'Connell was limited as he comes off foot surgery.

"I thought it was a good last practice for us," said Brohm.

A big key this spring was installing a new defense, which will operate out of a four-man base front under new co-coordinator/linebackers coach Brad Lambert.

In addition to breaking in Lambert, the defensive staff also has a new line coach in Mark Hagen and a new cornerbacks coach in Ron English. Purdue still has to hire a replacement for co-defensive coordinator/safeties coach Anthony Poindexter, who took the same job at Penn State prior to the start of spring drills.

"I think on defense, we got a lot of things in," said Brohm. "There are a few things maybe left that we'd like to just have it in the arsenal, but there was quite a bit of different things that we got in that we wanted to take a look at.

"Numerous ways to attack the offense and be aggressive in the approach and put guys maybe in a few different positions to try to succeed and isolate them and give them a chance to do their thing."

The quarterback spot teems with potential.

As mentioned, O'Connell was limited while getting over foot surgery. That left plenty of reps for Jack Plummer and Austin Burton. Michael Alaimo also caught Brohm's attention this spring. The staff will let the competition play out into training camp. Could Purdue have a third different season-opening starting signal-caller in 2021? Elijah Sindelar got the call in 2019, O'Connell in 2020.

"I think the quarterback position has improved," said Brohm. "I feel like we've got really four guys that are pretty even and sometimes you'll have one or two, maybe three. We've got four quarterbacks that we feel like did a very good job.

"Jack has continued to improve. He's done a very good job out there and been pretty consistent. Aidan has not taken team reps, but he's played for us before. Austin Burton has gotten more reps, he's definitely elevated his game and he's been very similar in a mold to Jack Plummer."

Don't forget about Alaimo.

"(He's) a young quarterback that really is taking great strides this spring and probably has maybe the best arm on the team," said Brohm.

With the defense focused on installing a new scheme, the offense honed in on improving a rushing attack that needs more pop after ranking last in the Big Ten in rushing each of the last two seasons.

"There have been strides in the running game," said Brohm. "We've got to continue to work it. We've got to continue to push that forward as much as we can. It's not gonna just happen overnight, but there have been some good days. One day this week, we had a couple good running sessions and today was OK. But I think we're making strides."

Brohm has hinted that wideouts like Jackson Anthrop and Marcellus Moore may be deployed from time to time in the backfield to juice up the rushing game.

"Maybe we've got to use some receivers at times, maybe we've got to mix some things up and have some creativity to make sure that we have more than one dimension," said Brohm. "So, that's kind of the challenge that we have right now. And, like I said, whether it's personnel, whether it's even the quarterback involved in the running game more at times, it's going to be important that we strategically have the ability to do that. And that we find ways to gain an extra blocker with that type of running game."

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