Jeff Brohm won't reveal QB until game-time
Jack Plummer or Aidan O'Connell? Who will start at quarterback for Purdue this Saturday?
That question won't be answered until Saturday when Minnesota visits for a noon ET kickoff, as Jeff Brohm didn't want to tip his hand after practice today after naming an internal starter on Tuesday.
"We'll go ahead and just keep that until game time," said Brohm. "But we've worked all week in that format. All of our guys have practiced well, and they understand that it's about winning.
"They're good teammates. At any point in time, we can play any of our quarterbacks. They all provide different elements depending on how the game is going, who's available on offense, what are we doing well--running, passing--what's the score, all those things. But they've been great teammates and they've all had a good week."
In addition to wondering about the quarterback situation, Purdue also has a number of key players who are dealing with injury and/or concussions.
"From this past week, DaMarcus Mitchell, Branson Deen, Payne Durham are the ones that went down with injuries. Branson and DaMarcus will be game-time decisions. Durham is probably doubtful.
"And then on the previous week, King (Doerue) and David (Bell) will be game-time decisions. They've been able to do a little bit. They still got to go through the full protocol. We'll see on Saturday."
Bell missed last week while in concussion protocol after taking a big hit at Notre Dame, while Doerue is dealing with an illness. Durham took a big hit Saturday, and his absence will reverberate.
"Payne's a valuable component," said Brohm. "He's our team leader ... he's just a physical specimen that plays hard. He's done a really good job for us. He's overachieved since he got here.
"So, you know, Garrett Miller is going to step up and he's had a knee that he's still wears a brace on that we're probably not 100 percent, but he's close to it. We're hopeful he plays well. And Kyle Bilodeau and Paul Piferi will have to step in next and give us some some minutes."
Purdue also could get back key offensive line reserve Cam Craig, who didn't play last week as he deals with injury.
"Cam is still working through some injuries that he's had that's set him back," said Brohm. "We worked him harder this week. Had a little setback, but I still think he'll be able to play. We're gonna try to work him in there and I'm hopeful that he can give us some valuable minutes."
Brohm had to turn to redshirt freshman Dylan Downing and true freshman Ja'Quez Cross to run the ball last with Zander Horvath and Doerue out.
"They got a lot of work," said Brohm, "because those are the two guys who played last week. We're gonna try to do some things to help the running game. Both of them will have to be ready to go.
"Dylan will play running back and some fullback. And Ja'Quez will be at the tailback position and possibly on some returning kicks. They just got to continue to make progress. It's been a big emphasis this week. At the same time, as we get into the game, this is going to be a game where it's limited possessions. They're going to control the ball, they're going to take the clock down to zero, they're going to run it. And we've got to make our first couple possessions valuable. ..."
A win would move Purdue to 4-1 as it enters an off week, giving the program its best start since a 5-0 beginning in 2007.
"Every win would be nice," said Brohm. "That is the goal, is to just to win this game. It's a conference game, it's at home. Minnesota has beat us three straight years in a row. They're a tough matchup. They're big, they're physical. They run the ball and control the 'clock. In those type of games, it's important that we get a lead. If you can't get a lead, you're behind the eight ball the entire game. You're fighting and scrapping to just hang in there and try to figure it out.
"We got behind last year and tried to scrap and figure it out and hung in there, but came up short. It's tough to do that. We have to figure out a way to get a lead. We have to get some stops early. We got to score some points, special teams got to do a good job. ... "
Membership Info: Sign up for GoldandBlack.com now | Why join? | Questions?
Follow GoldandBlack.com: Twitter | Facebook | YouTube
More: Gold and Black Illustrated/Gold and Black Express | Subscribe to our podcast
Copyright, Boilers, Inc. 2021. All Rights Reserved. Reproducing or using editorial or graphical content, in whole or in part, without permission, is strictly prohibited.