Matchup Preview: Purdue-Iowa

Purdue at No. 23 Iowa

Date/Time/Place: Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019: noon ET, Kinnick Stadium

Surface: FieldTurf

Capacity: 70,585 (Tickets Available)

Schedule/records: Iowa (4-2 overall, 1-2 Big Ten); Purdue (2-4; 1-2)

Line: Purdue: +17

Series notes: Purdue leads the all-time series 48-38-3. Purdue has won the last two games, taking last year's meeting after Spencer Evans drilled a 25-yard field goal with eight seconds left for a 38-36 victory vs. No. 19 Iowa. The Boilermakers also won the last time they visited Iowa City, prevailing 24-25 in 2017. In fact, the Boilers have won two of their last three in Kinnick Stadium. The Hawkeyes had won four meetings in a row before Purdue's recent run. The Boilermakers won 20 in a row vs. Iowa from 1961-80. Since then, Purdue is 9-22-1 vs. the Hawkeyes.

TV: ESPN2 (Beth Mowins, PBP: Anthony Becht, Analyst; Rocky Boiman (sidelines)

Radio (Purdue): Sirius 133 / XM 195 / Tunein.com (Tim Newton, play-by-play; Pete Quinn, analyst; Kelly Kitchel, sideline; Rob Blackman, studio host). Coverage concludes with Boilermaker Sports Wrap with Nate Barrett and Alan Karpick at 30 minutes after game.

Pregame: Gold and Black Radio

Purdue roster | Purdue Schedule/results | Purdue Game Notes | Purdue Depth Chart

Iowa roster | Iowa Schedule/Results | Iowa Game Notes | Iowa Depth Chart

Iowa City Weather

MORE: First look: Iowa | Gold and Black Radio podcast: Iowa | Plummer, Bell honored by Big Ten | Brohm Monday presser: Iowa talk and Rondale Moore update | Roundtable: The Maryland win | Data Driven: Iowa | Coach's Corner: Former Hoosier at center of reshuffled o-line | Number Crunching: Week 8 | Opponent View: Iowa | Brohm radio show updates | Weekly Word | Coach's Corner: Brohm knows offense. And defense, too

Purdue hasn't been stout vs. the run, allowing 166.5 yards to rank 11th in the league. No doubt: Missing top tackles Lorenzo Neal and Anthony Watt (who may play) hurts. The good news for Purdue is that Iowa hasn't been over powering on the ground. The Hawks pride themselves on building good offensive lines, but this year's front has struggled to get a consistent push vs. quality foes. The Hawkeyes had just 70 yards rushing on 30 carries in last week's 17-12 home loss to Penn State. In a 10-3 defeat at Michigan the week before, the Hawkeyes were held to one yard rushing on 30 carries. Mekhi Sargent paces Iowa with 329 yards rushing. Toren Young has 313 yards and Tyler Goodson has 252. The squad averages 156.8 yards rushing. (Sixteen sacks have hurt Iowa's rush totals).

Iowa has had to lean on the pass. Not normal. In fact, the Hawkeyes are No. 4 in the Big Ten in passing (256.0 ypg). Purdue is No. 13 vs. the pass (278.0 ypg). Uh-oh. Iowa quarterback Nate Stanley is No. 3 in the league with 1,511 yards passing. But he has struggled the last two weeks vs. good foes. In losses at Michigan and to Penn State, Stanley has hit 48-of-85 passes for 546 with just one touchdown and four interceptions. Overall, the Hawkeyes have six turnovers in the last two games. Not ideal. Purdue needs to pressure/blitz Stanley, who has proven he has issues dealing with it. Iowa has three players with 24 catches each: Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Brandon Smith and Nico Ragaini. The Hawkeyes have earned a reputation for developing tight ends, but this year's team doesn't have a dominant one. Nate Wieting is the top tight end, and he has just six grabs. Turnovers also have been an issue of late. Iowa had two vs. Penn State. Purdue corner Cory Trice is coming off a break-out game that saw him make two interceptions (one a pick-six).

The Boilermakers are coming off their best rushing effort of 2019, running for 127 yards vs. Maryland behind a re-worked offensive line that had three new starters. Still, Purdue is last in the Big Ten rushing (63.5 ypg). True freshman King Doerue has been the bellwether. Maybe we'll see more of Tario Fuller, who made his season debut last week after breaking his jaw in camp. The Boilers will encounter a rugged Hawkeye front seven that is the reason why Iowa is No. 4 in the Big Ten vs. the run (100.8 ypg). Bottom line: The sledding could be tough for Purdue. The ever-evolving Boilermaker line will be put to the test. Purdue used motion, play-action and misdirection to manufacture a ground game last week; that must continue vs. a much better foe.

No Big Ten team has more passing yards than the Boilermakers, who average a league-high 324.5 yards via the air. And that likely will have to continue if Purdue wants to leave Iowa City with a second victory in succession. Redshirt freshman Jack Plummer is coming off his best game yet in just this third career start. He has a developing chemistry with David Bell, whom Iowa recruited heavily. And tight end Brycen Hopkins must build off his 10-catch effort vs. Maryland. But beware, Purdue: Iowa has two of the better defensive ends in the Big Ten. A.J. Epensea is a future first-round pick. Chauncey Golston is underrated. But neither has been dominant. (Iowa is 13th in the Big Ten with only 10 sacks.) Epensea has three sacks (he led the Big Ten with 10.5 in 2018, and he wasn't even a starter), while Golston has two. Linebacker Kristian Welch has a team-best 47 stops. Purdue may want to avoid throwing toward Iowa corner Michael Ojemudia, who has a team-best two picks and three PBUs. Jeff Brohm has done a good job in his two meetings with Iowa of finding a weak cornerback ... and attacking him.

Purdue's special teams have been a mixed bag. J.D. Dellinger has been one of the team's top players, nailing 6-of-8 field-goal attempts. The punting and coverage teams have been solid. But the Boilermakers are listless in the return game. Purdue is last in the Big Ten in punt returns (4.0 ypr) and second-to-last in kickoff returns (15.2 ypr). Iowa kicker Keith Duncan has been a weapon. He has nailed a Big Ten-best 13 field goals on 15 attempts, including 7-of-8 from 40-49 yards. His long is 49 yards. Smith-Marsette is one of the better kickoff return men in the Big Ten, averaging 21.8 yards. Ragaini is No. 1 in punt returns, averaging 10.7 yards per return. Dellinger's booming leg should render Smith-Marsette useless on kickoff returns, and Purdue's rugby-style punter Zac Collins could minimize Iowa's punt return game.

Purdue will encounter an Iowa team that is desperate and motivated to get back on track. After opening 4-0, the Hawkeyes have lost their last two--albeit to quality foes in Michigan and Penn State. And it has been ugly--especially on offense. If Iowa wants to stay in the thick of the Big Ten West race, it must win. The Hawkeyes also are keenly aware they have lost two in a row to Purdue, including last year on a last-second field goal in Ross-Ade Stadium. Want more? Iowa has lost two of its last three in Kinnick to the Boilermakers. Kirk Feretnz's squad will be motivated on homecoming. Purdue is looking to build on the mojo of last week's 40-14 win vs. Maryland. The Boilermakers need four wins in their last six games to get bowl eligible. Will this be one of the triumphs for a young Purdue club that has dealt with myriad injuries?