Game: Blown away | Notebook | Gallery

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Purdue's problem now is trying to fix anything when there is so much to fix.

No. 1 is on the offensive line, where the Boilermakers tried several pairings as they deal with a injuries — Jordan Roos (back) and Matt McCann (ankle) played Saturday but aren't healthy — and an absence in Martesse Patterson (arrest).

It's hard enough to play the position healthy, enduring the play-by-play grind, but to do so injury and while missing most of the week of preparation, as Roos and McCann did, that's near impossible.

That's not to excuse Purdue, which is lacking in developed depth. But this week, it needs a more clearly defined plan of what it wants to do if the first option fails. As "Boilermaker Breakdown" points out, Purdue used multiple formations up front, each with limited results. David Blough was sacked six times and the running game failed to launch.

In the short term, Purdue needs to find a rotation that works, likely with Cameron Cermin at left tackle and McCann at right, provided he's healthier. But we'll see how Darrell Hazell and Co. fix their most pressing issue.

Joe Schopper had a great game.

The sophomore punter averaged only 38.4 yards per attempt, but that's not fully telling of his performance. Of he eight kicks, he dropped five inside Maryland's 20-yard-line. That and he stymied excellent Maryland return man William Likely III, keeping him on the sideline with angled kicks outside the hashes.

Solid performance, and unfortunately one of the few.

The Boilermaker defense did stop the run against Nevada.

Yeah, the Wolf Pack are a lesser opponent than Maryland — and Nevada got beat at Hawaii on Saturday night, showing that it might be in for a long season — but some of what the Boilermakers did in Game 3 should have translated to Game 4. Right?

But no. Purdue was out of its gaps, couldn't get off blocks and failed to set the edge, and the Boilermaker defense did so so often that the Terrapins rushed for 400 yards, averaging just a bit less than nine yard per attempt.

Expected Purdue to level off, but not sink.

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