The Weekly Word is GoldandBlack.com's weekly, obviously, column covering Purdue football, basketball and recruiting, as well as college sports issues, the true meaning of life, or whatever other topics might come to mind in a given week.

The first month of Purdue's season hasn't gone as hoped, as the Boilermakers have let two winnable games slip away, with some clear shortcomings still needing to be remedied and the toll of injury mounting, not only in numbers but impact.

But as Big Ten play resumes, there's no better opponent to reverse course against than this one: Minnesota.

While the Boilermakers will be, and should be, underdogs by a considerable margin in the Twin Cities on Saturday, this would be an upset with distinct springboard potential, because the Gophers have become a roadblock Purdue's struggled to steer clear of, Minnesota being to Purdue what Purdue has been to Iowa.