What went wrong?
If Purdue was ever going to end the streak against Wisconsin this was the year to do it. Wisconsin has stumbled this season. Their offense is middling at best. They have no real pass offense to speak of. When you face a team that is so one dimensional you’ve gotta figure out a way to slow them down and force them to beat you with their weaknesses. Wisconsin did that against a similarly one dimensional Purdue team while Purdue could not do the same to Wisconsin.
In a game that most Purdue fans were optimistic about coming off the upset victory over #2 Iowa the offense simply never got going. Jeff Brohm became predictable with his use of the QBs. For some reason Brohm seems to believe that Plummer can’t throw the ball and can only run the option or wildcat. Why that has happened I don’t know. Plummer was your starter at the beginning of the year and yet somehow Brohm doesn’t trust him to throw the ball. That really gives a big edge to the Wisconsin defense when Plummer is inserted in the game. The Purdue offensive line isn’t good enough to combat that edge.
I really can’t fathom the play calling or the game plan that was put in place for this game. The defense did everything they could by forcing turnovers, and even scoring points thanks to Big George and Brown. The Purdue offense simply put them into terrible position after terrible position. An AOC interception put Wisconsin on the Purdue one (in fairness though AOC ultimately did make the tackle to stop Wisconsin at the one) but somehow the Purdue defense held and forced Wisconsin to settle for a field goal. It felt like the Purdue defense was on the field for nearly the entire game. They’ve improved as a defense for sure but this was just asking too much of them.
AOC wound up with 3 interceptions and was just inches away from having more. The QB position was terrible all around. Plummer continues to be put into a position to fail by Brohm and I can’t understand it. AOC may have the better arm but you’d be hard pressed to prove that given the offensive play calling that Brohm uses when Plummer is in the game. Burton was used sparingly and only on runs. It made the offense even more one dimensional than usual.
This loss is on the offensive coaches and the inability to figure out a cohesive and coherent game plan. It’s just so frustrating to watch Purdue have yet another letdown after a huge upset. This seems to be Brohm’s MO and if this team is truly to take the next step Brohm needs to figure out how to put two good games together. For now, there’s a lot to improve upon. Much more to come.