There will be a new No. 2 team in the country on Sunday after Purdue stunned the college football world by taking down Iowa on the road, 24-7. After the game, the Boilermakers got a little sassy on Twitter in celebrating the victory.
Whoever runs Purdue’s account, in short, had a little fun with Iowa’s No. 2 ranking in a potty humor kind of fashion. He/she joked that Purdue beat the “No. 2” out of Iowa. If you don’t know what No. 2 is, well, I’m not sure what to tell you.
In all seriousness, however, the tweet is true. Purdue dominated the game from start to finish, sending a clear message to the Hawkeyes that they are not one of the elite teams in the country. Quarterback Aidan O’Connell had a career day, finishing 30-of-40 for 375 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver David Bell caught 11 passes for 240 yards and a touchdown as well.
Iowa, meanwhile, struggled mightily on offense. Quarterback Spencer Petras finished 17-of-32 for 195 with a whopping four interceptions. The Hawkeyes also only ran the ball for 76 yards on 30 carries.
ESPN’s Heather Dinich said she wasn’t shocked by the result. There were many who thought Iowa was overrated at No. 2.
Iowa’s schedule isn’t all that difficult from here on out – it gets Wisconsin, Northwestern, Minnesota, Illinois and Nebraska. But to have any real shot at getting back in College Football Playoff talk, the Hawkeyes would need to win all those games and then beat the Big Ten East champion in the league’s title game.
Iowa will get a week off before taking on Wisconsin on October 30.