Ryan Browne’s first start went so well Purdue coach Ryan Walters is giving him another chance.
Only this time, Browne will step onto the national stage, trying to snap a five-game losing streak while derailing No. 2 Oregon’s Big Ten title hopes and championship dreams. He might not even do it alone. But the message from Walters is clear: Just keep it going.
“I think the way he played it (at Illinois), it would be unfair not to (start him),” Walters said. “The things we saw during the game is what we were seeing during practice. Obviously, you don’t know what it’s going to look like until you get in live situations. I’m looking forward to watching his growth and maturation this week.”
Browne threw for 297 yards and three scores while rushing for 118 yards and rallying the Boilermakers (1-5, 0-3 Big Ten) from a 21-point halftime deficit to a late lead at then-No. 23 Illinois, only to lose 50-49 in overtime.
Still, Walters couldn’t pull the plug on a second-year player who gave his team some desperately needed momentum — even if he got the chance because opening day starter Hudson Card remained in the concussion protocol. Even if Card is cleared this week, Walters has hinted he may use some sort of quarterback rotation.
Why not, given what’s at stake Friday night?
The Ducks (6-0, 3-0) are in a three-way tie atop the Big Ten, reveling in their highest ranking since the end of the 2014 season, leapfrogging Ohio State after holding on for a 32-31 victory over the then-No. 2 Buckeyes.
Clearly, the Ducks are looking past Purdue.
Yes, this might be a natural spot for an upset.
Oregon enters this weekend on a seven-game winning streak and with only one loss in its previous 14 games. It has topped the 30-point mark in five straight and faces the reeling Boilermakers, who scored 46 second-half points last weekend after scoring just 44 total in the previous four games combined.
So Oregon coach Dan Lanning is guarding against human nature — making a 2,200-mile trip on a short week following one of the biggest wins in program history.
“We’re always playing Oregon and (figuring out) how we can improve and how we can get better,” Lanning said. “I think our guys are certainly aware of other situations in college football. It’s what makes this sport so great and hard, is that you’ve got to go out there and earn it every Saturday, every single weekend, Friday this week.”
Calling plays
Two weeks ago, Walters fired offensive coordinator Graham Harrell and tabbed offensive analyst Jason Simmons to call plays. Then last week, Walters did it himself.
Walters had so much fun calling plays and proved so successful over the final 30 minutes — the Boilermakers’ comeback attempt fell just short when they failed on a 2-point conversion — that he’s keeping the job.
“The week of the Wisconsin game I spent learning the vocab, the rules within the offense. I didn’t feel comfortable calling it that game,” Walters said. “Got to midweek last week and felt like I had the vocab down enough to know what play I wanted to get to, so I just felt like me calling the game was going to give us the best opportunity to put points on the board.”
Internal discipline
With the college football world tuning into last week’s Ohio State-Oregon game, Ducks receiver Traeshon Holden found himself watching most of the final three quarters like everyone else — on television.
The Alabama transfer was ejected early in the second quarter for spitting on an opponent. While Holden apologized in a social media post Sunday for his actions, the ramifications didn’t end there. Lanning said he was handling the discipline internally.
“There’s absolutely zero place for that in our program, zero place for that in football,” Lanning said, adding he had reached out to Buckeyes coach Ryan Day. “I know Traeshon’s extremely apologetic. He’s embarrassed. He realizes how wrong he was in that moment. There is some discipline that exists there, but I’m going to leave that for us internally to handle.”
Right track?
Walters has built his coaching career on defense, and facing the Ducks certainly creates some challenges.
His top priority is trying to slow down Oregon’s up-tempo offense, a seemingly impossible task.
“There hasn’t been anybody yet to figure that out, right?” Walters said. “We’ll have to be strategic offensively about wanting to play with pace but also understanding that possessing the football is at premium. Then on defense, we’ve got to be able to get off the field.”
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