The Huskers will travel to West Lafayette to take on Purdue this Saturday. The Boilermakers have dropped three straight games and are looking to right the ship against the Huskers.
Like Nebraska, Purdue has been in a list of close games that haven’t gone its way. Every game that Purdue has played in 2020 has been close. The largest margin has been seven points.
“Well, the positives are is we have had a chance to win every game, and I think our guys have played hard and that’s been the positive,” Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said. “And I think they want to win and I think they are committed to doing that and that’s a positive. So we’ve got to build on that.
“But we haven’t been able to win quite a few of these close games lately. So when that happens, we all have to dive into what we’re doing and as a former player, you know, the first thing that has to happen is each coach has to figure out a way to put our players in the best positions to succeed, and how can we get better and how can we create an environment where they can make a few of those plays if they are not, so we have to do that. Our players have to dig deeper, as well, and understand that when these games get tight, we’ve got to maintain our composure and our confidence and we’ve got to find ways to make plays.”
Sound familiar? That quote could easily be attributed to Coach Scott Frost and it would seem normal to Husker fans. Brohm is still building his program to have the mentality to finish close games. It’s another week for both programs to find out how mentally tough their players are.
Brohm was asked this week about what types of challenges the Huskers present for his team. He recognized that Nebraska is in a similar spot as his team.
“Nebraska has been in a lot of their games, as well,” Brohm said. “They are going to spread the field on offense and the ability for the quarterback to run makes it dangerous, and that’s going to be a challenge for us. We’re going to have to find ways to get off the field and get the ball back for the offense and create stops and we’re going to have to contain the running back around the edge, and the quarterback holding the ball and running it. And those are things they have been pretty good at every game.”
When it comes to Purdue’s offense, it can be quite dangerous. The team features two wide receivers with All-American potential. Rondale Moore and David Bell can stress a defense in a variety of ways. Brohm wants to be efficient on offense but knows it’s all about getting the ball to his playmakers. To do that, Purdue needs to take care of the football and perform better on special teams.
The Huskers and Boilermakers mirror each other in terms of what plagues is program. Controlling turnovers, executing on special teams and playing consistent defense have been issues for both. Something has to give this weekend for the team that comes out with a win on Purdue’s senior day.
