Purdue Football: All of the Sudden, Quarterback is a Position of Uncertainty

All of the sudden, the quarterback position for our Purdue Boilermakers is a messy position. After having the luxury of two quarterbacks that could start for most schools in the country, we now have 0, with the exception of some young guys on the roster.

Last night, the internet exploded when it was announced from Jeff Brohm that Elijah Sindelar has been playing on a torn ACL since Northwestern.

By the way, with that torn ACL, he lead us to wins at Iowa, vs Indiana and at the Foster Farms Bowl, where he completed 33 of 53 passes for 396 yards, 4 touchdowns and an interception - that was not his fault.

But where we were once rich, we are now poor. Elijah is set to have surgery on the 29th, so tomorrow. ACL surgery is a minimum of 6 months to recover, that puts him at June - that is if everything goes perfect.

Let’s be honest here too - Eli is our starting quarterback. It was written on the wall all year, but it was awkward and hard to dethrone David Blough. He recruited Elijah when he was at Western Kentucky, there is a familiarity there and he is the tall pocket passer Coach Brohm loves.

They both had rocky starts as they were learning the new system. But, as a Purdue fan, I could tell he was really pushing to start Sindelar. Then, David Blough got hot and started two games in a row, one being Illinois, the game he was injured in. Then, Elija steps in, leads us to a bowl game and a bowl win. The writing is clear now - Elijah Sindelar is the starting quarterback for the Purdue Boilermakers.

But, the ACL now, back to where I was going. David Blough will be back for spring ball he says. The announcers spoke to Blough and he said his plans are to come back to work on his masters and compete for the starting quarterback job. That is why we grew to love Blough, he has grit and a determination that a lot of players don’t have. But, he is coming off of an ankle surgery - spring ball is the goal for him, again if everything goes perfect.

So, our two luxuries at quarterback are now hurt. So, what now?

Well, you have already in roster Nick Sipe, a former 3* quarterback from California that has been on the roster learning the playbook all year, while running the scout team quarterback. He was a Darrell Hazell recruit and stayed committed once Jeff Brohm was hired.

Then, you have Jack Plummer. The 3* quarterback that will be enrolling in a couple of weeks. at 6’5”, 215 pounds already, he is what Brohm loves in a quarterback. Can run a little but is mainly a pocket passer. Brohm has talked him up too, saying he was the #1 quarterback in the nation in their eyes. Saying he has great arm talent already. Coach Brohm loves his first quarterback that he recruited and plucked him from Arizona.

But there is just so much uncertainty at this position now. My gut tells me that both Blough and Sindelar will be out through spring ball. Allowing Nick Sipe, Jack Plummer and Griffin Alstott to get all of the reps, getting all three valuable experience under the coaching staff.

But, even with QB1 and QB2 out, the botttom line is that... This is Elijah Sindelar’s team now. We just have to accept it and accept it with open arms, because with this staff and his arm talent, there is a lot that can be accomplished