Purdue Football: 5 Must Haves to Beat Sparty

Purdue is only 2.5 point under dogs according to Vegas. A surprise? A bit so. MSU, a atop 5 team in the nation and just catapulted themselves into the conversation for the college football playoffs.

But, can the Boilers be Spoilers?

If these things happen, I think so.

1. Control the clock, similar to Iowa Game - Purdue needs to work the clock, control the ball and keep the ball away from that potent MSU running game. Against Iowa, we did that exact thing and it turned out great. If Sparty gets the ball, they will run the clock and control it themselves, a game of keep away may be in store .
2. Fineran to get back on track - Mitchell Fineran has struggled in recent weeks after starting the season with his hair on fire. There have been several missed kicks. If we want to win this game, we cannot afford to miss kicks in plus territory.
3. Limit turnovers & force turnovers - The defense has been forcing plenty of turnovers. But, the offense has been reciprocating. We need to win the turnover battle, no bad interceptions and to force pressure on the quarterback when the Spartans pass.
4. Stop the run - Kenneth Walker III has been the epitome of a perfect transfer in the age of the transfer portal. This is the most obvious one, we have to stop him. Do so, and win the game. This is a tall task for a team that was just ran over by Wisky a couple weeks ago.
5. Outcoach Mel Tucker - Mel Tucker has silenced the doubters this season. Coach Brohm has shown that he generally coaches his best game when Purdue is playing a highly ranked team. Can he do it again against Coach Tucker? Coach Tucker has been terrific this year, especially late in games.