Nebraska vs Purdue: 3 Keys to Victory

Jeff Brohm and Co are looking to extend their winning streak this weekend as they host the Scott Frostless Cornhuskers at 7:30 PM. The crowd is a sellout, tailgate should be a 10 and the Boilers are double digit home favs.

But, what are the 3 keys to victory?

Looking back to last week at Maryland, I said, we had to do these 3 things:

1. Hold Maryland under 30 - 29 was a close call but was right.
2. Continue to run the ball - We did TRY and run the ball. Scored two touchdowns but we were not totally successful in terms of YPC.
3. Get Pressure on the QB - We sacked Tagovailoa 3 times and pressured him multiple other times.

So I was kind of spot on?

But, anyway, here are my 3 keys to victory for this week against Nebraska.

1. Contain Anthony Grant - Anthony Grant had not played a down since 2018 for Florida State of FBS Football. The Running Back is leaned on heavily in the run first Nebraska Offense. He has answered the call too, he is averaging 107 YPG and has 5 touchdowns. I see his game as similar to King Doerue, but he is a little more explosive. Look for Purdue to try and contain him today.
2. Don’t allow Trey Palmer to Dominate - Trey Palmer is having his best year of his collegiate career. While at LSU, he was buried on the depth chart. That is not to say, he isn’t good, there were just other dudes there, like, Jamaar Chase when he was a sophomore for example. Palmer is a deep threat that will need to be covered up by extra help from the safety most of the game. If not, we may see him score a long one.
3. Win Special Teams - We have done this in most games this year. Syracuse we did not and that was mostly because of dumb penalties and Penn State we did not punt great, Aside from those two, I would love to see Ansell keep up his 40 yard average on punts and Fineran to continue his consistent kicking. If we can get the return game going and win this phase of football every single week, we may be a 9 win team again.