Purdue vs. Washington
Purdue lost an embarrassing six games this year, though those six games were lost by a combined 26 points. In their four games against top 12 teams, Purdue lost by 4 to Ohio State, 3 to Iowa, 2 to Michigan, and 7 to Notre Dame. It is not inconceivable to be talking about a 10-2 or 11-1 Purdue team playing on New Year?s Day rather than a 6-6 team playing in the Sun Bowl. That is no consolation to Purdue coach Joe Tiller, who is disappointed with his team?s performance early in the season, but was happy with the way they responded to winning three of their last four to become bowl eligible. ?We played our best football down the stretch, and we are excited to play another game,? he said. ?I think we have two teams that might be playing their best football of the season coming into El Paso.? Tiller may be on to something.
While Washington isn?t much of a threat running the ball, QB Cody Pickett and WR Reggie Williams are going to be among the top Heisman candidates in 2003. Pickett has passed for 4,186 yards by completing 61% of his passes. Of those 4,186 yards, 1,390 of them went to Williams. Purdue?s All American candidate at Free Safety, Stu Schweigert says "Williams is a great receiver. We've played great receivers this year, but he's going to be one of the toughest we've played. He's physical. We know we have a challenge with that.? That?s quite a compliment considering Purdue has played against such great receivers as Charles Rogers of Michigan State and Brandon Lloyd of Illinois. The amazing thig about this pass-catch duo is that Picket is only a junior and Williams is a sophomore. Both are likely to return next season and lead the Huskies back to the top of the Pac 10.
Taking snaps behind center for Purdue will likely be two players, both underclassmen. Kyle Orton is a sophomore who started the year as the starting QB. He improved each game and looked like a star in the first half of Purdue?s game against Iowa before being sidelined with a concussion. Enter Brandon Kirsch. Kirsch rallied Purdue to what appeared to be a come from behind victory of the Hawkeyes after Special Teams had essentially handed the game to Iowa. But for a late defensive lapse that allowed Iowa to win the game on a late fourth down touchdown pass, Kirsch would have been a hero. However, since that game Kirsch and Orton have taken turns as starters and as heroes. Kirsch dominated Northwestern and looked great against Michigan. Then both players looked very impressive against potential National Champion Ohio State before the Buckeyes heaved a desperation touchdown pass, again on fourth down late in the game to beat Purdue. Against Michigan State Kirsch looked decent before getting injured, allowing Orton to come off the bench in the final minutes of the game to throw a 40 yard touchdown pass to win the game. Kirsch remained the starter for the Indiana game, but was benched in favor of Orton, who was dominant against the Hoosiers in a blowout. Confused? So, apparently, is Joe Tiller. Tiller has yet to name a starting quarterback for the Sun Bowl, though sources say he will name Orton the starter in the coming days. Rick Neuheisel won?t pay any attention as the Huskies have been preparing for both QB?s. That?s the smart plan because both will play significant minutes in the Sun Bowl. Don?t let the uncertainty at quarterback fool you, though. These two players are very complimentary of each other with Orton having the best arm in college football and Kirsch using a great combination of footspeed and accuracy to lead the Boilermakers. The two have combined for over 3,000 yards passing completing nearly 60% of their passes. Both of these kids could start for most of their opponents and will pass the ball to All American candidate WR John Standeford, who caught 65 passes for 1202 yards.
On defense, the Huskies are stout at stopping the run while their secondary is suspect. That is why Tiller will start the game with Kyle Orton at quarterback. Purdue ran a very balanced offense that finished first in the Big Ten, but will need big days from 1,000 yard rusher Joey Harris and freshman Brandon Jones. Don?t expect either to have big days as they seem to have big days against weaker competition and fall short against the better defenses. Purdue?s defense finished #1 in the Big Ten, tied with Ohio State. The Boilermakers finished #1 in pass defense efficiency in the Big Ten. Watch for Free Safety Stu Schweigert to pay close attention to Williams? side of the field. Defensive Coordinator Brock Spack will focus his defense on preventing the big plays much like they did when facing Rogers at Michigan State.
The reason Purdue is 6-6 this season is because of fumbles and special teams errors. Those appear to be corrected. If Purdue wins the turnover margin and doesn?t give up free points on Special Teams, Purdue will come away with a 10 point win. I suspect Purdue will give up field position on either a fumble or blocked kick, but their defense will hold Washington to a FG. Purdue wins by 7 giving the Big Ten a 3-0 record this bowl season.
GL
