2013-14 Football Previews – (Big 10) – Boilermakers
Darrell Hazell did an amazing job of turning around the Kent State program in just two years. The Golden Flashes went 11-3 and almost went to a BCS bowl game last year. Hazell spent the 2004 through 2010 seasons working as an assistant at Ohio State, so he has plenty of experience in the Big Ten.
Big 10 Conference 2012-2013 College Football Previews: Purdue Boilermakers (Team Link)
Head Coach: Darrell Hazell
2012 Record: 6-7
Purdue Gambling Odds to win BCS Championship (Part of Field): +2,000
Purdue Gambling Odds to win Big 10 Leaders Division: +3,000
Purdue Gambling Odds to win Big 10 Conference: +9,000
Purdue went 6-7 last year, and the season ended with an ugly 58-14 loss against Oklahoma State in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. The Boilermakers had a chance to make their mark on the season in Columbus last October, but they blew a very late lead against Ohio State and Purdue’s season went south the rest of the way.
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Let’s take a look and see what kind of talent Hazell will have in his first season as a head coach in the Big Ten.
Team Strengths:
Purdue’s defensive line has the potential to be excellent. Bruce Gaston can dominate a game from the defensive tackle position. He should be great at both stuffing the run and pushing the pocket back to pressure the quarterback. Ryan Russell gives the Boilermakers a very good pass rusher from the outside. This group should be very good.
Purdue should be able to run the football in 2013. Akeem Hunt didn’t get a ton of carries last year, but he showed he can be a play maker. He is a good shifty runner who does a nice job following blockers. The Boilermakers offensive line should be an area of strength as well. Robert Kugler was great as a freshman center last year, and he should be even better in his sophomore season. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Team Weaknesses:
The quarterback spot is a big question mark for Purdue heading into the 2013 season. Rob Henry is a good runner at the quarterback spot, but he has never proven capable of throwing it effectively. Freshman Danny Etling should be a future star for the Boilermakers, but if he sees the field a lot this year there are bound to be some growing pains in store for the offense.
Purdue lacks a big play maker on the outside, so whoever the quarterback is bound to struggle. The Boilermakers will likely try to run quick screens and get some receivers out in the open field, but I’m not sure anyone on this roster can take advantage of their opportunities enough to get the passing game going.
The Boilermakers secondary has been inconsistent the last couple years. They can be very good, but they can also be very bad at times. If Purdue is going to be a real player in the Leaders Division, this group must be good every Saturday.
2013-2014 Purdue Football Prediction: 5-7
I really like the hire of Hazell for the future of the Boilermakers program, but it seems unlikely that they’ll make much noise this year. The schedule certainly won’t help out at all. Purdue will be an underdog in all four Big Ten road games, and they must play Nebraska and Ohio State at home. A road game at Cincinnati and home game against Notre Dame means this team has a tough non-conference schedule. Purdue will have a tough time getting to a bowl game this year.
2013 Purdue Schedule
8/31/13 TBD @CIN
8/7/13 TBD INDST
9/14/13 8:00 PM ET NOTRE
9/21/13 TBD @WISC
9/28/13 12:00 PM ET NOILL
10/12/13 TBD NEB
10/19/13 TBD @MCHST
11/2/13 TBD OHIST
11/9/13 TBD IOWA
11/16/13 TBD @PENST
11/23/13 TBD ILL
11/30/13 TBD @IND
