Before each Ohio State game, Eleven Warriors catches up with a media member who covers the opposing team to get his or her perspective on the Buckeyes' upcoming opponent.
Purdue
Boilermakers
This week, Ohio State travels to West Lafayette for a noon kickoff with Purdue at Ross-Ade Stadium, which has been a house of horrors for the Buckeyes as they’ve gone just 3-5 in road games at Purdue since 2000.
To help break down the matchup, we're joined by Mike Carmin, who covered Purdue for 32 years for The Journal & Courier and now contributes to GoldandBlack.com. We discussed Ryan Walters, Purdue quarterback Hudson Card, OSU’s not-so-great history against Purdue on the road and more.
There seems to have been a lot of trial and error on the field in Ryan Walters' first year at the helm leading to a 2-4 start. What in your opinion has gone right on the field, and what hasn't exactly gone according to plan?
Mike Carmin: Plenty of new faces — on the roster and on the sidelines this season, leading to uneven play during the first month. At the halfway point, the running game is productive, considering a new offensive line. Quarterback Hudson Card has enjoyed good moments but is still searching for consistency in the passing game. Turnovers and penalties have been an issue, and this team can't overcome its own mistakes.
Purdue landed a big-name transfer QB in Hudson Card in the offseason and so far results have looked like a mixed bag, with Card throwing six touchdowns to five interceptions. What's been your impression of the former Longhorn?
Carmin: He's been effective in the run game, using his dual-threat skill to challenge defenses, but most of the time he's been under a lot of pressure. Against Iowa, the Hawkeyes battered and bruised him, but he also hung onto the ball too long and was sacked, taking his team out of field goal range. He doesn't have a deep receiving group and Purdue lacks an NFL-caliber receiver that we've seen in the program the last five years. He has a strong arm but needs some help from his playmakers to make this offense reach the next level.
For whatever reason, the Boilermakers have had Ohio State's number at Ross-Ade Stadium in recent history. What do you remember about the last few wins Purdue has had against the Buckeyes?
Carmin: Purdue has beaten the Buckeyes five times in Ross-Ade since 2000. I've always said OSU fans dread coming to Purdue more than going to Michigan because they expect to win in West Lafayette and have left disappointed more than they care to count. The last trip in 2018 was a mountain of emotion and momentum the Buckeyes had to overcome with Tyler Trent's situation and the Boilermakers executing at the highest level possible. My guess is OSU has been a little flat coming to Ross-Ade but finds itself in a fight each time. You had the Ryan Kerrigan game in 2009 where the defensive end dominated Terrelle Pryor. Purdue finds a player to raise his level and the rest of the team follows.
Freshman safety Dillon Thieneman has turned in a breakout year for Purdue with 53 tackles and three interceptions. While the Boilermakers' defense overall has struggled, what has Dillon brought to the defense?
Carmin: He's a talented player who can cover a lot of ground based on his skillset and athletic ability. You'll see him lined up in the next county — he's about 25-30 yards off the ball, usually in the middle of the field — but has tremendous closing speed. He cleans up a lot of plays and Walters has turned over a lot of responsibility to Thieneman, who had two older brothers play in the program. However, both brothers came as walk-ons and earned scholarships.
What other players besides Card and Thieneman should OSU fans look out for on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball?
Carmin: On offense, receiver Deion Burks is the fastest player on the team and can produce big plays if he finds open space. Tight end Garrett Miller is rounding into form after missing last season with a knee injury. He had eight catches last week at Iowa. Running back Devin Mockobee runs hard and made it through the Iowa game without a fumble. He's had ball security issues.
Defense: Nic Scourton and Kydran Jenkins. The defensive ends/outside linebackers are enjoying good seasons, ranking among the Big Ten leaders in sacks and tackles for loss. Along with Thieneman, two solid playmakers who can cause disruption.
This one's a little off-topic, but as someone that's covered the Big Ten for more than three decades, I'm curious to get your opinion. What do you make of the Big Ten's new schedule from the 2024 to the 2028 seasons with the four Pac-12 teams joining the conference next season, and more specifically, how do you think a team like Purdue is going to handle this ever-expanding college football new world order?
Carmin: Look at Purdue's 2025 schedule and tell me where the wins come from. Ohio State, Oregon, Washington, USC and now add Notre Dame in the non-conference season. That's two years from now and things can change but the Boilermakers faced a difficult road in the future to find enough wins to reach bowl eligibility.
Side note: I don't believe 18 is a stopping point in realignment and you'll see the conference grow in the future.
Purdue — and other programs in the middle or near the bottom — face a daunting challenge to become or stay relevant without a divisional setup. But even the top-tier teams are going to be tested weekly, and I'm curious to see if it hurts the Big Ten in the playoff, even though the field expands to 12. Too many losses equal too many losses, regardless of the strength of the schedule.
How do you see this game unfolding and give us a score prediction if you have one?
Carmin: Ohio State has its own issues but I'm not sure this Purdue team is capable of exploiting those enough to pull out a victory. The Boilermakers will lean on the emotion of the day as it's the school's Hammer Down Cancer Game and Tyler Trent's story will be prevalent once again. Purdue can keep it close but will need help from OSU. With rain in the forecast, I'm not sure that's a good thing for the Boilermakers, who have fumbled 13 times in six games.
Ohio State 32, Purdue 18
