Boilers Bash Busch’s Bunch Better Than Palmer Plagues Purdue

ThotDoc's brain droppings on the Nebraska-Purdue football game

Jim “ThotDoc” Childerston | Oct 16, 2022

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On a cool October evening in West Lafayette, Indiana the Purdue Boilermakers survived a shootout to edge the Nebraska Cornhuskers 43-37 in a game that was both exciting and exhausting. Nebraska’s offense brought the excitement while their defense experienced the exhaustion. If you look at the stat sheet, the numbers just don’t add up. Purdue ran 101 plays from scrimmage to Nebraska’s 52 and dominated time of possession 42:42 to 17:18. The Boilermakers had the ball for nearly three quarters of the contest and won the turnover battle two to one and escaped with a 6-point victory primarily because they converted those turnovers into 9 points.

Numbers can be deceiving as Nebraska averaged 5.3 yards per rush to Purdue’s 4.6, and the Huskers averaged 22.1 yards per reception to Purdue’s 11.2. But when you are only on the field for half the number of plays as your opponent you lose the battle. Nebraska thirteen possessions averaged just 1:17 and on their seven scoring drives they took an average of 1:19 off the clock. In contrast, Purdue averaged 3:16 per possession and 3:05 on their scoring drives. The defense couldn’t get off the field and when they did the offense put them back out there in just a couple of minutes.

With the game in the balance and the Huskers down by 6 points, the defense had a chance on a 4th and 1 at midfield, but the least athletic Purdue runner, quarterback Aiden O’Connell, scrambled for 3 yards as Ty Robinson overran him. They also had a chance on a 3rd and 11 from the NU 48, but a blitz failed to get home and O’Connell threw a ball under pressure before receiver Charlie Jones made his cut and Jones caught it for a 14-yard gain. Give O’Connell credit as he made throw after impossible throw into tight spaces that his receivers found even with good defensive coverage. Purdue made the plays when they needed to and Nebraska did not. Both of Casey Thompson’s interceptions were when he underthrew wide open receivers (Vokolek and Palmer) that would have been big gainers.

Nebraska running back Anthony Grant runs past Purdue defensive tackle Branson Deen during the second half.

© Alex Martin/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK

Purdue wide receiver TJ Sheffield dives into the end zone for a touchdown.

Nebraska's Trey Palmer set a Husker single-game record with 237 receiving yards.

Nebraska running back Jaquez Yant fights for yardage against the Boilermakers.

Purdue running back Devin Mockobee carries the ball.

Nebraska's Chris Kolarevic thwarts a pass intended for Purdue running back Devin Mockobee.

Purdue running back Devin Mockobee runs against Nebraska linebacker Nick Henrich during the first half.

© Noe Padilla/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK

Purdue's Devin Mockobee runs through a big hole in the Nebraska defensive line.

The ball comes loose as Husker quarterback Casey Thompson is blindsided during the first half. Nebraska recovered the ball.

Purdue quarterback Aidan O'Connell passes the ball as Ochaun Mathis closes in.

Jaquez Yant celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half.

Purdue wide receiver Mershawn Rice catches a pass during the second half.

Nebraska's Garrett Nelson pursues Purdue receiver Charlie Jones during the second half.

Nebraska wide receiver Marcus Washington catches a pass.

© Alex Martin photo/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK

Nebraska's Malcolm Hartzog intercepts a pass in the end zone on Purdue's first possession of the game.

Another view of Malcolm Hartzog's interception.

© Alex Martin photo/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWOR

Nebraska's Casey Thompson is sacked during the first half.

Nebraska's Timmy Bleekrode kicks a field goal during the first half.

Nebraska's Casey Thompson uncorks a pass against the Boilermakers.

Purdue's Devin Mockobee runs for a touchdown during the first half.

Purdue's Aidan O'Connell throws a pass during the second half.

Purdue wide receiver TJ Sheffield dives into the end zone for a touchdown past Nebraska's Isaac Gifford during the second half.

Nebraska's Myles Farmer chases Purdue running back King Doerue.

Nebraska tight end Travis Vokolek runs after making a second-half catch.

Purdue defensive end Kydran Jenkins sacks Casey Thompson during the first half.

Nebraska's Trey Palmer catches a pass for a touchdown during the second half.

Purdue running back King Doerue tries to get past Nebraska's Ernest Hausmann.

Purdue's Charlie Jones with one of his 12 catches against the Huskers.

Nebraska quarterback Casey Thompson makes a throw.

Quarterback Aidan O'Connell runs for a first down on Purdue's game-ending possession.

Purdue running back King Doerue is tackled by Nebraska's Ernest Hausmann.

Purdue wide receiver TJ Sheffield spins away from Nebraska defensive back Malcolm Hartzog on his way to scoring a touchdown during the second half.

Purdue defensive tackle Branson Deen sacks Nebraska's Casey Thompson during the first half.

Purdue had no answer for Trey Palmer who caught seven passes for 237 yards with touchdowns of 37 and 72 yards in the third quarter. Palmer had catches of 3, 10, 12, 37, 39, 64, and 72 yards. His 237 receiving yards marked the most receiving yards in Nebraska history, eclipsing the previous record of 209 receiving yards by JD Spielman on Oct. 6, 2018. The 72-yard touchdown reception was a career-long catch, and he also had a career-long 60-yard rush in the game (the longest Husker run of the season). Palmer finished with a career-high 297 all-purpose yards, the fifth-highest total in program history and the most since Ameer Abdullah had a school-record 341 all-purpose yards against Rutgers on Oct. 24, 2014. Palmer accounted for 62% of the Husker offense and probably could have had more as Purdue couldn’t cover him and Thompson couldn’t get the ball deep enough to him as even on a couple of his receptions, the ball was underthrown. Even with minimally better pass protection, Thompson and Palmer could have played pitch and catch all night.

Unfortunately, the Huskers got off to a slow start gaining just 20 net yards on their first two possessions while Purdue raced to a 10-0 lead. After tying the game at 10-10 in the second quarter, Purdue scored 17 points in the last 5:49 in the first half to lead 27-10. This was eerily similar to the 14 points yielded to Indiana with about the same amount of time before intermission. But the Huskers went 50 yards in 5 plays in the last :35 of the second quarter that culminated with a 43-yard field goal to cut the lead to 14 points. The Huskers took the second half kickoff 71 yards in four plays to close to 27-20, then after trading punts, Nebraska took just two plays to go 72 yards and had a first and goal at the Purdue 4-yard line. Three incomplete passes later, including a horrible miss to a WIDE-OPEN Alante Brown in the endzone, and the Huskers settled for three instead of tying the score. Take away that miss and the two picks, even with the inequity in total plays and time of possession, the Huskers could have won this one on the road. But Purdue made the plays they needed to and the Huskers did not. Rinse and repeat.

The offensive line is still a mess as the Huskers played their fourth different combination in the last five games and Purdue still had four sacks for 38 yards in the first half. Bryce Benhart played some at right guard in the first half and was back at right tackle in the second half as the protection improved enough to allow Thompson and the offense a chance to score 24 points after intermission. Rolling Thompson out helps somewhat, but only if he can hit open receivers. The bootleg would appear to be available and when he scrambled, he made 37 yards. He did manage to complete 16 of 29 passes for 354 yards with the two Palmer TDs and the two ugly interceptions. I still worry that he may not survive the five remaining contests.

The running game was essentially non-existent as three running backs totaled 63 yards on 16 carries to add to Palmer gaining 60 yards on the end around. In the air, besides Palmer’s stellar performance, four other receivers split 9 grabs for 117 yards highlighted by Oliver Martin’s 45-yard reception at the end of the first quarter (which more than doubled the 38 yards gained up to that play), and Travis Vokolek’s 30-yard reception among his three catches. Marcus Washington had 3 catches for 30 yards. In order to be successful going forward, the offense will need to utilize more playmakers than the Thompson to Palmer combination as future opponents will certainly attempt to double cover Palmer.

The defense gave up 608 yards (217 rushing and 391 passing). They were plagued by more missed tackles and gave up 179 yards to the Purdue running back Devon Mockabee, which allowed the passing game to further succeed. The Huskers played without its leading tackler, linebacker Luke Reimer, and then lost a captain in linebacker Nick Henrich who looks to have a knee injury. Without that speed on the field, the reserves were most vulnerable. Miles Farmer and Isaac Gifford led the team with 9 stops each and Henrich had 8 tackles including a TFL before leaving in the second quarter. Quinton Newsome (6 tackles and 2 PBUs) was playing hurt and was tasked with guarding Purdue’s leading receiver Charlie Jones, who ended up with 12 catches and they seemed like they were all crucial. Ochaun Mahis (6 tackles) provided the most pressure of any of the lineman and Garrett Nelson (3 tackles) had a very quiet night. Malcolm Hartzog (3 tackles) had an interception for the second consecutive game. Sadly, the defense failed to record a sack or a QB hurry for the game.

Special teams were a highlight for the Huskers and have represented the biggest improvement for this team over last season. Defensive back Phalen Sanford blocked a second-quarter punt, marking his first career punt block and it was Nebraska’s third blocked punt of the season, its most since blocking four punts in 2014. Place-kicker Timmy Bleekrode connected on two first-half field goals, and a third-quarter field goal. Those are his first three made field goals since the North Dakota game on Sept. 3. Bleekrode is 4-of-6 on field goals this season. Bleekrode’s three field goals are the most for a Husker since Connor Culp had three field goals in a 2020 win at Purdue. Brendan Franke had 5 touchbacks on 7 kickoffs and the two returns totaled only 18 yards. Brian Buschini averaged 42.0 yards on 4 punts with a long of 53 yards. Tommi Hill returned four kickoffs for 92 yards with a long of 32 and just missed breaking it for longer.

Once again the bye week is most needed. The Huskers are beat up and hurting. On October 29, a surprising 6-1 Illinois comes to Lincoln looking to solidify their lead in the Big Ten West. If the defense doesn’t shore up the middle, Chase Brown, who ran for 180 yards today against Minnesota, will run roughshod and the Huskers will once again struggle with getting off the field. Although disappointed by tonight’s outcome, I was encouraged by the fight and grit the Huskers have displayed under Mickey Joseph. They just keep coming back. They don’t give up. They play with resolve and believe they can win. It's a refreshing improvement and gives Big Red fans some hope in the five remaining games to perhaps get to the needed six wins for bowl eligibility. If Joseph can pull it off, no matter the odds, he will give Trev Alberts something to think about in his coaching search. Go Big Red!!!

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Published Oct 16, 2022

JIM “THOTDOC” CHILDERSTON

Jim Childerston is a lifelong Cornhusker fan who was born and reared in Omaha, Nebraska. He is old enough to have experienced the best of times and the worst of times as a Nebraska fan. Currently living in Hagerstown, Maryland, Dr. Childerston is a clinical psychologist specializing in a broad spectrum of psychological disciplines including individual and couple therapy, as well as medical and pharmacological consulting. He is a nationally known author and a widely sought speaker who has led seminars and retreats across the United States. His username on the HuskerMax bulletin board is ThotDoc and he has been posting his “Brain Droppings” there since 2010. You can reach Dr. Childerston at jchilderston(at)gmail.com.

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