Austin Burton, Purdue Quarterbacks Taking Advantage of Citrus Bowl Opportunity

Purdue sixth-year senior Austin Burton will make the third start of his college football career when the team takes on LSU in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. He and the rest of the remaining quarterbacks on the team will get the chance to learn from Drew Brees.

D.J. Fezler | Dec 20, 2022

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Purdue Boilermakers

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — In a new era of college football, one where players across the country are flooding the transfer portal in search of new opportunities, sixth-year quarterback Austin Burton has stayed put the last three years despite being a backup.

Burton has started just two games in his college career, and as he gears up to take the reigns for Purdue football in its upcoming matchup against No. 16 LSU in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on Jan. 2, he's only adding to his experiences with the program.

The Boilermakers have put together two of the more memorable seasons in school history and are looking to reach nine wins in consecutive years for the first time since 1997 and 1998. Burton has been there every step of the way, impacting those around him with an aura of leadership while awaiting a career-defining opportunity.

"It's been two really special years, two of the most fun years I've ever had in my life," Burton said. "It's just such a cool opportunity to play in the Citrus Bowl and play in the Big Ten championship. A lot of people don't have the chance to do things like that. So just really enjoying it and maximizing the moment that I'm in right now."

Burton joined the program as a transfer from UCLA ahead of the 2020 season and didn't see action in a year that was shortened to just six games due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as college sports returned to normalcy in the last two years, he found himself second on the depth chart behind starting quarterback Aidan O'Connell.

With O'Connell under center last year, the Boilermakers claimed their first nine-win season since 2003, capped by a thrilling 48-45 overtime win against Tennessee in the Music City Bowl. This season, the team climbed to eight wins in the regular season and earned its first Big Ten West title in program history.

Purdue went on to lose the Big Ten Football Championship Game to No. 2 Michigan 43-22 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and now sits at 8-5 overall with a 6-3 record in the conference.

Sep 24, 2022; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Purdue Boilermakers quarterback Austin Burton (12) scrambles away from Florida Atlantic Owls safety Teja Young (4) during the second half at Ross-Ade Stadium / © Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

Burton put his stamp on one of those wins, leading the team to a 28-26 win over Florida Atlantic on Sept. 24 while O'Connell was sidelined due to injury. In just his second career start, he completed 21 of his 29 passes for 166 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

As a result of O'Connell's decision to opt out of the team's bowl game, Burton will start under center against the Tigers when the two teams meet at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.

While stepping into the starting role has been an uncommon occurrence for Burton at Purdue, being a leader his teammates can turn to is nothing new.

"He's really a big locker room guy, like everybody loves him," Purdue redshirt junior wide receiver TJ Sheffield said of Burton. "So I feel like he's just been waiting on this opportunity and he's gonna take advantage of it."

Burton is already reaping the rewards of sticking around for the team's final game of the season, getting a chance to work with legendary quarterback and Super Bowl champion Drew Brees.

With Jeff Brohm leaving Purdue to take the head coaching job at Lousiville and staff members departing alongside him, Brees joined the Boilermakers as an interim assistant coach to help prepare the team for the Citrus Bowl.

Brees took part in his first official practice as a coach on Monday and will continue to be a resource for players in the weeks leading up to game day. Learning from one of the best to ever play the game is an opportunity Burton won't let go to waste.

"I like his demeanor, I think he's got some natural leadership qualities just watching his interactions with the other QBs and his teammates in the meeting," Brees said of Burton. "He's got good size, good strength. Seems to see it well, gets the ball out on time and was accurate as far as what I saw today. I'm anxious to work with him."

Behind Burton, redshirt sophomore Michael Alaimo and true freshman Brady Allen are poised to play a role in the bowl game as well. Alaimo, who had a brief stay in the transfer portal before returning to Purdue during the offseason, completed five of his seven pass attempts this season as a reserve.

Sep 10, 2022; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Purdue Boilermakers quarterback Michael Alaimo (1) runs the ball during the third quarter against the Indiana State Sycamores at Ross-Ade Stadium / © Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports

Allen, a consensus four-star prospect out of Gibson Southern High School in Fort Branch, Ind., threw only three passes in his first year of college football.

Brees spoke of the importance of earning a chance to see the field. He had to do it himself in his first two years of college football, sitting in a backup role as a freshman before being elevated to starting quarterback as a sophomore.

To this day, Brees owns the Purdue program records for completions, attempts, passing yards and passing touchdowns. The bulk of those statistics came in three seasons of play.

"That's part of the growth process, that's part of the learning process," Brees said. "In order to be as good as you can possibly be, you have to experience failure, you have to experience adversity, you have to face disappointment. You have to be in situations where you have to learn to do things better.

"No better opportunity than what these guys have had this year to go through a season like this, learn from a guy like Aidan, learn from a guy like Austin who's been in this program for a long time now and played a lot of football."

Brees experienced a similar situation after being selected by the San Diego Chargers in the 2001 NFL Draft. He was a backup and was benched three times before solidifying himself as a starter in his fourth year as a professional.

After a 20-year NFL career, Brees retired in 2021 and still owns the league record for completion percentage while ranking second in passing yards, passing touchdowns, passing attempts and completions.

Dec 16, 2019; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) makes a throw in the second quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome / © Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

"I wouldn't trade it for the world. Because if I wouldn't have experienced those things, I never would have gotten to the level I got to, ever," Brees said. "It's hard to communicate that to young people. What the transfer portal has done to a certain extent, is it's made guys run away from challenges and run away from adversity, and that's unfortunate.

"Because to me, that's the best part of the process, and that's what extracts the best out of you. That competition, that disappointment and fighting through that. Grinding and developing some grit and determination. It's also what gives you the satisfaction when you do get to that point where you're the guy, you're the starter, you're that key contributor. It's what makes it all worth it, and it's what brings out another level in you."

Burton has embraced his role with the Boilermakers over the last three seasons, and with more time to prepare for his next start, there comes a feeling of comfortability. He's leading the wave of players that are stepping into new roles, looking to lead Purdue into the new year with a victory.

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