Linebacker Kieren Douglas Playing Through Injury for Purdue Football: 'He's One of the Toughest Guys I Know'
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Kieren Douglas needed assistance to hobble off the field following a game-changing interception in Purdue's road win over Illinois on Nov. 12.
The sixth-year senior has battled through knee injuries for most of his career, and even more so this season, but it wouldn't stop him from playing in the team's home finale against Northwestern at Ross-Ade Stadium last Saturday.
Despite being designated as an unlikely participant early in the week, Douglas toughed out the pain and went on to lead the team with seven tackles. His total matched a season-best and every takedown was credited as a solo effort, which aided the Boilermakers in a narrow 17-9 victory.
"My hat's off to Kieran, and he's injured," Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said after the game. "He wanted to give it a try with hardly any practice, if any. That's how he's been. He's had some rough knees even when he got here, but he's played injured. He can play tough and he's a great leader for our team."
Douglas was subject to an early mistake against the Wildcats, jumping offsides on the first play of the second quarter and giving the opposing offense a fresh set of downs. Northwestern staged a 13-play, 65-yard drive that ended in a field goal, making it a 7-3 game with 12:41 left before halftime.
But the Pickerington, Ohio, native saved his best for the second half, registering five tackles after halftime, including four in the fourth quarter alone. Following a field goal by Purdue to take an eight-point lead, the defense looked to prevent Northwestern from mounting a late-game comeback.
The longest drive of the game for the Wildcats took more than five minutes off the clock, and the Boilermakers only gave up 28 yards on 11 plays. Douglas was responsible for four stops on the possession, and Northwestern's longest play of the series went for just seven yards.
Facing fourth down on the Purdue 43-yard line, redshirt senior defensive lineman Jack Sullivan surged into the backfield for a sack and snuffed out any semblance of a scoring opportunity.
Douglas is Sullivan's roommate, and after being called crazy for wanting to practice the week leading up to Saturday's matchup, he was on the field when the Boilermakers needed one last stop on defense.
"He's one of the toughest guys I know," Sullivan said of Douglas. "So for him to have this kind of game, it's pretty special and it's a testament to his work ethic that he shows every day."
Despite being battered while the team's 2022 campaign comes to a close, Douglas is showing no signs of missing a game if he can help it. So far, he's registered 32 total tackles, one sack and one interception while appearing in every game this season.
He'll look to make his final regular-season appearance as Purdue prepares for a road matchup with bitter in-state rival Indiana on Saturday in a battle for the Old Oaken Bucket. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Ind.
"He played, really didn't want to come out," Brohm said. "He's injured, and not many people would play with what he has. He came out as good as you can come out. Yes, he's very, very sore, and we will get him as healthy as we can come game time."
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.