The anticipation on campus for Saturday’s Notre Dame-Purdue game is already palpable, said Irish defensive end Justin Tuck. Before he had walked out of his first class Monday morning, “I had students tell me how excited they were for this game,” he said. “It’s going to be a barnburner.”
Led by senior quarterback Kyle Orton, the Boilermakers (3-0) lead the nation in scoring offense, averaging 49.3 points per game. Purdue is second in total offense, with 561.7 yards per game, and second in passing yardage with 356 yards per game. An added stress on Notre Dame (3-1) is that Orton & Co. don’t make many mistakes. Orton’s passing efficiency rating–190.9–is tops in the country.
“I think the most obvious challenge [against Purdue] is the passing statistics that they’re putting up,” Irish linebacker Mike Goolsby said. “But they do have a successful running game as well.”
The Boilermakers are averaging 205.7 rushing yards per game.