The Purdue Boilermakers failed to make a bowl game in 2019, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Purdue lost its best offensive player, Rondale Moore, plus multiple quarterbacks early in the season. Yet, the Boilermakers were still able to beat Nebraska with a third-string quarterback. They won at Northwestern and capitalized on the Wildcats’ down year. They took 8-4 Indiana to double overtime before losing. Lesser teams would have gone 2-10. A 4-8 season can never be “good,” but Purdue dealt with a ton of hardships as well as one could reasonably expect.
This leads us to the big question facing Purdue football in the 2020s: If the Boilermakers can finally avoid key injuries (something they haven’t done under coach Jeff Brohm), can they cultivate a quarterback who can make the Brohm offense come alive?
Purdue is not unique in being a program which needs a quarterback to make everything else fit together. The Miami Hurricanes have been waiting for a great quarterback ever since Ken Dorsey became a pro. TCU has a quality defense and just needs a quarterback to boost the program back to national relevance under Gary Patterson. When TCU had an elite quarterback, Trevone Boykin, it won 11 or more games and was a top-10 team.
Imagine Iowa with an elite quarterback. Imagine Michigan State with an elite quarterback. Imagine California with an elite quarterback this past season. Imagine Texas A&M with a great quarterback, as opposed to Kellen Mond. Imagine Auburn with a great quarterback. Lots of programs need one. Purdue is part of that conversation.
The Boilermakers have had a problem losing season-opening (or early-season) games they ought to win, this year’s Nevada game being a prime example. That, however, is a one-game problem. The bigger issue for Purdue is finding the quarterback with high-end skills who can operate in Brohm’s offense and make the Boilermakers a hugely potent team. If Purdue can ever get its hands on a passer who dramatically expands the offense’s sense of possibility, this program is going to be a headache to deal with.
Purdue is already an annoying program, but the Boilermakers want to be an infuriating program in the 2020s. The quarterback spot is the key to the whole thing.