A Big Ten Conference win slipped through the fingers of the Nebraska Cornhusker football team on Saturday evening. A 43-37 defeat at the hands of the Purdue Boilermakers in West Lafayette has now placed Nebraska under .500 with a record of 3-4 (2-2), while Purdue improves to 5-2 (3-1).
The inconsistent play of Casey Thompson continues. The quarterback threw two interceptions on the day and was sacked several times after failing to get rid of the football on time. However, the bright spot of the offense was the play of wide receiver Trey Palmer. Palmer set a Nebraska school record in receiving yards for a game with 237 yards. The previous record was set by JD Spielman, who had 209 yards against Wisconsin in 2018.
The most frustrating aspect of the offense continues to be Mark Whipple’s refusal to want to run the football. As a result, Anthony Grant had only 11 carries for 35 yards. There’s no excuse for a running back of his talent only to get 11 touches running the ball. Whipple has always been a pass-first coach but his refusal to adapt his scheme to his personnel is somewhat concerning.
The Nebraska defense took a massive step backward this week. As a unit, they surrendered 608 in total offense while allowing Boilmaker quarterback Aiden O’Connell to throw for 391 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. In addition, Nebraska’s run defense continues its struggles giving up 217 yards which is 31 more yards than their season average of 186 yards per game.
Nebraska is on a bye week next Saturday and will return to Memorial Stadium on October 29th, where they will host the No. 24 Illinois Fighting Illini.
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