Notre Dame (3-0) hits the road on Saturday to play the Purdue Boilermakers (1-2) in West Lafayette, Indiana.  The Fighting Irish put away Michigan State last week and seek to sweep their Big-10 schedule. After an opening win against Indiana State, Purdue lost to Wake Forest in overtime two weeks ago. Their first road game last Saturday was a 52-38 beatdown from UCLA in the Rose Bowl. Notre Dame leads the all-time series 61-26-2, including the last ten in a row. Saturday’s game will be livestreamed on Peacock beginning at 2:00 PM Eastern time.

Purdue Coach Barry Odom is in his second season in West Lafayette. It is technically accurate to say he doubled the team’s win total from 2024 to 2025. However, the Boilers were 2-10 last season after going 1-11 in 2024 under Ryan Walters. Purdue was winless in conference play (0-9) in both seasons. Odom has hardly been a failure, though. His team was much more competitive last season. The Boilers even gave the Irish a scare with 23 first half points before running out of fuel.

Odom continued his efforts to overhaul his roster during the offseason. He brought in 32 transfers and 22 high school recruits. On offense, the line has been completely remade with four transfers and a freshman at left guard. His tailback and top two receivers are also transfers who joined returning veteran quarterback Ryan Browne. This unit averages an impressive 39 points per game to date.

Marcus Freeman and the Irish are coming off pedestrian performance against Michigan State. This result was expected after his team obliterated Rice and left Freeman without a compelling motivational speech for Sparty. In past seasons, Notre Dame would suffer a letdown and possibly lose the game. Instead, the Irish prevailed despite an effort below Freeman’s standard. Predictably, some fans still muttered complaints about a smaller than expected margin of victory. The good news is Freeman has sufficient ammunition on film to challenge his troops this week.

Notre Dame reports that safety Luke Talich has a wrist injury and will not play on Saturday.  Others including Jason Onye, Brauntae Johnson, Quincy Porter, Matty Augustine, and Charles Jagusah remain out. Purdue reported injuries to offensive tackle Joey Tanona and defensive lineman Elo Modozie. Both are considered questionable this week.

NOTRE DAME’S OFFENSE vs. PURDUE’S DEFENSE

The Boilermakers employ the common 4-2-5 scheme defensively. Edge Jeremy Lewis is their most effective pass rusher. Nose tackle Curtis Neal and end Keyshawn Burgos transferred in to add Power 5 experience to the line.

Starters include seven transfers but two holdovers from last season are among their best players. These are middle linebacker Charles Correa and cornerback Hudauri Hines. Correa came from UNLV to Purdue with Odom last season and has become a team leader. He is equally proficient in defending the run or pass and is an effective blitzer. Correa is not as talented as Michigan State’s Jordan Hall but Notre Dame must account for him.

Weak side linebacker Jojo Hayden, a 245-pound transfer from Illinois, hits like a truck. Hayden is a liability in pass coverage though. The Boilermaker’s front six are capable players so it is difficult to understand why they cannot stop the run. We will have to watch the game to get an answer.

Purdue’s run defense ranks near the bottom in several statistical categories. They allowed 369 rush yards against UCLA. Odom and his staff may decide to overplay the run this week to address this problem. There would never be a better opportunity or Mike Denbrock to call for play action passes. Last week, Micah Gilbert joined Jordan Faison as a go-to receiver for the Irish. This week, it would be a perfect time to add Jaden Greathouse and Mylan Graham to that list. These players need to become true weapons if the Irish aerial attack is to reach its full potential.

Purdue’s secondary is mostly a patchwork of transfers who have previously played at multiple schools. Safety John Slaughter is the team’s leading tackler. He arrived in West Lafayette this season by way of Colorado and Tennessee. The Boilermakers have done a decent job against the pass to date but those statistics lack context. In their two losses, their opponents ran the ball 60% of the time with great success. Purdue’s defense has simply been unable to make an offense one dimensional.

PURDUE’S OFFENSE vs. NOTRE DAME’S DEFENSE

Odom and Offensive Coordinator Josh Henson have constructed a very productive passing scheme. Browne has improved his accuracy and limited his mistakes by leaps and bounds this season. It has also helped that the Boilers have brought in a few real playmakers at wide receiver.

Asaad Waseem and Xavier Townsend are the best of this group. They already have 20 and 19 receptions, respectively. Townsend is the greater breakaway threat while Waseem is the primary target on third down. Opponents have been unable to cover them man-to-man so we will see what the Irish attempt. A key part of the plan must be to limit yards after catch. Another equally important element is how Notre Dame will deploy Leonard Moore. A battle between Moore and Townsend would be entertaining.

Veteran Chauncey Magwood and De’Nylon Morrissette round out the receiver rotation. Tight end George Burhenn is a plus receiver but only an average blocker.

Purdue’s offensive line has suffered numerous breakdowns in run blocking and pass protection. Tailback Fame Ijeboi is a talented and bruising back but he has worked hard for every inch. Tanona started at left tackle all last season but is not quite ready to return. Nuku Mafi has moved to that spot from guard but has struggled in pass protection. Mafi is better suited to play inside.

Left guard Brock Brownfield, a true freshman, has missed time with an unspecified injury. On the right side, Micah Banuelos and Jude McCoskey have performed only fairly against average competition. If Notre Dame’s talent and depth can wear down this group, the Irish should run away in the second half.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Irish kicker Spencer Porath fled West Lafayette for South Bend in the dead of night last January. He did not formally enter the transfer portal. This stealthy maneuver is now termed a “ghost transfer”. This spring, the NCAA instituted significant penalties for the receiving team under this scenario. Notre Dame is not impacted regarding Porath but must be mindful of the rule going forward.

Porath expressed no ill will toward his former school.  When asked about his upcoming return, he said, “I think it will be awesome. I loved everything about Purdue. Everyone’s great. The coaching staff is great, the players. I can’t wait, and I’ll be excited.”

Jacobo Echeverria Lozano is the new place kicker for the Boilers. The freshman and Pittsburgh native has made five of six field goals. His lone miss was from 49 yards while the successful tries were from inside 40 yards.

Purdue punter Dylan Drennan is best known for completing a long pass last week on a well-executed fake. Otherwise, the transfer from Buffalo has a 45-yard average in five attempts. Townsend is Purdue’s main punt returner while reserve tailback Travis Terrell handles kickoffs.

SUMMARY

Neither quarterback is a threat as a runner but both are accurate passers when given time. There is plenty of receiving talent on both teams with explosive play ability. Purdue may have some success early but the Irish defense almost certainly will adjust. Meanwhile, the Boilermaker defense is unlikely to keep Notre Dame below 40 points.

Purdue has forced just one turnover in three games against eight for the Irish. On Saturday the turnover differential should again favor the Irish and have a major impact on the outcome.

Here are a few questions that will shed light on the outcome:

• Will Notre Dame continue its streak of committing zero turnovers?
• Can the Irish defensive front dominate Purdue’s offensive line?
• Which quarterback will have the best protection?
• Will the Irish ground game explode against Purdue’s poor run defense?
• Can Notre Dame’s patchwork secondary contain Browne’s talented receivers?
• Will Carr target Jaden Greathouse or any of his tight ends in the passing game?
• Can Notre Dame score on defense or special teams?
• Did I just jinx the Irish with my first question?

PREDICTION

Browne and Purdue will provide a greater challenge to the Notre Dame defense than previous opponents. The Irish can protect O’Brien and Long in the secondary if they can pressure Browne with four rushers. This will take away the deeper throws where plays take longer to develop. Still, Townsend and Waseem can turn short passes into explosive plays if Notre Dame does not tackle well. This is where Talich will be missed the most. Expect the Boilers to put up a couple of scores on their home turf but it will not be enough.

Regarding the Irish offense, I expect them to rush for at least 200 yards. Purdue may overload the box given its poor performance against the run in previous weeks. If that happens, Carr will have his way with them through the air. The sunny day that is forecast will help him succeed.

The kerfuffle regarding Porath’s defection to Notre Dame last winter will not be an issue Saturday. That is, of course, unless the outcome of the game is decided by a late field goal. That does not seem very likely.

NOTRE DAME 48  PURDUE 17

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