Purdue’s defense is taking heat, but Kevin Kane isn’t interested in letting it seep into the room.
After the Boilermakers gave up 645 yards in a 52-38 loss to UCLA on Saturday, the criticism came fast. Add in Wake Forest’s 4th-and-15 conversion that helped the Demon Deacons escape with a win, and the frustration around Purdue’s 1-2 start only grew louder.
Kane has heard it all. He just isn’t giving it any power.
"I've got thick skin, so I'm not too concerned about what's being said about me," Kane said. "Sure, it sucks, but guess what?
We've gotta play better. I understand it. ...
The outside noise is exactly that, it's outside. It's not in this room."
The numbers explain why the conversation has gotten so sharp. UCLA ran for 369 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 7.7 yards per carry and hitting Purdue for 20 explosive plays.
Through three games, the Boilermakers are giving up a Big Ten-worst 207 rushing yards per game and 36.3 points per game, the worst mark among Power Four teams through Week 3. Their lone takeaway came on Don Saunders’ pick-six against Indiana State, and that total leaves Purdue tied for second-lowest in the nation.
The last two weeks have been especially brutal. Against Wake Forest and UCLA, Purdue has surrendered 1,056 yards and 90 points.
Still, Kane is not backing away from the idea that this defense can improve. Purdue has nine games left, and he sees enough effort to believe the unit can turn the corner if it cleans up the details.
"I look at it as our guys are playing hard, and now we've gotta go out there and execute the calls and just go play," Kane said. "We've got to continue to tackle and do things better."
Purdue spent the offseason and fall camp talking about an attacking, aggressive defense, and there have been flashes. The Boilermakers already have 20 tackles for loss, which shows they are getting into the backfield.
But the problem has been finishing the job. Big plays keep slipping through, and opponents are converting more than half their third downs.
Against Power Four competition, that kind of leakage is hard to survive.
Kane still believes there’s something real to build on, and he’s trying to keep that message front and center for the players getting the most snaps.
"You show them what they are. Through our first three games, there's a lot of great things that have happened through these first three games that show them what they can do and what they are able to do," Kane said.
"The first game was the first game. Wake Forest, we played a great four quarters, and in overtime, we have to continue off what we did in those first four quarters.
Obviously, this weekend was not the standard of what we need to be. But we show them through the course of this game, there were a lot of positives."
The next test is a heavy one. Purdue hosts No.
3 Notre Dame on Saturday afternoon at Ross-Ade Stadium, and the Fighting Irish are averaging 40 points per game. CJ Carr leads the offense, with Nolan James Jr. and Aneyas Williams in the backfield.
Kane knows the assignment is a serious one.
"I think the quarterback is playing at a very high level. He's confident in the system," Kane said. "The offensive line is probably the best one we've seen up to this point, in my opinion, in terms of their athletic ability and their length.
"They're just a season offense, and they understand where they've gotta go with the ball and how to get there. They're going to pose a challenge, but it's a fun one to prepare for."
In Other News...
Purdue Faces A Bigger Test Than Notre Dame This Week
Purdue gets Notre Dame at home in Week 5, and the matchup already looks like more than just another nonconference game on the schedule. The Boilermakers are trying to sort through their own internal uncertainty as speculation continues around the athletic director search, even though no official hire has been made. Against a Notre Dame team with recent performance trends pointing to a difficult test, Purdue is staring at a game that will say plenty about where the program stands early in the season.
For a team still looking for stability off the field, the timing of this one matters almost as much as the opponent. Home field gives Purdue a chance to steady the conversation, but Notre Dame is the kind of matchup that exposes issues quickly if the Boilermakers are not sharp on both sides of the ball. The broader question around the program remains unresolved for now, and this game offers another reminder that the pressure around Purdue is building on more than one front. [Read more 🡒]
Barry Odom Put Himself On The Spot Before Notre Dame
Purdues Big Ten opener against UCLA left Barry Odom with plenty to address, and he did not try to sidestep it. The Boilermakers fell to 1-2 after a night in which the defense was pushed to the edge, allowing 645 yards, and Odom took responsibility for the way the unit played. He also acknowledged being more involved on that side of the ball, a notable posture for a head coach trying to steady a defense that has already been stressed early in the season.
The timing matters because Notre Dame is next, and No. 3 on the schedule is a brutal place to look for a reset. Purdue is preparing to face one of the sports more dangerous offenses while the broader series between the schools also has some uncertainty hanging over it beyond 2028. For Odom, the immediate issue is less about long-term scheduling and more about whether his defense can show a much cleaner response before the test gets even tougher. [Read more 🡒]
Purdue Is Starting To Feel Like The Big Tens Chaos Team
The Big Ten has already taken on a strange shape this fall, with USC, UCLA, Washington and Oregon now part of the mix and even Indiana sitting in the conversation as the defending national champion. Against that backdrop, Purdue is starting to look like the conferences built-in source of weekly drama, the kind of team that can make the standings feel unstable no matter how the rest of the league is sorted.
A week 3 power ranking of the conference reflects just how much volatility there already is, with results and performances across the league forcing quick recalculations. For Purdue, that is the larger issue and the larger opportunity: in a season when so many Big Ten teams have already delivered surprise wins and puzzling losses, the Boilermakers fit right into the chaos, and it is beginning to feel like that role may be theirs to own. [Read more 🡒]