Purdue’s defense spent most of Saturday getting shoved around, and the numbers tell the story. Penn State piled up 269 yards on 51 carries, repeatedly moving the line of scrimmage and forcing Purdue’s front to absorb a beating it couldn’t quite handle.
Up front, the grades were ugly: Kyle gave the defensive line a D, while Drew landed at D-. Keyshawn Burgos led the group with 46 snaps and 7 tackles, followed by Breeon Ishmail with 29 snaps and 3 tackles, CJ Madden with 19 snaps and 3 tackles, and Aiden Solecki with 13 snaps and 1 tackle.
Drew said Purdue’s front keeps running into the same problem against teams committed to the ground game, noting that the unit has enough decent rotational pieces but not enough starter-level talent. He pointed to Curt Neal’s best game of the season at nose guard, even if double teams still knocked him off the line too often.
Burgos remained a bright spot at strong side defensive end, and Drew singled out Jeremy Lewis as the possible exception, though he sees him more as a situational pass rusher than an every-down end.
The linebackers had to clean up a lot of mess behind that line, and they did some of it. Jojo Hayden was everywhere, playing 73 snaps and finishing with 10 tackles, while Charles Correa logged 69 snaps and 6 tackles.
Anthony Speca added 2 tackles on 5 snaps. Kyle gave the group a B-, and Drew had them at C.
Kyle said Hayden and Correa were doing their best to cover for the issues in front of them, with Hayden standing out as a bright spot on a defense that has been trending the wrong way. Drew agreed that Hayden, after a rough start, looks like Purdue’s best linebacker and one of its best overall defenders.
He was less impressed with Correa, saying he couldn’t point to a single skill that really jumps out.
Drew also noted a structural change from Kevin Kane, who took the slot corner off the field and went with three linebackers. That created a problem Purdue has not solved: it only has two linebackers it’s truly comfortable playing.
Winston Berglund got the start, but Drew said he’s not starting-caliber and fits better as a nickel linebacker than a run-stopping outside linebacker. Purdue turned to reserve Tre Moore to add more force near the line, and PFP graded Moore as the team’s best run defender on Saturday.
Even so, the group still didn’t create enough disruption in the run game and gave up several third-down completions in front of its zone coverage. Penn State, Drew noted, was willing to throw over the middle.
In the secondary, the corners and safeties had a quieter day, but not a perfect one. Kyle gave the corner group a C+, while Drew was a little higher at B.
Kyle said the secondary held a veteran quarterback under 200 passing yards while he completed 66% of his throws, though Penn State didn’t need to lean on the passing game much with the run working so well. Drew said the lack of healthy Penn State receivers helped, and he credited Hines and Saunders for staying locked in despite not seeing much action.
Saunders, in particular, prevented a touchdown by racing across the field to break up a pass to a wide-open receiver heading down the opposite sideline. Drew also liked Saunders’ work against the run, saying he made a couple of strong tackles on the edge.
At safety, Kyle gave Purdue a B and Drew a C-. Denson and Slaughter were busy in different ways, with Denson posting 15 total tackles and helping in run support while Slaughter handled more deep responsibilities.
Kyle said the safeties were steady overall, though they struggled against the pass. Drew said the move to a three-linebacker look put more pressure on the safeties in man coverage against tight ends and backs.
Denson allowed 4 receptions, including a 33-yard catch to tight end Benjamin Brahmer, and 4 of the 5 catches he gave up went for Penn State first downs. Slaughter allowed only 3 receptions, but 2 moved the chains.
Drew said Purdue needed one of them to make a third-down play and never got it. Denson’s tackling stood out, though, and Drew said he looked more like a fourth linebacker than a safety.
Slaughter missed a couple of tackles and wasn’t as active.
The safeties weren’t the main reason Purdue’s defense struggled, but they also didn’t do enough to tilt the field back.
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