With the exception of Illinois, obviously, one would not be all that shocked by the winner of the Big Ten West division. Most pundits are picking Wisconsin, Iowa or Nebraska, but the Purdue Boilermakers have one advantage on all of the rest of their division rivals.
In Rondale Moore, they have an electric player who can change the game in two phases, and no other Big Ten West division team can claim that. With the exception of Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor, there is no player in the division more likely to claim the most prestigious of the national individual awards. That said, let’s preview the Purdue Boilermakers 2019 season.
Purdue Boilermakers Overview
The Boilermakers beat Louisville this off-season in what will be the biggest win of this season, and the next couple campaigns to come. That’s because they were able to keep head coach Jeff Brohm in West Lafayette, as he decided to stay put over leaving for his alma mater.
With Brohm locked down long term, recruiting soared and now the Boilers are landing elite recruits at the level of the Big Ten’s blue bloods. However, it’s going to take awhile for all that to really kick in, as Darrell Hazell really sucked this program into a black hole for awhile, and it’s going to take some time fully bridge some gaps.
Purdue Boilermakers Names to Know
You obviously start with Moore, who is as exciting a player that this program has seen since the 1990s. Elijah Sindelar enters this season with a totally different mind set- he’s the unquestioned QB1 now, no worries about looking over his shoulder/competing with David Blough.
If Moore were eligible for the NFL Draft, he’d be the Boilers top pro prospect this term, but he’s not so the man with the highest NFL Draft stock this fall is linebacker Markus Bailey, the quarterback of Brohm’s defense. The senior is a two time All-Big Ten honoree, and Purdue’s leading tackler last season.
Another guy who should be playing on Sundays, although not for awhile, is incoming freshman George Karlaftis, a 5-star DE who elected to stay home instead of playing for a blue blood. He’s a large human being who should step in and wreak some havoc.
Check out my segment on CLTV Sports Feed talking Big Ten and college football last night; video is below:
Thanks @PaulMBanks for talking college football with @paytonsun on Sunday's @CLTVSportsFeed. https://t.co/MRSfqDX1jS
— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) August 19, 2019
Stuff to Get Excited About
The potential for basketball on grass to return is there, as the wide receiving corps is beefed up and goes well beyond just Moore. The list of targets for Sindelar includes tight end Brycen Hopkins, a first or second day in the draft talent whose dad is former Houston/Tennessee Oiler/Titan Brad Hopkins, the 13th overall pick out of Illinois in 1993, who had a 12 year NFL career that included two Pro Bowls.
Purdue’s defensive front seven should be solid.
Stuff to Be Concerned About
Injuries have really taken a toll at the running back position, and it’s somewhat likely you could have a true freshman in the two deep by midseason, maybe even two by season’s end. There are concerns about the interior of both lines and Purdue really needs to find a way to keep Sindelar upright.
He’s injury prone, and should be go down, the next option is a freshman. The secondary is questionable and the roster itself is composed of 45 combined frosh (true+redshirt).
Purdue Boilermakers Prediction (to be used at your own risk at the sports book, we will not be held liable for your financial losses):
6-6, 4-5, 4th place
The “Baby Boilers” is a term you often hear thrown around in basketball, but it certainly applies here. When it really comes down to it, the best gains to be achieved in 2019 are the experiences gained and foundation laid for 2020, 2021 and beyond.
That said, there is no reason to think they can’t make a bowl game or win seven this season. The schedule poses some challenges, but it is favorable enough to make finishing above .500 doable.
Jeff Brohm has shown the Big Ten West that you can step in, make drastic improvements, and find success right away. There is no need for “year zero” and “rebuilding year” and other such euphemistic platitudes.
2019 College Football Team Preview Series
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
NIU Huskies
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
You can follow Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com on Twitter here and his cat on Instagram at this link.