+7
For all things Purdue, visit Hammer and Rails. For Notre Dame, visit Rakes of Mallow.
Ian Williams intercepted a tipped pass at the 3 yard line for the Irish on the first play of the 4th quarter, but sense then it has been all Purdue. Ryan Kerrigan tackled Armando Allen int he end zone for a safety, then Purdue drove after the free kick and Robert Marve scored on a 24 yard TD run on 4th and one.
Notre Dame still leads 20-12, but Purdue has momentum. Cierre Wood then fumbled the ensuing kickoff, but it was recovered by Notre Dame at the Purdue 41.
Notre Dame leads 20-3 after a touchdown pass from Dayne Crist to T.J. Jones, but Purdue is driving. The Boilermakers have survived a pair of knockout punches since the Jones TD.
First, a fumble recovery for a touchdown by the Irish was overturned when it was ruled that Robert Marve was down on a sack. Second, a Michael Floyd fumble was recovered by Logan Link in the end zone and returned to the four yard line. Purdue has been on an extensive drive since then, and has the ball 4th and 1 at the Irish five yard line.
GAME NOTES: Long-time Hoosier State rivals will collide in the 2010 season opener as the Notre Dame Fighting Irish play host to the Purdue Boilermakers on Saturday afternoon.
Purdue is led by second-year head coach Danny Hope, who led the Boilermakers to just one win through the first six games in 2009. Fortunately, the squad enjoyed a late surge and finished 5-7, including 4-4 in Big Ten action. After Saturday's game, Purdue will face Western Illinois, Ball State and Toledo in succession, so a victory in this opener could very well be a springboard to a 4-0 start.
As for Notre Dame, it is prepared for the first game of the Brian Kelly era. A proven winner, Kelly resurrected both the Central Michigan and Cincinnati programs, and the fact that he led the Bearcats to a pair of BCS games speaks to the ability of the coach. Kelly takes over for Charlie Weis, who failed to elevate the storied Notre Dame program back to an elite level. The 2009 Fighting Irish finished 6-6, including losses in four consecutive games to close out the campaign.
Notre Dame owns a 53-26-2 advantage over Purdue in the all-time series between the teams, including wins in four of the last five meetings. Last season, the Irish rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the Boilermakers.
Coach Hope is excited about quarterback Robert Mavre, calling him the most talented signal caller he's been around from a total package. Marve, a junior who sat out last season after transferring from Miami, appears to be recovered from a knee injury. He will have the luxury of throwing to senior wideout Keith Smith, who led the Big Ten with 91 receptions last year and finished with 1,100 yards and six touchdowns. At running back, sophomore Al-Terek McBurse will tote the rock until standout Ralph Bolden can return from an ACL injury. McBurse was among the most highly sought after running backs coming out of high school, rushing for 2,400 yards his senior season, and will have a chance to shine against Notre Dame.
The man to watch on defense for Purdue is defensive end Ryan Kerrigan, who is on the watch list for all the major individual awards. Kerrigan is coming off a breakout year in which he earned All-Big Ten honors with 13 sacks. All three starting linebackers return. The headliner is junior Joe Holland, a converted defensive back who ranked second on the team last year with 81 tackles while learning how to play the position. Fellow linebacker Jason Werner was granted another year of eligibility after ranking third on the team with 77 tackles and 4.5 sacks, while sophomore Dwayne Beckford will start in the middle. All four starters are gone from last year's secondary, unfortunately, and that is especially concerning considering the passing weapons that Notre Dame possesses.
Coach Kelly brings the spread offense with him from Cincinnati, and the man chosen to run the system from the quarterback position is Dane Crist, who hopes to improve the Irish to 8-2 since 1985 when a first-time starter opens in Notre Dame Stadium. Crist saw little action behind Jimmy Clausen last season, but there is no denying the junior's talent. There are two elite targets to throw to in wideout Michael Floyd and tight end Kyle Rudolph. Floyd made 44 catches for 795 yards and nine touchdowns despite injury last season, while Rudolph posted 33 grabs for 364 yards and three scores.
In the backfield, Armando Allen is back and poised for a big senior season. Allen rushed for 697 yards and three scores during an injury-plagued 2009 campaign. Along the Notre Dame offensive line, only one starter from last year is slated to return to his position, senior left guard Chris Stewart.
After switching from a 3-4 to a 4-3 last year, the Irish surrendered 26 points and nearly 400 yards per game, prompting a move back to the base defense Notre Dame operated the previous two seasons. It's also the same defense Kelly oversaw at Cincinnati, where the Bearcats ranked 10th in the FBS in sacks. While almost every starter returns on defense from a year ago, the Irish need to be significantly better in all three tiers to become relevant on the national landscape.
Inside linebacker Manti Te'o ranked fourth on the team with 63 tackles (5.5 TFL) last year as a freshman, and he'll be counted on to provide leadership now as a sophomore. He'll team with junior Darius Fleming, who could flourish on the outside after racking up 12 tackles for loss. The pass defense was a sore spot last year, and it will be largely the same personnel trying to get the job done in this opener.
The Boilermakers have won six straight season openers and have outscored the opposition 306-124 during those six games. That streak will come to an end on Saturday, as Kelly's debut will be a successful one.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Notre Dame 37, Purdue 27
September 4th, 3:30 p.m. (et)
Both offenses are still feeling each other out as Notre Dame leads 13-3 at the half. Robert Marve has thrown for 86 yards, but backup quarterback Rob Henry provided some action with some good runs to set up a 25 yard field goal by Carson Wiggs.
David Ruffer has kicked a pair of field goals in the second quarter, including a career long 46-yarder. There have been a number of yards put up by both offenses, but it is a relatively lower scoring game than expected.
Purdue’s suspect run defense has reappeared. After Robert Marve threw an interception Notre Dame went 84 yards in seven plays with Cierre Wood running for 41 yards on four carries. Notre Dame leads 7-0 at the end of the first quarter after Armando Allen capped the drive with an impressive 22 yard run.
Purdue has moved the ball, however. Marve’s pick came after a solid Boilermaker drive. Brian Kelly’s passing offense has stagnated except for tight end Kyle Rudolph, but the running game has had success.
Both Hammer & Rails and Rakes of Mallow have live open threads running for each team. Feel free to join in the conversation during the game.
SB Nation’s Big Ten Blog Off Tackle Empire is so excited it can hardly contain itself:
Visit their open thread today for news, info, and funny observations about today’s Big Ten match-ups.The Big Ten gets underway with a vengeance today, as the remaining eight teams kick off their 2010 campaign. The Big Ten has some measuring stick games right out of the gate, most notably Michigan v. UConn and Purdue v. Notre Dame.
Let’s hope Thursday’s momentum carries over today and the Good Guys can get a clean sweep for opening day.
Notre Dame Defeats Purdue 23-12
Brian Kelly’s debut in South Bend was a successful one, but Purdue made the Irish earn this one with a bit of a fourth quarter comeback. The Fighting Irish carried a 20-3 lead into the fourth quarter, but a safety, a touchdown, and a defensive stop gave Purdue the ball down only eight with less than ten minutes to play.
Robert Marve couldn’t convert a pair of long passes to both Cortez Smith and Justin Siller, and the Irish managed a clinching field goal on the successive drive to seal the deal.
Sep 04 6:42p by Travis Miller - 0 comments