While Purdue wasn't projected to beat the visiting Green Wave, they also weren't expected to look so inept at times on offense. Fresh off a stellar showing against Notre Dame, the expectation was that Hudson Card would be able to throw the ball around against a lower rated defense than the Irish.
That proved not to be the case however as Card threw a season high 5 interceptions to Tulane and their ball hawking secondary. That proved to be the difference in this one as Tulane was routinely able to turn those mistakes in to points that allowed them to rally back from a 17-7 first quarter deficit.
Early on, it looked like Purdue would overwhelm Tulane with their size. The Boilermakers were able to jump out to a quick 10-0 lead after two interceptions themselves from the Green Wave. RB Devin Mockobee bowled over the Tulane defense early and was able to provide an initial spark and hope for the Boilermakers.
That was short lived though as Tulane absorbed the early blows, adjusted their defense and then went to town on Card's psyche. He was routinely baffled by the coverages being thrown at him and struggled to make the right reads. It wasn't until the fourth quarter that he finally shook off the frustration and settled in to play. By that point in time, it was too little too late as the Boilermakers were down 10 with no ability to slow the Tulane rushing attack.
Card didn't give up though and had a chance to pull Purdue within 3 with a minute to go. He drove 90 yards behind a quick passing attack but kept up the theme of the day by throwing one final interception in the end zone to a blanketed TE to end the day and add another game in the loss column for his team.
Coach Razor after the game indicated that he wished he had stayed with the run game more when Card started going off the rails. We averaged 8.4 yards per carry, but our OC kept going back to the pass time and again. We have to be able to exploit our advantages and today it was not through the air. We'll have to regroup, work with our OC to not be so one dimensional and force things or else we're going to continue to be eaten up like this in conference play.
Tulane moved to 2-0 in week 2 as they overcame an early 17-7 deficit against Purdue, eventually winning 34-24. The Tulane QB got away with throwing four interceptions, while Purdue threw five to result in the victory for the Green Wave.
After figuring out his throwing was doing nothing but turning the ball over, coach TilnaciousD adjusted strategy to favor the running game. This worked out well, as Makhi Hughes would end up rushing 180 yards on 28 yards and adding on two touchdowns. Bauman and Brown would explode for some level of competency in the passing game, adding on one touchdown each.
Special teams executed, going 2/2 on crucial field goals at crucial moments in the game. TilnaciousD commented that despite the 10-point difference, he feels execution in that phase of the game is ultimately what made the difference.
Tulane faces Nebraska at home next before moving on to conference play.
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