After last week’s loss to Wisconsin, the Dawgs look for a get right win at home against the 2-8 Purdue Boilermakers. Our staff has their picks for the game below!
Andrew Berg (8-1 SU, 3-6 ATS)
Washington DC Ryan Walters got fired for going winless in the Big 10 last year. His replacement, Barry Odom, hasn’t done much better so far. After two wins over vastly inferior opponents to start the year, Purdue has lost eight straight, including all seven conference games. In their defense, they have been much more competitive than they were a year ago, staying within a possession of Minnesota, Rutgers, and Michigan. Washington has proven over and over under Jedd Fisch that the biggest factor in their performance week to week is whether they are playing at home or away. Back in Husky Stadium, I expect Demond Williams to get back on track. The offense likely won’t be at its very best with health issues afflicting Jonah Coleman, Denzel Boston, and Drew Azzopardi. The Purdue defense, much like Washington’s, tries to limit big plays and tends to give up long drives. They have done a good job of limiting points on quality drives (19th in the country), so it will be important for UW to find ways to convert in the red zone. However, they are outside the top 100 in success rate against both the run and pass. Adam Mohammed and Dezmen Roebuck will both be crucial in establishing long drives. Purdue’s offense has has also been below-average without verging on disastrous. RB Devin Mockobee is probably their best individual player. QB Ryan Browne has been somewhat turnover prone (9 TDs to 8 Ints). They’re not bad enough that this version of the UW defense will easily force them off the field, but they’re not good enough to put up 30+ points. Altogether, it looks like the kind of game Purdue has played several times this year: keep it reasonably close but another loss.
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Washington 31 – Purdue 20
Max Vrooman (7-2 SU, 2-7 ATS)
This should’ve been an easy reprieve in the midst of the Big Ten schedule but last week tore away any illusion of that. This is a Boilermakers program that has been able to at least keep things sort of close against teams outside the top ten. They lost by 5 at Michigan, by 3 versus Rutgers, and by 7 at Minnesota. If Washington doesn’t play their “A” game then Purdue is capable of giving them a real fight. And it’s hard to imagine the Huskies playing their “A” game after what we saw at Wisconsin. The offense looked to be in shambles and it appears that at best they’re going to get limited versions of their star RB and WR plus two starting offensive linemen. You would hope that Coach Fisch would be able to use last week as a teaching point not to overlook anyone and have them come out fired up but this isn’t exactly the height of fan confidence in Fisch. I think Washington’s down at halftime but this time around is able to rally just enough to keep this from being a second straight humiliating defeat.
Washington- 23, Purdue- 19
Mark Schafer (6-3 SU, 1-8 ATS)
It’s now do or die time for the Huskies, which is not what I thought I’d be saying going up against one of the worst teams in the Big Ten. But after a tough loss to Wisconsin, and with Denzel Boston and Jonah Coleman possibly out for this game, plus some injuries on the line, it feels like a must-win for the Huskies, if only to get some confidence back. I am confident that the boys will be fired up, but whether or not Coach Fisch can coach them up remains to be seen. You add to that the fact that Purdue players and fans are fired up to get a crack at Husky DC Ryan Walters, it creates a big opportunity for yet another slip up. I hope that doesn’t happen, and if it does, expect fans clamoring for Fisch’s exit to get louder. Purdue’s signal caller, Ryan Browne is prone to mistakes and they don’t have a weapon on offense to speak of. Like last week, this creates the ideal conditions for an upset. However, it is my sincerest hope that that doesn’t come to pass.
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Look for Demond and Co. to try to get the run game going early, in an effort to establish dominance at the line of scrimmage, something that’s an absolute necessity in the rainy conditions on Montlake. I think Purdue will hold up reasonably well, but fail to score when it matters most. They might give these Dawgs a scare, but I hope that last week will have lit a fire under these boys and they pick up a needed win before, egad, another road game!
Washington-28, Purdue-24
Prediction Stats
Straight Up: Washington-3, Purdue-0
Against The Spread: Washington-1, Purdue-2
Average Score: Washington-27, Purdue-21
Let us know your prediction in the comments below!
