The Boilermakers return to the gridiron Saturday after an extended Labor Day rest thanks to a Thursday night week one tilt. Gameday celebrates Youth Day and Band Day with $5 youth tickets available with the purchase of an adult ticket in the Touchdown, North End Zone or Value End Zone locations.
Series History- First Meeting: Sept. 7, 1991 – Purdue 49, Eastern Michigan 3
- Last Meeting: Sept. 15, 2012 – Purdue 54, Eastern Michigan 16
- Purdue leads 2-0
- In West Lafayette, Purdue leads 2-0
Noteworthy: In Purdue's 2012 victory, Brandon Cottom had an 87-yard touchdown run in the second quarter that ranks as the fourth-longest rush in school history. The top three: 94 yards by Mike Pruitt vs. Iowa on Nov. 2, 1974; 90 yards by Alex Yunevich vs. Centenary on Nov. 7, 1931; and 88 yards by Kory Sheets at Minnesota on Sept. 24, 2005.
Return of the MACCoach Brohm is very honest about his expectations and he knows what it takes to win on Saturday. #BoilerUp #OnlyTheStrong pic.twitter.com/vH8k5NktH2
— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) September 3, 2018
The Boilermakers have faced 11 of the 12 schools that currently call the Mid-American Conference home and have posted an all-time record of 42-12-1 against them (.773).
| School | Purdue vs. | Last Meeting |
|---|---|---|
| Akron | 2-0 | 2005 |
| Ball State | 8-0 | 2010 |
| Bowling Green | 0-3 | 2015 |
| Central Michigan | 5-1 | 2014 |
| Eastern Michigan | 2-0 | 2012 |
| Kent State | 1-0 | 2000 |
| Miami (Ohio) | 9-3-1 | 2006 |
| Northern Illinois | 0-2 | 2013 |
| Ohio | 8-0 | 2017 |
| Toledo | 3-3 | 2010 |
| Western Michigan | 4-0 | 2014 |
True freshman Rondale Moore became a household name when he electrified the nation with a record-breaking performance in his collegiate debut against Northwestern. With a FBS-best 313 all-purpose yards against the Wildcats (79 rushing, 109 receiving, 125 kickoff return), Moore eclipsed Otis Armstrong's single game school record of 312 yards set Nov. 25, 1972.
Moore had a huge first half, racking up 302 all-purpose yards in the initial 30 minutes. That alone would have placed him third in the Purdue record book. With the Boilermakers trailing 14-0 in the first 10 minutes of the opening quarter, Moore hauled in a 32-yard touchdown reception from Elijah Sindelar and ripped off a 76-yard scoring run to even the score before the quarter ended.
And There's MooreRondale Moore is the first freshman (true or redshirt) in school history to make his Boilermaker debut with a 100-yard receiving game. Moore hauled in a game-high 11 receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown in his first collegiate game against Northwestern … His reception total was the highest by any player in the Big Ten on the opening week of college football and his yardage tally was second to only Ohio State's Terry McLaurin's 121 vs. Oregon State … Moore's 76-yard touchdown rush in the first quarter against the Wildcats was the longest run by a Boilermaker since Akeem Hunt went 82 yards to the house at Indiana on Nov. 29, 2014 … It was also the longest rush by a Big Ten player on the opening weekend.
Last GamePurdue opened its season with conference game for the 17th time in school history (the first since 1996), dropping a Thursday night tilt against Northwestern 31-27. The Wildcats raced out to a 31-17 lead in the first half, and held off a second half Boilermaker rally to steal the win … Purdue's defense shut out Northwestern in the second half, limiting the Wildcats to 47 rushing yards on 20 rushes and merely 84 yards passing … Wide receiver Jared Sparks proved his effort against the Wildcats last season, 11 receptions for 130 yards, was no fluke, ending Thursday's contest with six receptions for 76 yards … Sophomore linebacker Cornel Jones, making his first career start, totaled six tackles, including a team-high three tackles for loss … Cornerback Tim Cason broke up a career-best three passes … Spencer Evans continued to be perfect inside 40 yards. The senior kicker, who was 8-for-8 inside 40 last season, made attempts from 38 yards and 27 yards against Northwestern … Senior tight end Cole Herdman saw his streak of 29 consecutive games with a reception come to an end.
Not Your Average AverageThanks in part to a 76-yard scamper by Rondale Moore and 45-yard rush by D.J. Knox, Purdue averaged a Big Ten-best 8.1 yards per carry against Northwestern. As of Sunday afternoon, the figure was ninth among all FBS teams. Moore had two carries for 79 yards (39.2 ypc) and Knox gained 77 yards on seven carries (11.0 ypc) against the Wildcats.
YACety YACPurdue's wide receiving corps finished the game against Northwestern with a stout 25 receptions for 245 yards (9.8 yards per reception). What is even more impressive is that 52 percent of the final tally came after the catch (128 of 245).
| Player | Total | YAC / Perecent |
|---|---|---|
| Rondale Moore | 11-109 | 61 / 56% |
| Jared Sparks | 6-76 | 27 / 36% |
| Terry Wright | 3-22 | 17 / 77% |
| Isaac Zico | 2-17 | 8 / 47% |
| Jackson Anthrop | 2-12 | 10 / 83% |
| Jarrett Burgess | 1-9 | 5 / 56% |
On Purdue's three touchdown drives in the opener against Northwestern the Boilermakers needed an average of 4.7 plays and 1:29 of clock time. Purdue's initial score the 2018 season, a 32-yard touchdown pass from Elijah Sindelar to Rondale Moore, lasted four plays, covered 60 yards and lasted 1:14. Moore's electric 76-yard touchdown rush minutes later ended a three-play, 85-yard drive that lasted 1:30. Purdue's longest scoring drive of the game lasted all of 1:52 with D.J. Knox capping the 71-yard, seven-play matriculation down the field with a two-yard end zone plunge.
First TimersSix Boilermakers their first career start and an additional eight took the field as a reserve in the Old Gold and Black for the first time. Graduate transfer guard Dennis Edwards was the lone newcomer to the starting lineup on the offensive side of the ball, while end Giovanni Reviere, tackle Alex Watts, end Kai Higgins, linebacker Cornel Jones and cornerback Antonio Blackman all started for the first time in their careers at Purdue. Along with Reviere seeing collegiate playing time for the first time, others that made their debut were cornerbacks Dedrick Mackey and Kenneth Major, wide receiver Rondale Moore, running back Alexander Horvath, defensive tackle Jeff Marks, offensive lineman Viktor Beach and defensive ends Robert McWilliams III and Semisi Fakasiieiki.
Moving Up the ChartsA number of Boilermakers continue to climb up the career charts at Purdue:
| Rushing Attempts | |||
| 10. | Harry Szulborski (1946-49) | 478 | |
| 11. | John Macon (1977-80) | 471 | |
| 12. | Markell Jones (2015-P) | 441 | |
| Rushing Yards | |||
| 9. | Jerod Void (2002-05) | 2,429 | |
| 10. | Leroy Keyes (1966-68) | 2,094 | |
| 11. | Markell Jones (2015-P) | 2,084 | |
| Passing Attempts | |||
| 4. | Mark Herrman (1977-80) | 1,309 | |
| 5. | Scott Campbell (1980-83) | 1,060 | |
| 6. | David Blough (2015-P) | 983 | |
| Completions | |||
| 4. | Mark Herrman (1977-80) | 772 | |
| 5. | Scott Campbell (1980-83) | 609 | |
| 6. | David Blough (2015-P) | 578 | |
| Passing Yards | |||
| 5. | Scott Campbell (1980-83) | 7,636 | |
| 6. | Jim Everett (1981-85) | 7,411 | |
| 7. | David Blough (2015-P) | 6,103 |
The Boilermakers open the 2018 season with four straight home games at Ross-Ade Stadium. The last time Purdue hosted the first four games of a year was 2006 (Indiana State, Miami (Ohio), Ball State and Minnesota).
Team CaptainsEight Boilermakers were voted captains by their teammates for the 2018 season: junior linebacker Markus Bailey, fifth-year center Kirk Barron, fifth-year quarterback David Blough, fifth-year running back D.J. Knox, junior defensive tackle Lorenzo Neal, senior punter Joe Schopper, junior quarterback Elijah Sindelar and fifth-year safety Jacob Thieneman. Barron and Blough were voted captain for a second consecutive season.
Youth Day / Band DaySaturday is Youth Day. Purdue Athletics welcomes our newest generation of fans as well as those who brought them to Ross-Ade Stadium.
It also is Band Day. Nearly 1,800 students from 30 high schools will join the Purdue "All-American" Marching Band in a fun and entertaining "mass band" halftime show. Listen to more than 2,000 band members perform songs like "Shut Up and Dance," "Lowrider" and an exciting patriotic medley entitled "Marching through America."
Three's A RarityAgainst Northwestern, a Jeff Brohm-coached team threw three or more interceptions for just the fourth time in 54 games. It also had happened in the 2017 season opener against Louisville (three) and by Western Kentucky against Louisiana Tech in 2014 (four).