The loss of David Bell for this game is a massive blow to Purdue’s chances, as he won their game against us by himself last year, ripping a poorly thrown ball out of the hands of Nate Hobbs to ice the game.
However, Purdue’s defense has improved from last year’s fairly disastrous outing. The English/Bennett/Hagen brain trust has shown a noticeable improvement to Bob Diaco’s poor 2020 unit. Head coach Jeff Brohm wisely conceded that after just one season it was clear that the Diaco hire wouldn’t pan out, and so he moved on.
Illinois might want to take note of that, because offensive coordinator Tony Petersen has yet to demonstrate that he has any business calling plays for a Big Ten team.