Week 3 Predictions – 2021
Last Week: For Buckeye nation, nothing went right last week. Oregon came into the ‘shoe and out-played, out-prepared, and out-coached Ohio State. No one likes to lose but it if helps force the changes that will make this team a national contender again, maybe it is worth it. Only time will tell but for now the loss takes OSU’s out of control of their playoff fate. For now they need to focus on winning the Big Ten and improving each week.
This Week’s Games: As always, we start with the Buckeyes, many may believe this week is not when you want to face Ohio State. Will OSU star to correct their issures or will this be another week of frustration for the fans? …. Cincinnati is still doing there part to play a part in the playoffs, can they climb high enough to make the dance? This week the travel to Bloomington to take on the Hoosiers. Before the season, this would have been a great game, can Indiana really live up to the hype or are they are the disapointment from the BIG East? …. Alabama has their next challenge this week as they go to the Swamp to face the Gators. Can Florida hang with the defending champs or will they fail as much as Mercer? …. Auburn will travel to a Big Ten school for the first time in 80 years. That sounds just like that conference. But if they can beat Penn State in Happy Valley, it will sure give ESPN another reason to promote the SEC. …. In an intra-state match-up Notre Dame will face off with Purdue. The Irish are not yet clicking on all four cylinders and are dropping in the polls. Can Purdue pull off the upset?
Buckeye Greats: As with the past, we will continue to include former Buckeye players in our prediction fun and we are thrilled to have Vaughn Broadnax back with us as a regular participant for the seventh straight year.
Here we go with our Week 3 Picks – Good Luck to All – Gregg
Tulsa @ (9)Ohio State
Andy: This matchup might have been a bit more interesting last season when Tulsa had some suprisingly decent defenders on their team. So far through 2021 they’ve lost both of their two games to UC Davis and Oklahoma State. One of the best parts of the Oregon loss last week is that it comes during a stretch of Ohio State’s three weakest games which means Ryan Day and the coaching staff will get three weeks to figure out what changes they can make in a short period of time to actually be effective. Under Urban Meyer after a loss the next week usually didn’t go well for the opposing team. I know Ryan Day has that same competitive streak in him, he is going to want his players to show out and put up a bunch of points this week so the media backs off his players a little bit while he and his staff can get things figured out. Ohio State 54 Tulsa 24
Coach Rick: A possible trap game in the making. It will not be one with a week of strong emotions on OSU’s side of the ball. I have the Buckeyes winning by 35 points.
Cory: The recipe to beat Ohio State has just been handed to the nation. Run the football. That’s it. The Buckeyes cannot stop the run. A lot of blame has been thrown at defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs, but the players must step up as well. There are too many guys that aren’t shedding blocks, aren’t making tackles, and aren’t flying to the football for this team to be a championship-caliber team. Head coach Ryan Day has promised changes but unfortunately we probably won’t know how much those changes have improved the defense this week as the Buckeyes play host to Tulsa. In Tulsa’s lost to Oklahoma State last week the Golden Hurricane managed 132 rushing yards but did averaging just 3.2 yards per carry. Offensively, the Buckeyes put up a lot of yards last week but miscues in the red zone cost them. Overall there are a lot of things this Buckeye team needs to work on and a tune up against Tulsa may just be what Ohio State needs. First things first – don’t let the visitors take an early lead and get any confidence. Ohio State 45, Tulsa 17
Dave: Ohio State 42 Tulsa 28
Gregg: Most years, this would have been an average game, not one that Buckeye fans would pay too much attention too. But after last weeks failures against Oregon there are a lot of things people will be watching for and thus bringing some unnatural interest to the game. Stroud is coming along fine but will need to start going to his second and third reads more. And until they start running more, the RPO is ineffective. The defense has been talked about all week so if we do not see improvement there against a team like Tulsa, it will be panic time. I expect to see some progress but not enough to impress the top teams in the country. This will be a gradual thing and hopefully but season end, Ohio State will be peaking at the right time. Ohio State 51 Tulsa 24
Jason: The Golden Hurricanes come to Columbus 0-2 but the latest loss was a hard fought, close defeat to Oklahoma State. Tulsa was in both games to the end and could just as easily be 2-0 but here they are at 0-2 and now heading to Columbus to face an angry Buckeye team searching for answers. The Buckeyes speed on the outside will be difficult for Tulsa to contain, but if they are able to limit the big play, they can hang around in this game for a while. The Buckeyes have been struggling on defense. That is no secret, but they are soul searching to put their guys in the right positions, including a potential coaching change at coordinator. I expect the defense to come out with their hair on fire defensively in this game and overwhelm Tulsa at the line of scrimmage and Tulsa doesn’t have the big play ability to counteract an aggressive defense. Ohio State will score and score some more and Tulsa will struggle to keep up. The Buckeyes have something to prove and Tulsa is just a speed bump along the way. Buckeyes win big. Ohio State 63 Tulsa 10
Joe-S-U: Ohio State
John: Ohio State wins, but Tulsa covers the spread. Ohio State 38 Tulsa 28
Josh: No disrespect to the Tulsa football team, but this game should not be close or competitive if the Buckeyes are the team the fans expect them to be. The defense should show improvement, but the offense will be humming enough to where the lead is too big to be a concern. If the 2nd and 3rd string players are not playing by the middle to end of the second half, something went wrong. Ohio State 56 – Tulsa 14.
Steven: Most people will point to the defense for last week’s loss to Oregon, and rightly so, but something that you might not have noticed is the lack of run production from the QB position. This to me was so frustrating to watch. If OSU continues to incorporate the RPO into the offense, there has to be a legitimate threat of the QB running. More than once C.J. Stroud had green grass ahead of him but chose to hand the ball off to a running back who got stuffed. I really like what I see out of Stroud from a passing standpoint, but his unwillingness to run is troubling. If he’s not going to make the right decisions, we have multiple QBs who are just champing at the bit to see the field. Outside of that, like many have said before, Kerry Coombs is a great position coach, a tremendous recruiter and an asset to the staff. There needs to be serious work if he is to prove he is worthy of remaining Defensive Coordinator. The next two weeks will give us a little time to right the ship on defense, but may not provide enough of a test to truly see where we are. The Bucks should win the next two by a ton, but will it make people feel any better? We’ll see. OSU 59-17
Trout: Last week was very bad. Ohio State clearly had a talent advantage, but mental mistakes and bad coaching caused them to lose that game. I don’t think those issues will be fixed for this game, but it shouldn’t matter against Tulsa. Ohio State should be able to score at will against this team. Tulsa will get some yards and some points. The defense has been noticeably bad for 2 seasons now, and I don’t see improving substantially after 1 week. However, whatever Tulsa does, the Buckeyes will be able to counter, tenfold. I see the Golden Hurricanes scoring early in the game. And I see the Buckeyes playing slow and a tad sloppy to begin with. This seems to be the MO for a Ryan Day team. But once the Buckeyes get in their groove, there is no looking back. Ohio State wins big with little to no issues after the first quarter. (Ohio State, 49-10)
Vaughn Broadnax (OSU 1980-83): Since I’ve lost confidence in our defensive coordinator and his Swiss cheese defense, my hope is that we can outscore the other teams’ offenses this years. I predict OSU beats Tulsa 48-24
Final Score: Ohio State 41 Tulsa 20
(8)Cincinnati @ (31)Indiana
Andy: One of the most intriguing matchups of the week. You have to excellent defensive coaches facing off against each other with very different offenses. So far Cincinnati has outscored its opponents 91 to 21 this season through 2 games. On top of out performing their opponents Bearcats quarterback Desmond Ritter is red hot coming into this game, completing nearly 73% of his passes with a TD-INT ratio of 6-1. His counterpart for the Hoosiers Michael Penix has not been off to a similar site, completing just 53% of his passes throwing 2 touchdowns to 3 interceptions in two games. The one thing that Indiana has proven they can do well this season is play tough defense, so far Indiana has only allowed 20 points in two games. I expect this game to be low scoring between two tough defenses. Cincinnati 21 Indiana 17
Coach Rick: This will be Cincinnati’s 1st chanellance of the season. Indiana is a team that cannot be overlooked. Cinci will not overlook them and win by 17.
Cory: Before the season this game looked like a premier non-conference matchup, but only one team here has lived up to its billing. Cincinnati goes to Bloomington 2-0 and looking every part of their No. 8 ranking. The Hoosiers looked terrible in a week-one loss to Iowa before blowing out Idaho last week. Still, there are real concerns with Indiana right now. Quarterback Michael Penix still doesn’t look 100 percent coming off a torn ACL last season as he’s completing just 53.2 percent of his passes with two touchdowns and three interceptions. That wouldn’t be a huge concern except that Indiana can’t run the ball. The Hoosiers have only 256 rushing yards in their first two games, and their backs have combined to average just 3.2 yards per carry. If there is no threat of a run opposing defenses will key in on the pass and burn you, just like the Hawkeyes did in week one. It’s hard to see Indiana getting past that to pull off the upset this week. Cincinnati 38, Indiana 28
Dave: Cincinnati 32 Indiana 28
Gregg: Who would have guessed that the road to the playoffs for Cincinnati would be a trip through Indiana. Later in the season, the Bearcats will take on the Fighting Irish. But this week they must first travel to Bloomington to take on the Hoosiers. Those two wins combined with an AAC championship might just be enough to sway the playoff committee to give a nod to Fickell and the boys. Assuming Luke and his team are not distracted by talk of him leaving for the USC job, they should be able to dispatch Indiana this week. The Hoosiers have yet been able to capture the magic they enjoyed in the COVID shortened season of 2020. They will need to regain that success to taste victory this week. Alas, Cincinnati has their own magic going this season and should have little difficulty securing their 3-0 start. Cincinnati 31 Indiana 17
Jason: One of the two biggest games on Cincinnati’s schedule happens in Bloomington. A win here and another win in South Bend in two weeks and folks will have to take a hard look at the Bearcats for the CFP. It’s been a relatively easy road so far for Cincinnati, beating both Miami University and Murray State handily but now they have to face who in the preseason was considered a Big Ten title contender. A crushing loss to Iowa put those thoughts on hold for now, but Indiana is still talented and will provide speed that Cincinnati hasn’t seen. Depite struggling in the passing game, the Hoosiers have run the ball fairly well and were not tested a week ago against Idaho. QB Michael Penix Jr. hasn’t been great, but he’s now in his third game coming off his injury and now is the time. Penix should get off to a good start in this one, but the Cincinnati balance on both sides of the ball, along with superior line play on both sides of the ball will be the difference. It will be back and forth for most of the game, but a couple big defensive stops will allow the ‘Cats to come away with a big road win and send IU reeling to 1-2. Cincinnati 38 Indiana 28
Joe-S-U: Cincinnati
John: Indiana is who we thought they were. Cincinnati 28 Indiana 17
Josh: This will be a good game to show the growth of the Bearcats and challenge themselves against a mobile quarterback in Michael Penix. Luke Fickell knows what opportunity this team has, and his team will be prepared to leave Bloomington with a win. Cincinnati 35 – “Indinia” 21
Steven: Now for a team that has a defense, I present to you the Cincinnati Bearcats. Cincinnati seems to be running on all cylinders. They are a veteran squad with talent on both sides of the football. Indiana, another veteran team, has underwhelmed in the first three games of the season, their only win coming against that perennial powerhouse Idaho. Hoosier QB Michael Penix Jr. has more interceptions than touchdowns and hasn’t looked good at all this season. The Bearcats should run all over the Hoosiers. UC 42-24
Trout: I may have to go with the Bearcats in this matchup. Last year, I would have had a tougher time picking this game. Indiana was the second best team in the Big Ten. But they have not looked the same. Granted, they won big against Idaho last week. But,no one would consider the Vandals a powerhouse. I just see the Bearcats pulling off this victory. It’ll be close.Although the Bearcats have a strong offense, I don’t see either team scoring more than 30 points. I think the game will come down to the last few minutes, potentially ending with a field goal. I just think that Fickell and his team will do just enough to pull off the victory. Cincinnati wins in a close one. (Cincinnati, 24-21)
Vaughn Broadnax (OSU 1980-83): Indiana has really been a disappointment offensively this year. I am going with the Bearcats 35-14 over the Hoosiers.
Final Score: Cincinnati 38 Indiana 24
(1)Alabama @ (11)Florida
Andy: This was a big time matchup last year between the two. Unfortunately this year the game won’t play out the same. Florida lost tons of talent and production off their team from last year including quarterback Kyle Trask, Tight Kyle Pitts, Wide Receiver Kadarius Toney off their offense. Alabama, well I won’t list everybody they lost because as usual they lost a lot of great players and have seemingly reloaded with top tier talent once again. So far in two games Tide quarterback Bryce Young has floored everybody with his performances throwing for 7 touchdowns to zero interceptions in two games while completing nearly 71% of his passes. The Gators however are having a bit of an identity crisis at quarterback rotating between two quarterbacks Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson neither of which have stats that are worth posting. On top of that Florida which has typically had stingy defenses the past few years has given up nearly 40 points combined in their last two games. I just don’t think their defense will be playing at a high enough level to slow down Alabama. Alabama 41 Florida 24
Coach Rick: I do not think at this time that anyone can compete with Alabama. I have ‘Bama winning by 17.
Cory: The game between Florida and Alabama last season was not much of a game. Yes, the final score was close but Alabama was in control almost the entire game. The score this year won’t be nearly as close. The Gators lost key players that made that offense go, and while the Crimson Tide lost players, too, they have just reloaded. Florida cannot pass. Yes, the Gators have run the ball very well so but that’s come against Florida Atlantic and South Florida. They will need to throw the football to beat Alabama and the problem with that is they just can’t. Gator quarterback Emory Jones has thrown two interceptions against four picks, and has an average yards per attempt of just 5.4 yards. Without that balance Florida will find it tough to move the ball and tough to score. Alabama 42, Florida 20
Dave: Alabama 35 Florida 31
Gregg: Alabama is playing like a team that is already peaking. The only question for them is can then keep it up for 12 more games. Meanwhile, Florida will continue to be over-hyped and over rated even though they can’t even pick a quarterback. Bama big in this one. Alabama 38 Florida 21
Jason: The biggest game in the SEC happens in Gainesville as mighty Alabama takes to the road to face a bit of a rebuilding Florida team. The Gator running game has been exceptional early, No. 2 in the nation, yet against FAU and USF, but still efficient and the offense has been cruising. Unfortunately, four picks have kept the Gators from being near perfect offensively. On the Bama side, Bryce Young has played like a Heisman frontrunner. He won’t beat you with his feet, but nearly 600 yards with 7 TD’s and 0 INT’s gets it done. Alabama had to replace a myriad of weapons offensively and so far they have not missed a beat and look like by far the best team in college football yet again. Having said that, the wins were against a way overrated Miami team and Mercer. This will be the first opponent that can match them athletically. Despite all the good feelings out of Tuscaloosa, the penalties have been an issue and in a game like this, they could be costly. The Tide need to pressure the two QB system of Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson and not allow them to break contain and beat them with their feet. The Gators are talented enough up front to make Young uncomfortable and keep the Gators in it for a while. The bottom line though is that Bama has too much on defense and a couple big throws by Young will break this one open in the third quarter and Bama puts another checkmark on the schedule as they march ahead toward another CFP appearance. Alabama 38 Florida 21
Joe-S-U: Alabama
John: Bama by a zillion
Josh: This could be a really good game, and if it is anything like last years SEC Championship, it should be fun to watch. Alabama won their “helmet” game against Miami, and took care of Mercer. Florida knows their season will ride on this game. I expect this one to be close, but Saban and the Tide are too much for the Gators. Alabama 42 – Florida 39
Steven: Alabama QB has 2 games under his belt and already seems to have the world by the tail. He has 7 touchdowns with no interceations. Of course, Miami and Mercer aren’t exactly knocking down the doors of the College Football Playoff. Neither is Florida. The Gators are led by a QB in the More Interceptions than Touchdowns club. Tide gonna roll. Gregg, seriously, let’s not see ‘Bama back on the picks until December because no one is picking against them. I know I won’t. ‘Bama 56-7
Trout: I see Alabama wiping the floor with the Gators. I just don’t believe in Dan Mullins as the Florida head coach. People want to believe that Florida is back to where they were when Urban was there, but I don’t see it. Also Alabama is the best team in the country. I really don’t see this game being close. Florida might stick with the Tide for the first quarter or half. But, at some point Alabama will pull away and the Gators won’t be able to keep up. I see labam winning big, and Florida receiving their first loss of the season. (Alabama, 48-21)
Vaughn Broadnax (OSU 1980-83): Alabama 45-21 over Florida. Enough said.
Final Score: Alabama 31 Florida 29
(22)Auburn @ (10)Penn State
Andy: What will very likely the game of the week, Penn State has a ton of momentum right now after a big season opener road win against top 15 Wisconsin and then steam rolling ball state last week 44-13. Lions quarterback Sean Clifford has started the season strong completing 63% of his passes with 2 touchdowns to no interceptions. One of the big weaknesses last season with Penn State was their down field passing attack, I truly believe we’ll see more deep balls this year from Penn State since they hired offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich who is known for taking shots down field with his quarterback. Auburn has played Akron and Alabama State this season, hardly games worth watching. The good news for Auburn fans is that first year head coach Bryan Harsin has his team doing what really good teams should be doing when they play far inferior comeptition.. blowing them out. The Tigers have outscored their opponents 122-10 in two games.They’ve done this by taking pressure off of third year quarterback Bo Nix by establishing the run with running backs Jarquez Hunter and Tank Bigsby who have combined for nearly 500 yards on the ground in two games. With this tough rush attack, Bo Nix has quietly started the season completing nearly 75% of his passes with 5 touchdowns to zero interceptions. This matchup is so hard to predict because of the new coaching staff at Auburn and the fact that their schedule has been a cake walk so far. I will side with experience on this one. Penn State 34 Auburn 28
Coach Rick: I am not sold on Auburn yet. Yes their offense has put up a lot of points, but against teams that are still coming together for their conference season. Being PSU is at home, I do have them winning by 10 points.
Cory: Just how good is Auburn? Similar question, is Penn State legit? The Tigers enter the game having put up over 60 points in each of their two wins so far but those games were against Akron and Alabama State. Penn State is 2-0 and has an impressive road win over Wisconsin, but the Nittany Lions never seem able to take that next step into becoming an elite team under head coach James Franklin. For the first time in a while, it looks like Auburn might have a very scary offense. The Tigers have two good running backs in Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter, but what makes this team go is quarterback Bo Nix. He has continue to develop as a quarterback and it shows as he is completing 74.4 percent of his passes with five touchdowns and no picks. Playing at Penn State will make this game interesting but I am still not a believer in quarterback Sean Clifford. He’s turnover prone and has not show the ability to rise the occasion when its needed. Auburn 31, Penn State 20
Dave: Penn State 32 Auburn 21
Gregg: I think the Lions have a chance in this one if they can muster up that same defense they used to defeat Wisconsin. Not sure if it will happen but I really wish it would. I think that Auburn will struggle enough in this for me to pull Bo Nix out of my Fantasy Leagues starting line-up. Hopefully Coach Franklin does not let me down. Penn State 17 Auburn 14
Jason: Coming off victories over Akron and Alabama State by a combined score of 122 to 10, the Tigers have to strap it up for real now. Bo Nix has been sensational, hitting on 75% of his passes for nearly 400 yards and five tutty’s with no picks and he’s played enough in hostile environments that he should be good heading into the white out of Happy Valley. The Auburn D is the strength of this club and they face a Penn State team who isn’t necessarily tearing it up offensively. Penn State’s defense is real good though and Nix could face a lot pressure by the ferocious Lion front. This one will be all about how well Nix and that offense does handling the crowd and being able to hear their checks with 110 plus yelling at the top of their lungs. It will be a barnburner from start to finish as both defenses rise to the challenge but a late Sean Clifford led TD drive and a defensive stop from the Lion defense will be the difference as Penn State will hold off a talented Auburn squad to get a big win for the home crowd. Penn State 27 Auburn 23
Joe-S-U: Penn State
John: Auburn with the upset, because it just means more in the $EC. Auburn 28 Penn St 24
Josh: I read that this was the first time in 90 years Auburn had played a Big Ten team in Big Ten territory. That tells you what you need to know about the SEC and their “scheduling.” Penn State and Game Day will be ready for this game, as this will be the annual White Out game for the fans. James Franklin wont be distracted from the USC rumors and will win this game in a close one. Penn State 24 – Auburn 21
Steven: This is the game that will be the most telling for the Big Ten as to where they are nationally as a conference. Any time you have a Big Ten-SEC matchup it is one to watch. I am not much of a Auburn QB Bo Nix fan, but I am even less impressed with Penn State QB Sean Clifford. I just don’t see him as a game-changing force on the field. While Auburn has won two games over hugely outmatched competition and PSU has a quality win over Wisconsin on the road, I still like Auburn. The Tiger offense is just better and will lean on a stout running attack to control the game. If Penn State can limit the run, they have a chance. Not sure they can. Auburn 28-21
Trout: I would like to pick Penn State in this game, but I don’t think they’ll win. Auburn, by no means, is a great team. But they can be dangerous. And besides a few exceptions, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions have had trouble winning the big game. And this is a big game. There are also some questions regarding Sean Clifford as Penn State’s quarterback. I think this game will be close. Even though I don’t think Penn State is great, they are not without talent. I just think in the end, they won’t be able to put the Tigers away. Mistakes will be made, and Auburn will take full advantage of them. Auburn will win this hard fought, low scoring game. (Auburn, 17-14)
Vaughn Broadnax (OSU 1980-83): I am going to be the B1G homer and pick the Nittany Lions to edge the Auburn Tigers 28-24
Final Score: Penn State 28 Auburn 20
Purdue @ (12)Notre Dame
Andy: Notre Dame has not looked that sharp this season nearly losing to Toledo in the second week. Folks won’t care as long as they’re winning, but that only works until you run into a tough team that can play above their talent level. I don’t believe that is Purdue this week. Purdue has beaten two nobodies as well this season between UConn and Oregon State. I don’t believe Notre Dame will play down to the Purdue talent level, but I think they’re still figuring out their personel after losing their winningest quarterback in program history and four starting offensive linemane to the NFL. Transfer quarterback Jack Coan went from servicable to solid last year and seems to have improved even more coming into this season. I just think Notre Dame has better big game experience lately than Notre Dame and will walk away with a win. Notre Dame 35 Purdue 24
Coach Rick: This game is such a toss up for me. Notre Dame does not have a defense this year, but has found a way to win by 3 points in each of their games. Defense wins and I see Purdue pulling off the upset and winning by 10.
Cory: After week one a matchup with Purdue and Notre Dame may not have drawn much attention, but after Florida State lost to Jacksonville State and Notre Dame needed a last-minute drive to beat Toledo, there are serious questions about just how good the Irish are. Purdue won’t be mistaken for an elite team any time soon, but the Boilermakers at least look like an improved one this season. Wide receive David Bell is legitimate future first-round NFL draft pick, and quarterback Jack Plummer has looked great so far, completing 73.8 percent of his passes with six touchdowns against no interceptions. The fix for Notre Dame is simple – the Irish need to run the ball more often and more effectively. In two games they’ve got just 197 rushing yards and are averaging a meager 2.7 yards per carry. Expect the Irish to get talented running back Kyren Williams involved much earlier in this game to establish a balanced offense. Notre Dame 35, Purdue 24
Dave: Notre Dame 28 Purdue 14
Gregg: Another game I will pull for the Big Ten but I don’t think Purdue can pull it off. Notre Dame has not yet looked like they playoff team they were last year but I think it is about time that Coach Kelly gets them on the right path. Notre Dame 31 Purdue 24
Jason: Notre Dame is 2-0 but it hasn’t been pretty. The lack of a running game and the passing game has been just enough to survive two opponents they should never struggle with in Florida State and Toledo. It took overtime to beat the ‘Noles and they just lost to an FCS squad, and if it wasn’t for a late TD drive, they fall to Toledo. Purdue has looked solid but they haven’t necessarily faced much either, defeating UConn and Oregon State handily. ND QB Jack Coan has been solid, yet underwhelming, hitting 69% of his throws so far for over 600 yards with six TD’s and 2 INT’s. The Irish has really struggled to stop the run but the Boilermakers don’t necessarily have the greatest rush attack. QB Jack Plummer has been really good but they are a bit one dimensional and now have to face athletes in the secondary, they’ve yet to see. Neither team is elite and both have issues on both sides of the ball, but led by Coan, the Irish will get a couple late scores to break open a tight game that at times will look ugly, yet ND finds away to move to 3-0. ND 38 Purdue 28
Joe-S-U: Notre Dame
John: Irish bang the Boilers like the drum that won’t fit in the stadium. Notre Dame 31 Purdue 10
Josh: Notre Dame killed a tradition that was going on for nearly 40 years as the Big Drum wont make an appearance due to the dimensions of the stadium, and the Irish wont let it come through the home side. This Notre Dame team is not as great as they were last year, but Purdue will be without several key players. Irish win this one, but I anticipate their first loss coming to the hands of the Bearcats. Notre Dame 34 – Purdue 14.
Steven: Notre Dame QB Jack Coan was a tough, gritty QB while he was at Wisconsin, but he wasn’t a world-beater by any means. That being said, both the Irish and the Boilermakers have been airing it out and neither has much of a run game. I’m not sure either team will care to run much so it will have to come down to the pass defense where both teams are giving up around 200 yards per game. This will be a close one. It being at home for the Irish, I’ll go with ND, but wouldn’t be surprised if Purdue pulls the upset. ND 34-33
Trout: Although the Irish are not a powerhouse, they are still a very good team, and I don’t see them having trouble with the Boilermakers. Purdue is always going to be a middle to bottom of the rung, Big Ten team. They do have some talent, but I don’t think it’ll be enough to deter the Irish from scoring some points. Notre Dame should be able to win this game with comfort. I don’t think it’ll be a complete blowout, but they should be able to win by a few scores. Notre Dame will win and remain undefeated for another week. (Notre Dame, 35-10)
Vaughn Broadnax (OSU 1980-83): I have a feeling that Notre Dame may not be what they are cracked up to be. Watch for a certain ND coach to nearly have an aneurism as his face turns ruby red as the Boilermakers upset the Fighting Irish 31-21.