Purdue rolls out 7 straight TDs as Spanos era begins with blowout loss
EAST HARTFORD — Purdue was a 34 ½-point favorite over UConn on Saturday at Rentschler Field. The Boilermakers had the spread covered by halftime.
The Huskies, in their first game under the direction of interim head coach Lou Spanos, lost 49-0 in front of an announced crowd of 14,817 and still couldn’t shake the issues that have plagued them since the start of the season.
“We feel awful, our team feels awful, that we’re not executing,” Spanos, previously the team’s defensivecoordinator,said.“Andalsothat we’re not doing enough. We’re just disappointed for our fans. But our players, they are teammates to each other and we’re getting closer as a team. But now we’ve got to make sure it transfers on game day. We do good stuff in practice, but we have to do better on game day.”
Purdue quarterback Jack Plummer (19-for-24 passing, 273 yards
and four touchdowns) had ample time to find open receivers. When his playmakers had the ball they had few issues slicing up a UConn defense that, once again, struggled greatly to wrap up tackles and position themselves correctly.
UConn’s offense wasn’t much more efficient than its defense as it failed to score for the second time this season. The loss marked the first time since 2016 that the 0-3 Huskies have been blanked twice in one season.
Here’s how it happened:
The turning point
After punting on its opening offensive drive UConn forced Purduetokicktheballawayaftera three-and-outassophomoreJacksonMitchell(14tackles)andjunior IanSwensonsackedPlummer.
Whatever defensive fortitude the Huskies showed early quickly evaporated as the Boilermakers scored touchdowns on their next seven possessions starting with a 17-yard pass from Plummer to tight end Payne Durham at the 5:06 mark of the first quarter.
“What we’re going to talk about is consistency,” Spanos said. “At times we had missed opportunities pressuring the quarterback. We did a poor job staying back in our lanes and executing ... we’ve got to have better practices, and to work better to put us in a better position.”
The Boilermakers led 35-0 at halftime and sat Plummer and many of the offensive starters. Backup quarterback Aiden O’Connell started the second half and Purdue’s second-stringers scored twice in the third quarter against UConn’s starters — both on touchdown passes from O’Connell — to take a 49-0 lead. TheHuskiesfinallyforcedPurdue to punt with five seconds left in the third quarter, though it came with Austin Burton, Purdue’s third-string quarterback, behind centerandtheHuskies’first-team defense still in.
The difference
For UConn’s defense, it once again came down to defensive fundamentals, namely tackling. As it did against Fresno State and Holy Cross, UConn allowed its opponent to rip off big gains as offensive players easily shook off defenders with relative ease.
The Boilermakers (2-0) outgained UConn 562-218, led in passing yards 375-104, held a 28-11 advantage in first downs made, and averaged 7.2 yards per play to the Huskies’ 3.7.
With Purdue already leading by a touchdown in the second quarter, Plummer connected with wide receiver David Bell (six catches, 121 yards and three touchdowns) on a screen on the right side. The 6-foot-2 junior, an All-Big Ten selection in 2020, ran diagonally across the field and into the end zone from 30 yards out as Husky defenders missed four tackles.
Later in the period, with the Boilermakers up three scores, Plummer found a wide-open Bell down the field. He caught the ball in stride, chugged 59 yards down the field and bounced off of three UConn tackle attempts as he fell into the end zone to give Purdue a 28-0 lead.
“During the course of the week in practice, we’ve got to do a better job as coaches, and also our players, during individual periods,” Spanos said. “We need to do a better job of taking proper angles during practice. All 11 have got to be on the same page.”
The Huskies’ offense, with redshirt sophomore Steven Krajewski (14-for-25, 99 yards, two fumbles and one interception) starting at quarterback for the first time this season, wasn’t much better.
“Not where it needs to be,” Krajewski said of his performance. “There’s a lot of things I can do better and cleaner, some decisions I’ve got to make that will benefit us and take advantage of what the defense is giving us. I’ll get better, my teammates will get better, coaching will get better. We’re on the rise. I haven’t lost faith, I haven’t lost any confidence in our offense.”
Krajewski, a 6-foot-2 Michigannative,ledtheteaminrushing with 42 yards on 11 attempts. His best run came on a 12-yard first downscamperinthefirstquarter.
“Just taking what they give me,” Krajewski said. “If they’re playing zone or playing off, and attaching to wide receivers, I can find holes and make plays with my legs.”
The run game as a whole scuffled. Senior Kevin Mensah, who rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2018 and 2019, totaled just 10 yards on eight carries, raising his season total to 119 yards on 40 carries (2.9 yards per carry). Graduate transfer Robert Burns had 35 yards on six attempts, with his best run being 11 yards, and freshman Nate Carter had 28 yards on nine carries.
UConn failed to advance past Purdue’s 32-yard line on any of its first nine drives, with all but one ending with a punt, turnover on downs or the end of the first half. Freshman Joe McFadden missed a 49-yard field goal with 13:21 left in the second quarter.
The Huskies advanced to the red zone just once all game.
Up next
UConn will travel to New York next Saturday and play Army at noon. The Huskies are 4-2 all time against Army, with their last match a UConn win in 2015.
Shawn McFarland can be reached at smcfarland@courant.com.