Three reasons why Penn State Football matches up well with Purdue

Kickoff is getting closer, and We Are now just three weeks away from watching Penn State Football take on Purdue in the first game of the 2022 campaign.

The Nittany Lions are currently slight favorites in this matchup–as they should be–but there is still plenty of concern that they could come home with a week one loss against a sneaky-good team that could make a run towards Indianapolis.

However, as good as this Boilermaker team might be, they’re a team that Penn State matches up very well with; so let’s take a look at three reasons why.

Reason #1 – Purdue’s passing attack vs Penn State Football’s secondary

We discussed a few days ago that Penn State’s secondary will face an early test against Purdue, and while that’s true, the Nittany Lions still hold a decided advantage in this regard.

This will be one of the better passing attacks that this secondary will have to face this season, but it is by no means dominant.

The Boilermakers’ high volume passing offense is certainly a solid one that can challenge Penn State’s defensive backs from time to time throughout the course of the game, but at the end of the day, Aidan O’Connell and his receivers are outmatched by Ji’Ayir Brown, Joey Porter Jr., and the rest of the defensive backfield.

Expect Purdue to hit on a few big passing plays–especially early until the defense gets settled in–but anticipate the Nittany Lions being able to limit them. After all, if you pass the ball 50+ times per game, which very well might happen, you’ll likely hit on a handful of big plays … but you’ll likely also turn the ball over a few times too.