I’m not sure what to say. Barry Odom has built a career on turning around defenses. I was confident he’d be able to put something together in his second year at Purdue, and I was wrong in that assumption. I know defensive coordinator Kevin Kane is getting all the heat, and rightfully so, but there’s more than enough blame to go around, and for me, the buck always stops at the top. Kevin Kane’s X’s and O’s haven’t inspired confidence (to say the least), but the “Jimmies and Joes” are the issue, and that’s on Coach Odom.
Purdue’s front 7 is one of the worst I’ve seen at this level. It’s impossible to play defense when all the opponent has to do is hand the ball off, and that’s all UCLA needed to do against Purdue. I’m confident that if you let me take over UCLA’s offense, I could have put 50 points on the board with a 3-play call sheet. Any offensive coordinator who throws the ball against Purdue does so out of sheer boredom. UCLA ran for 369 yards, and the only thing that kept them from running for 500+ was their offensive coordinator calling 32 passes.
UCLA has a solid rushing attack, but San Diego State managed to hold them to 214 yards on 43 carries while the Boilermakers gave up 369 yards on 48 carries. If given the opportunity, I’d trade Purdue’s Big 10 defense for San Diego State’s zombie PAC-12 defense right now; no questions asked and no takebacks. I know Purdue doesn’t have the biggest NIL budget, but there’s no excuse for what I saw on the field Saturday night / Sunday morning.
The bottom line is that this is a Big 10 team with M.A.C.-level talent on defense, and if I were a M.A.C. team, I’d be insulted after reading this sentence.
Defensive Line
Defensive End
- Keyshawn Burgos: Snaps – 36 – Tackles – 2 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
- Breeon Ishmail: Snaps – 47 – Tackles – 6 – T.F.L. – 1 – Sacks – 1
- CJ Madden: Snaps – 1 – No Stats
Nose Tackle
Curt Neal: Snaps – 53 – Tackles – 3 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
Defensive Tackle
- Ian Jeffries: Snaps – 44 – No Stats
- Rodney Lora: Snaps – 42 – Tackles – 2 – T.F.L. – .5 – Sacks – 0
- Wisdom Simms: Snaps – 20 – No Stats
Grade: F
I’m not sure what else there is to say about the defensive line when the opposition runs for 369 yards while averaging 7.7 yards per carry. Only the Germans have a word that fully encompasses that level of suck, and I’m not sure how to pronounce it.
Full credit to the UCLA coaching staff. Running the ball 47 times can get a bit tedious, but they stuck with it despite the monotony. When the Bruins wanted to run it inside, they blew Purdue’s defensive line off the ball and reestablished the line of scrimmage downfield. When they wanted to run outside the tackles, Purdue rolled out the red carpet to the perimeter by not setting the edge and allowing themselves to get pinned inside.
Curt Neal spent most of the game getting washed out by double teams, while Ian Jeffries played 44 snaps and didn’t record a single tackle. How is that even possible? You would think one of the UCLA backs would have tripped over his prone body at some point.
The only redeeming quality from Purdue’s defensive front Saturday night came from their pass rush. Breeon Ishmail played the best game of his Purdue career and was credited with 3 quarterback pressures, including a sack. Keyshawn Burgos was also credited with 3 quarterback pressures and looks to be the entrenched starter at defensive end.
Big things were expected out of defensive tackle T.J. Lindsey this season, but he missed most of camp rehabbing the knee injury that ended his 2025 season. He made his season debut against Wake Forest and played fairly well but didn’t see any action against the Bruins. I’m guessing his knee is still an issue because he literally couldn’t have been worse than what Purdue had on the field. It looks like the coaching staff has thrown in the towel on former starter CJ Madden after making a one-play cameo.
If you want to look at where Purdue has been hurt the most by their limited budget, it’s on the defensive line. I’m not sure there’s a legitimate Big 10 starter in the bunch…maybe Curt Neal, but he seems more like a nice rotational piece than an every-down nose tackle anchoring the heart of the defense. Starter-level G-4 defensive linemen are expensive. Purdue lost Chops Harkless to Kentucky and Demeco Kennedy to Louisville (both of whom are currently out with injury) and didn’t get nearly that level of talent in return.
I’m not sure how you run a coherent defense without a defensive line and neither does Kevin Kane or Barry Odom.
Linebacker
Middle Linebacker
- Charles Correa: Snaps – 83 – Tackles – 7 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
- Hudson Miller: Snaps – 9 – Tackles – 4
Middle Linebacker
- Jojo Hayden: Snaps – 42 – Tackles – 2 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
- Anthony Speca: Snaps – 29 – Tackles – 2 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
Weak Side Linebacker
- Winston Berglund: Snaps – 22 – Tackles – 3 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
Outside Linebacker / Edge Rusher
- Jeremy Lewis: Snaps – 47 – Tackles – 4 – T.F.L. – 0 – Sacks – 0
- Trey Smith: Snaps – 43 – No Stats
- Tre Moore: Snaps – 8 – No Stats
Grade: D-
Starting linebacker Jojo Hayden had an abysmal game. He was supposed to be Purdue’s run-stopping middle linebacker; instead, he looks like a defensive end trying to play linebacker. UCLA noticed the same thing and torched him for two touchdowns in coverage. His only contribution to the run defense was offering to help other defenders up after they made a tackle. For this defense to work, Purdue needs Hayden to be, at worst, functional in the run game.
He wasn’t, and Purdue’s defense didn’t work.
Charles Correa was fine. On the rare occasion that something good happened on defense, Correa was usually involved. I think he’s a starting-caliber Big 10 linebacker, but Purdue needs him to be a star, and I don’t see it. Maybe if he got more protection from the defensive line and were better able to utilize his speed instead of always having to fight off a free-roaming offensive lineman, things would be different, but that’s his main task in this defense. He’s the best of the bunch, but that’s a low bar to clear.
Jeremy Lewis has been a solid addition to the pass rush and has decent upside as an edge rusher, but Trey Smith is mostly in it for the cardio. He played 43 snaps and wasn’t credited with a single quarterback pressure. Despite UCLA running the ball 48 times, he didn’t record a single tackle. He wasn’t even close enough to a pile to get credit for an assist. I’m honestly befuddled by his stat line. Based on his production, I haven’t seen anything to suggest he’s a Big 10-caliber player.
Other than that, Anthony Speca was supposed to bring speed to the linebacker group, but he mostly used the aforementioned speed to get into position to miss tackles. Winston Berglund has done a respectable job coming in as a third linebacker…maybe that’s something to build on? I mean, probably not, but at least he put himself into the mix during his time on the field.
Georgia transfer Elo Modozie was supposed to be Purdue’s stud edge rusher this season but got banged up against Wake Forest and didn’t play against the Bruins. I’m desperate for someone, anyone, to take some of Trey Smith’s snaps and do something productive with them. Modozie seems like the logical candidate, but he hasn’t done much of anything since his sophomore season at Army.
I’m giving this group a D- instead of an F because Correa played OK, but I feel like I’m being overly generous.
Secondary
Right Cornerback
- Don Saunders: Snaps – 80 – Tackles – 11 – Pass Break-Ups – 0
- Dee Newsome: Snaps – 2 – No Snaps
Left Cornerback
- Hudari Hines: Snaps – 80 – Tackles – 2 – Pass Break-Ups – 0
- Traveon Wright: Snaps – 3 – No Stats
Nickel Corner
- Smiley Bradford: Snaps – 54 – Tackles – 5 – Pass Break-Ups – 0
Free Safety
- John Slaughter: Snaps – 69 – Tackles – 11 – Pass Break-Ups – 0
Strong Safety
- Jaden Mangham: Snaps – 47 – Tackles – 4 – Pass Break-Ups – 1
- Justin Denson Jr.: Snaps – 52 – Tackles – 8 – Pass Break-Ups – 0
Corner Grade: D
The secondary wasn’t good by any stretch of the imagination, but they were the most functional part of the defense. Don Saunders was targeted 5 times and caught 4, but he did force UCLA to make a couple of contested catches. Last week I said Saunders would make a CB2 on a few teams, but I haven’t seen enough playmaking to justify him as a CB1.
His partner, Hudari Hines, was targeted 6 times and only gave up 1 reception for 14 yards. He’s been one of the better defenders on the team. Maybe it’s time to see if he holds up better under the CB1 microscope and give Saunders a chance to try his luck at CB2. I’m not sure there’s much to lose, but I’m also not very confident that Hines is a CB1.
The Saunders and Hines pairing graded out around a C, but Smiley Bradford brought the position grade down an entire letter grade. He was targeted 5 times and allowed 5 completions for 99 yards, including 4 first-down receptions and a touchdown. I thought Bradford, at worst, was going to be a solid nickel corner, and at best, the best corner on the roster.
I was wrong. Unequivocally wrong.
Losing Mister Clark in the Indiana State game was a much bigger blow to the defense than I anticipated.
Safety Grade: C-
Slaughter, Mangham, and Denson Jr. are the strength of the defense. That’s like being the biggest baitfish in a shark tank, but at least it’s something. Slaughter leads the team in tackles (your safety leading the team in tackles tends to be a bad thing). Mangham and Denson Jr. have both held up respectably well in coverage, and while their run defense has been hit and miss, it feels like they’re always trying to tackle a rampaging running back with a full head of steam 20 yards down the field.
Granted, they haven’t made many plays, but I need something to hold onto, and right now, all I’ve got is the safeties.
