A week after suffering a humiliating home-field loss to Northern Illinois, No. 18 Notre Dame will look to regain its footing when it visits Purdue on Saturday afternoon in West Lafayette, Ind.
Notre Dame (1-1) tumbled 13 spots in the AP Top 25 poll after losing to the Huskies, who entered last weekend’s matchup as a four-touchdown underdog. The Fighting Irish dropped a 16-14 decision after kicker Mitch Jeter’s last-gasp, 62-yard field goal attempt was blocked as time expired.
Now the Fighting Irish turn their attention to Purdue (1-0), which cruised to a 49-0 win over Indiana State in its season opener.
Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman will try to keep his players focused on the task ahead as they take on the Boilermakers. Just recently, Freeman was celebrating his team after a road win against Texas A&M.
“It’s disappointing,” Freeman said. “You go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows in a tale of two weeks. But we’ve got to own this thing. As coaches and players, we’ve got to own it, and we’ve got to fix it.
“We’ve been here before, right? We’ve been here before. Now it’s time to get it fixed. We’ve got to get it fixed and get back to playing football the way we know how to play, (the way) we’ve played before. And we can, and we will.”
On the other side of the field, Purdue coach Ryan Walters also senses an opportunity with Saturday’s showdown. The Boilermakers had a bye last week, which gave them extra time to prepare for an in-state rival that long has landed top recruits and dominated headlines in the region.
Walters knows Purdue stands much to gain from an upset win.
“Yeah, I definitely think there is an element of proving it or earning respect,” Walters said. “You know, I would be lying to you if I didn’t say this game was circled on my calendar. So we’re excited.”
Purdue quarterback Hudson Card completed 24 of 25 passes for 273 yards and four touchdowns in his season debut. Max Klare was the top target with five catches for 71 yards and a touchdown, while Devin Mockobee led the ground game with 11 carries for 89 yards.
On defense, Purdue edge rusher Will Heldt tallied a pair of sacks.
The Notre Dame player in the brightest spotlight will be quarterback Riley Leonard, who has completed 38 of 62 passes for 321 yards and two interceptions this season. He also has rushed for 79 yards and a score.
Fighting Irish running back Jeremiyah Love could help to take some of the burden off Leonard and the rest of the offense. Love has scored in back-to-back games, and he has 25 carries for 170 yards to lead the team.
Howard Cross III leads Notre Dame with one sack, and Xavier Watts and Adon Shuler have one interception apiece.
Walters said he expected Notre Dame to be motivated at kickoff.
“We’re going to err on the side of thinking they’re going to be an angry football team,” he said. “Any time you’re top five in the country and lose the home opener, that’s going to leave a bad taste in your mouth. I know Coach Freeman will have those guys fired up and ready to play.”
