Preview: Purdue vs. Eastern Michigan - September 15th - Noon - BTN

It's been a busy week on the Purdue front and it's keeping your favorite bloggers awfully busy.  It's keeping Kirk and I busy too.  It's time for everyone to take a break and have a cupcake.

Oops - wrong EMU. Sorry Jimmy Clausen.

Why Purdue wins
Eastern Michigan lost 31-14 at home against Illinois State and lost 36-27 at Ball State.  Ball State and Illinois State aren't the worst teams out there, but both of these games were over by the end of the third quarter.  I truly believe that this Eastern Michigan team would lose to Eastern Kentucky, and Purdue dominated that game.  With Robert Marve injured, Caleb Terbush has the perfect opportunity to gain confidence against a poor defense, although expect the running game to really get rolling.  Eastern Michigan has given up an average of 273 rushing yards per game so far, and I don't expect that number to drop after this week.

Why Eastern Michigan wins 
After losing to the Redbirds and the Cardinals, the Eagles clearly don't like other birds or the color red.  By the way, isn't a Redbird just another name for a cardinal?  I guess it could be a robin.  Anyway, Boilermakers are not birds and aren't red, so it's possible that the Eagles will have confidence that they didn't have the prior two weeks.  Other than that, I don't see any chance the fifth worst team in FBS pulls off the upset unless dual-threat Quarterback, Alex Gillett, goes for over 500 total yards himself.

Player we're most concerned about since their stock photo may break our TV
We have two selections this week:

Henderson

1) #94 Devin Henderson looks like the kind of guy you just want to hug, pinch his cheeks and pat on the head - I mean look at that smile!  As a defensive end who gets some playing time, my worry is that Purdue's offensive linemen might feel the same way and not want to block him.  If he sacks TerBush, it's going to be tough to get mad when they flash his mug on BTN.

Terrell

2) #71 Darien Terrell is a freshman that doesn't appear to get much playing time on the offensive line.  Thank goodness - that hair is the worst attempt at a mohawk since Something About Mary!  Whenever BTN scans the sidelines however, make sure to cover your eyes.  It's possible he may not have his helmet on!

Picks of the week
Purdue is favored by 24. This week, Kirk and I will be betting the value of the last physical cd that we purchased.

Kirk's Bet
The most recent CD Kirk purchased was "Give Till It's Gone" by Ben Harper.  Kirk only buys CDs from his favorite artist because he's cheap and needs physical pieces to add to his Ben Harper shrine.

Kirk takes Purdue with the spread. Purdue 41 - Eastern Michigan 10

Erik's Bet
The last physical cd I purchased was "Simple Math" from Manchester Orchestra for $10.  Great album from one of my favorite bands of all-time. 

I look for Hope and Company to try and get Terbush rolling and Henry involved with the offense. With a bye week and Marshall coming up, Hope has 3 weeks to adjust to life without Marve.  You never want to see an injury happen, but this was the best possible time for it.  Eastern Michigan will get either a defensive or special teams score to give fans something to gripe about over the bye week, but overall it should be an easy win.   Purdue 45 - Eastern Michigan 7

Three Final Things
1. Notre Dame is joining the ACC for all sports except football.  They're also required to play 5 football games against the ACC.  How will this effect the Purdue/ND football series?  It'll also be interesting to see if ND basketball continues it's participation in the Crossroads Classic since they'll be included in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

2. Keep an eye on Rob Henry's time.  If he doesn't play a substantial amount in this game, I doubt the coaches have enough confidence to put him in once Big Ten season starts.

3. Boiler Up!

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