Our beat writers are split on whether SU will beat Purdue for 2nd straight year

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Syracuse beat Colgate and Western Michigan by a combined 106 points. Purdue, meanwhile, has split its first two games after losing to Fresno State in the season opener.

Last year, SU battled the Boilermakers in Week 3. It pulled off a 50-yard, game-winning drive in 43 seconds with seven to spare. This season, Syracuse will go into Ross-Ade Stadium for the third game of the year, with some significant injury questions.

Here’s what our beat writers think will happen when SU takes on Purdue in a primetime, road matchup:

Anthony Alandt (2-0)
Oranges don’t travel well
Purdue 35, Syracuse 30

Alright kids, fun’s over. Never fault a team for starting the season with easy nonconference opponents that it can use to wallop and drum up support heading into conference games. Syracuse did exactly what it needed to do against Colgate and Western Michigan to give the team confidence out of the gate and give fans something to “wow” at. Don’t think I’ve ignored the rumblings of the Orange winning the Atlantic Coast Conference already.

But ever the curmudgeon, I’m not sold on this team just yet. It took Syracuse pulling out a miracle and a breakout performance from Oronde Gadsden II last year for the Orange to mount a comeback victory over Purdue. Take away Gadsden, who’ll either be out or see a large decrease in his role as he comes back from an ankle injury. Take away a rocking JMA Wireless Dome, substituting it for a sold out West Lafayette crowd instead.

Last season proved beyond challenging for the Orange when they left the confines of the Salt City. Though the Boilermakers seem to still be reeling from a Week 1 loss to Fresno State, I like a young Purdue defense to hold Syracuse at bay just long enough for them to pull out a win over the Orange.

Wyatt Miller (2-0)
Test passed
Syracuse 34, Purdue 27

Last season, former Purdue quarterback Aidan O’Connell watched Gadsden’s game-winning touchdown from the sidelines. This time around, a potential-Gadsden-less Syracuse squad faces its first road game of the season. Nevertheless, the veteran Shrader will lead this battered Syracuse squad into West Lafayette, Indiana, and beat first-year starter Hudson Card.

The Purdue defense gave up 39 points in the Week 1 loss to Fresno State. It followed that performance by beating Virginia Tech, a team that went 3-8 last year, as a one-point underdog. There’s a lot to unpack there. Even though Syracuse has played some sub-par opponents so far, its dominance should not be diminished. The Orange starters have exited at halftime of both games after the team led by 37 or more points in both. They are the only team in the nation to rank top five in scoring offense (third) and scoring defense (first) through two games. Syracuse has all the momentum and more than enough talent to win this game.

This Big 10 matchup will serve as the first test of the season for the Orange, and I think they’ll pass with a combination of timely blitzing and contested catches.

Henry O’Brien (2-0)
No miracle this time
Purdue 34, Syracuse 31

Purdue struggled in its opening game against Fresno State but bounced back with a tight win on the road against Virginia Tech, a future opponent for the Orange this season. The Boilermakers, with Texas transfer Card at quarterback, will have the advantage being back at home.

Rightfully so, Syracuse fans remember the Gadsden touchdown at the end of the game that moved the team to 3-0. But what most people probably don’t remember is that Purdue destroyed SU in the passing game. O’Connell threw for 424 yards, three touchdowns and one silly interception that Caleb Okechukwu easily took back for a pick-six. When Purdue would get into the red zone, it relied on former tight end Payne Durham to cut through the 3-3-5 for two touchdowns.

The Boilermakers now have Card, though, who has been in the top half of Big 10 quarterbacks in terms of efficiency through two games. SU’s front seven will make life challenging for Card, who will most likely have his worst game of the season. But that could easily be said about Purdue’s front seven as well, with Kydran Jenkins taking advantage of a weakened SU offensive line to make Shrader’s day much tougher.

Purdue serves as the first real test for Syracuse. But even if the Orange don’t pull out a win in West Lafayette, they still have plenty of opportunities to get to six wins by the end of year.

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