Notre Dame outlasted a ten point Purdue comeback, beating the Boilermakers 20-17 on a 27-yard field goal by Kyle Brendza with seven seconds left. The final drive for the Fighting Irish wasn't led by starter Everett Golson, but instead by Tommy Rees, who came in for the final drive. Golson fumbled late in the fourth quarter to set up Purdue's game-tying TD pass from Caleb TerBush to Antavian Edison, and Rees came in ice cold for the game-winning drive. While the headlines will say that Rees led the drive, the fact of the matter is that he only went 3/8 on the 12 play drive, often overthrowing receivers by yards.
Purdue couldn't get a rhythm going on offense all day. The team rotated between TerBush and Robert Marve at quarterback, and neither was overly impressive. TerBush looked like a worse passer, getting intercepted twice and completing just eight of 19 passes but running four times for 27 yards, whlie Marve completed 11 of 18 passes and ended up with negative rushing yardage for the game. Purdue had relatively short fields on both of their touchdown drives, and struggled for most of the game.
The Fighting Irish looked solid offensively, even without Cierre Wood. Golson improved on last week's start against Navy, going 21/31 for 289 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for a TD. However, despite their success against a weak Purdue team, this doesn't look like a team that should be favored in the next two weeks going up against solid Michigan State and Michigan teams. Theo Riddick looked much more mortal today than he did last week against Navy, but Wood's return next week should bolster the Notre Dame backfield and at least give them a chance.
