Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/399550
O n offense, Purdue's looked the past two games unlike anything we've seen in quite some time, a unit that doesn't just look functional but, dare I say, good. Its defense went through a string of games a few weeks back where a group that was one of the worst in its sport in 2013 looked, dare I say, good in 2014. Now, the challenge is to get them both to happen at, you know, the same time. Austin Appleby's insertion into the start - ing lineup at quarterback seems — seems — to have galvanized the Boilermaker offense and breathed life into that comatose outfit you saw just two weeks ago, when it played like a cadaver in a very winnable game against Iowa. Appleby was terrific against Illinois, but the skeptic, or at least reasonable person, had to view his performance through the Illinois- is-hilariously-bad-on-defense prism. The asterisk can be stricken from the record, because Michigan State is wickedly good on defense and the Boilermakers just scored more points against the Spartans than almost anyone else has in years. With Appleby at the controls, his transfor - mative personality seems to have taken hold. Everyone seems to moving faster, trying harder. And it's paid off to the tune of nine touchdowns in the last two Big Ten games. FYI: Purdue's offense scored 13 touch- downs against Big Ten teams all of last sea- son, only a few of them mattering at the time. But, while the offense took another step forward vs. Michigan State, the defense slid backward, buckling against the Spartans vs. both the run and the pass and offering up only minimal resistance against Connor Cook, Jeremy Langford, Tony Lippett, etc., all the studs who have given the No. 8 team in the country a great offense to complement a great defense. Another asterisk might apply here. Whereas Appleby has given life to the of- fense, the loss of Sean Robinson was bound to suck some of it from the defense, and you saw that against Michigan State. No one player was going to prevent the Spartans from hanging 45 points or scoring on four of five first-half possessions — the lone "stop" being a missed field goal — but Robinson's strong presence and abnormally large heart might have helped keep things from snowballing early, creating the hole Purdue dug out of just enough to peek over the top before sliding backward. Now, moving forward, the defense has a gigantic hole to fill, same way the offense did when its quarterback play was the lone miss - ing piece to the puzzle of a functional, com- petitive, productive offense. Thing is, I'm not sure there's a panacea for Robinson's loss standing on the sideline. What Purdue's defense was Saturday is its new reality, though not every opponent will be as tall an order as the Spartans were. Make no mistake: Robinson's loss hurt Purdue Saturday. The opponent being really, really good hurt more. On paper, this was not a winnable game for Purdue, yet the Boilermakers acquitted themselves well in the face of the longest odds they'll see all season. Good for them. To hell with moral victories, though, Purdue says, and seemingly means. It's a much better team than last year — that says very little, I know — to the point where wins can be reasonably hoped for. If Purdue restores some of its defensive stoutness post-Robinson injury and Appleby doesn't turn into a pumpkin, that's a realistic hope. The past two games have shown that the process is working, that the improvement is real and that better days not only seem to lie ahead, but might be closer than they once appeared. j Neubert can be contacted at BNeubert@GoldandBlack.com F R O M E D I T O R B R I A N N E U B E R T Looking The Part GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 8 • 5