GBI Express

Gold and Black Express Vol 25, EX 9

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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 9 • 11 BY TRAVIS BAUGH AND ALAN KARPICK S enior Kenny Bell, one of the most deco- rated receivers in Nebraska history, has a chance to break another school record Satur- day just a week after setting the record for ca- reer catches with 167. Bell needs just seven receiving yards against Purdue to move past Johnny Rodg- ers for the school record of 2,479 career yards. Bell has 33 catches for 572 yards and two touchdowns in 2014. If the Boulder, Colo., native leads Nebraska in catches this season, he'll be the first player in school history to lead the team in recep- tions four seasons. Jordan Westerkamp has 30 catches entering Saturday's game. "He's had a great career," Coach Bo Pelini told reporters. "Kenny Bell has been an ab- solute pleasure to coach. Just forget about football, but how he's grown as a man over that period of time has been fun to watch, his evolution. He's been a great kid to coach. It's been very rewarding to see him accomplish what he's been able to accomplish." STRONG SECONDARY Nebraska's secondary has made life tough on opposing quarterbacks in 2014. The Cornhuskers have limited opposition to a Big Ten-low 48.1 completion percentage, the third-best mark in the nation, and eight touchdowns. They have nine interceptions. "We play a lot of man, so it's the type of windows the quarterback is going to throw to," Nebraska safety Corey Cooper said. "I think that has a lot to do with it." UPSET ALERT Nebraska has won its five games at Me- morial Stadium by an average of 22.8 points. Two of the most lopsided affairs came in its two conference home games against Illinois (45-14) and Rutgers (42-24). However, Pelini is making sure the Corn- huskers take no games lightly as they enter the final month of the season. "When you look across the country, there are head scratchers every week," Pelini said. "Sometimes people lose games they shouldn't lose, and sometimes they almost do. It's not easy. You have to play this game on edge. You have to prepare on edge. You've got to have respect for the game because you have to real- ize how quickly a game can turn." DOMINANT DEFENSIVE END After a monster 2013 season, former Purdue commit Randy Gregory has churned out a solid 2014 despite playing just one se- ries in the first two games due to arthroscopic knee surgery on Sept. 1. The Fishers, Ind., native has 33 tackles to go along with seven tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks, the fourth-most in the conference. Gregory has 16 sacks in 20 career games, including at least one sack in eight of 12 career conference games. He had two sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery against Purdue last year. HISTORICALLY SPEAKING Purdue will be mak- ing its first appearance in Nebraska's Memorial Stadium in just the third meeting between the schools. Purdue won the first meeting in the season opener in 1958, and the Cornuskers man- handled Purdue Oct. 12, 2013, in front of 47,203 fans at Ross-Ade Stadium. In '58, the shutout set the tone for one of the better defensive efforts on record at Purdue. The Boilermakers held opponents un- der 10 points in five of nine games and yielded just 102 points for the season, the second- fewest points allowed by the Boilermakers in a season since World War II. The win over Nebraska wasn't the only top moment of the '58 season as the Boilermakers finished 6-1-2, the most recent one-loss team in Purdue history. A couple of late-season ties to Ohio State and Indiana kept the Boilermak- ers from the Rose Bowl. It would take them nine years to make it to Pasadena. The '58 Boilermakers, who were ranked as high as No. 8 before the Indiana deadlock, had wins over No. 5 Michigan, No. 11 Notre Dame and No. 13 Northwestern, marking the only time in school history the Boilermakers have defeated three teams ranked in the top 13 in the same season. This game also will mark Purdue's first visit to the traditional plain states of Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma for a football game. Purdue has faced Kansas State three times, winning all three contests. Two of the games were played in West Lafayette and the other in the 1998 Alamo Bowl. The Boilermakers have also faced Oklahoma State twice, both in bowl games, and have never battled Kansas or Oklahoma. j What You Need To Know About Nebraska Tom Campbell True freshman DeAngelo Yancey was a bright spot on the Purdue's offense, catching five passes for a career-best 146 yards in last year's 44-7 loss to Nebraska. A 55-yard scoring reception by Yancey from Danny Etling averted a shutout in the game's final minutes. Record-Breaking Bell THE LAST TIME...

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