Aidan O'Connell with the Las Vegas Raiders
With the Las Vegas Raiders. Photo: Staff Sgt. Ariel OShea, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Quarterback, Purdue, 2018–⁠22

Aidan O’Connell

Number
No. 16
Height
6′3″
Weight
210 lb
Class (2022)
Sixth-year
Hometown
Lincolnshire, IL
Born
Sep 1, 1998, in Long Grove, Illinois

Wikipedia readers: about 8,719 a month over the past year

Aidan O’Connell played quarterback at Purdue (2018–⁠22). The Las Vegas Raiders took O’Connell in round 4, No. 135 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.

At a glance

Best season
3,712
Passing yards, 2021 (Purdue, 9–⁠4)
Best game
536 yards
Vs. Michigan State, week 10, 2021: No. 1 passing game in FBS that week
Drafted
No. 135
Round 4, 2023 NFL Draft (Las Vegas Raiders)

Career highs

536passing yards, career highvs. Michigan State, 20215touchdown passes, career highvs. Tennessee, 2021

Honors

Passing

Passing yards, season by season, with his team’s record
SeasonTeamCmpAttPctYdsY/ATDInt
2019Purdue10216362.61,0996.784
2020Purdue8813664.79166.772
2021Purdue31544071.63,7128.42811
2022Purdue31949764.23,4817.02213
Career8241,23666.79,2087.46530

Rushing

SeasonTeamCarYdsAvgTDLong
2019Purdue15−9−0.609
2020Purdue12−64−5.309
2021Purdue25−120−4.818
2022Purdue43−81−1.9124
Career95−274−2.9224

Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls.

On the roster

SeasonTeamNo.PosClassHtWt
2018Purdue16QBSo.
2019Purdue16QBJr.
2020Purdue16QBSr.
2021Purdue16QB5th
2022Purdue16QB6th6′3″210

As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.

Per play

SeasonTeamPlaysEPA/playPctileMedianTotalUsageAdj. pass
2019Purdue1750.2132nd (n=155)0.2737.640%0.34
2020Purdue1480.23––33.370%0.37
2021Purdue4480.4692nd (n=145)0.33205.452%0.61
2022Purdue5250.3044th (n=250)0.32157.058%0.45

Expected points added: how much the player’s plays moved the team’s expected score, per play and in total. Plays: total EPA divided by EPA per play, the plays the source credits to him (for a receiver roughly his catches and runs, not every target; for a passer, not every attempt), so it can differ from attempts plus carries. Percentile: against the position’s regulars that season across all divisions on file (quarterbacks with 150+ plays, backs 60+, receivers and tight ends 30+), with how many there were (n) and their median; a dash means too few plays to rank. A season in progress uses the full-season bar scaled by games played, never below 75 plays for quarterbacks, 30 for backs and 20 for receivers. The cohort grows or shrinks with the source’s coverage each season (2025 lists far more players), so compare percentiles rather than raw EPA across years. FCS seasons are marked. Usage: the share of the team’s plays the player was part of (shown from 20 plays). Adjusted pass and rush: EPA per play adjusted for the defenses faced (CollegeFootballData’s WEPA). From CollegeFootballData, 2013 on.

Game by game

2022 Purdue 12 games, 3,481 passing yards, 22 TD
DateOpponentResultCmpAttYdsTDIntRush
Sep 1vs.Penn StateL 31–⁠35295835610−17
Sep 10vs.Indiana StateW 56–⁠0171921140–
Sep 17atSyracuseL 29–⁠323955424317
Oct 1atMinnesotaW 20–⁠1027401990210
Oct 8atMarylandW 31–⁠29304136021−25
Oct 15vs.NebraskaW 43–⁠373554391413
Oct 22atWisconsinL 24–⁠35314632013−20
Nov 5vs.IowaL 3–⁠24204316802−26
Nov 12atIllinoisW 31–⁠2425402373133
Nov 19vs.NorthwesternW 17–⁠9162515920−4
Nov 26atIndianaW 30–⁠16182929020−6
Dec 3vs.MichiganL 22–⁠43324736602−36
2021 Purdue 12 games, 3,712 passing yards, 28 TD
DateOpponentResultCmpAttYdsTDIntRush
Sep 11atUConnW 49–⁠09118620–
Sep 18atNotre DameL 13–⁠271118104028
Sep 25vs.IllinoisW 13–⁠9121918212−10
Oct 2vs.MinnesotaL 13–⁠20345237111−44
Oct 16atIowaW 24–⁠7304037520−2
Oct 23vs.WisconsinL 13–⁠30243220013−35
Oct 30atNebraskaW 28–⁠23344523320−9
Nov 6vs.Michigan StateW 40–⁠29405453630−13
Nov 13atOhio StateL 31–⁠59405239040–
Nov 20vs.NorthwesternW 32–⁠14293942330−7
Nov 27vs.IndianaW 44–⁠72631278401
Dec 30 ✦vs.TennesseeW 48–⁠45264753453−9
2020 Purdue 3 games, 916 passing yards, 7 TD
DateOpponentResultCmpAttYdsTDIntRush
Oct 24vs.IowaW 24–⁠20315028232−19
Oct 31atIllinoisW 31–⁠24293537120−21
Nov 14vs.NorthwesternL 20–⁠27285126320−24
2019 Purdue 6 games, 1,099 passing yards, 8 TD
DateOpponentResultCmpAttYdsTDIntRush
Oct 5atPenn StateL 7–⁠3511400–
Oct 26vs.IllinoisL 6–⁠2471365102
Nov 2vs.NebraskaW 31–⁠276762001
Nov 9atNorthwesternW 24–⁠223450271224
Nov 23atWisconsinL 24–⁠45264328921−10
Nov 30vs.IndianaL 41–⁠44284940831−6

Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.

Before the draft

DrillCombine 2023Pro day 2023
Height6′3⅜″6′3⅜″
Weight213 lb210 lb
Arm length32¼″32¼″
Hand size9¾″9¾″
Wingspan76¼″W

Unmarked: Combine and pro day results compiled by array-carpenter (nfl-draft-data); W: Pre-draft measurables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).

In the NFL

3 seasons, 21 games with a stat; latest team: Las Vegas Raiders.

SeasonTeamGCmpAttYdsTDIntRush
2023Las Vegas Raiders112133432,21812711
2024Las Vegas Raiders91542431,6128430
2025Las Vegas Raiders11022102007
NFL career213776083,932201148

Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.

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