CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2008 Purdue

4–⁠8 (2–⁠6 Big Ten), coached by Joe Tiller.

Schedule and results

Purdue in 2008, game by game: won vs. Northern Colorado 42–10; lost vs. No. 16 Oregon 26–32; won vs. Central Michigan 32–25; lost at Notre Dame 21–38; lost vs. No. 6 Penn State 6–20; lost at No. 12 Ohio State 3–16; lost at Northwestern 26–48; lost vs. No. 25 Minnesota 6–17; won vs. Michigan 48–42; lost at No. 18 Michigan State 7–21; lost at Iowa 17–22; won vs. Indiana 62–10+52−22Won 42–10 vs. Northern Colorado+32Northern Colora…Lost 26–32 vs. No. 16 Oregon-6No. 16 OregonWon 32–25 vs. Central Michigan+7Central MichiganLost 21–38 at Notre Dame-17Notre DameLost 6–20 vs. No. 6 Penn State-14No. 6 Penn StateLost 3–16 at No. 12 Ohio State-13No. 12 Ohio StateLost 26–48 at Northwestern-22NorthwesternLost 6–17 vs. No. 25 Minnesota-11No. 25 MinnesotaWon 48–42 vs. Michigan+6MichiganLost 7–21 at No. 18 Michigan State-14No. 18 Michigan StateLost 17–22 at Iowa-5IowaWon 62–10 vs. Indiana+52Indiana
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 6vsNorthern ColoradoW 42–⁠1093%
Sep 13vs16OregonL 26–⁠3246%
Sep 20vsCentral MichiganW 32–⁠2556%
Sep 27atNotre DameL 21–⁠3846%
Oct 4vs6Penn StateL 6–⁠2035%
Oct 11at12Ohio StateL 3–⁠1617%
Oct 18atNorthwesternL 26–⁠4836%
Oct 25vs25MinnesotaL 6–⁠1746%
Nov 1vsMichiganW 48–⁠4252%
Nov 8at18Michigan StateL 7–⁠2121%
Nov 15atIowaL 17–⁠2227%
Nov 22vsIndianaW 62–⁠1068%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Indiana 62–⁠10; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 9th in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 85th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 135 on file).

Record
4–⁠8
Conference
2–⁠6 tied for 9th in Big Ten
AP final
Unranked
Points
296–⁠301
Coach
Joe Tiller
Elo
1467 −70 this season
SP+ rating
2.4 No. 57 of 120; offense No. 69, defense No. 44, special teams No. 106
SRS
−0.8 No. 67 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 48
Offensive coordinator
Ed Zaunbrecher
Defensive coordinator
Brock Spack
Captains
Ryan Baker, Jermaine Guynn, Curtis Painter and Joe Whitest
Offense
One-back shotgun spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense81st of 120
  • Defense28th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted84th of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted36th of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.0039%0.9281st of 120
Defense-0.0140%0.9228th of 120
Opponent-adjusted0.01 off
0.01 def		40% off
40% def		—84th off
36th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense0.0own 312% allowed
Defense-0.2own 342% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2008 class

Ken Plue OT★★★★No. 256
Ralph Bolden ATH★★★No. 521
Peters Drey OT★★★No. 701
Jordan Brewer TE★★★No. 701
Carson Wiggs K★★★No. 841

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2008 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks12.00.767
Running backs13.00.833
Receivers22.50.812
Offensive line52.80.822
Defensive line43.00.816
Linebackers42.80.818
Athletes and specialists33.00.846
Whole class202.80.820

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2009

The 2009 draft
Rd 3Alex Magee DTKansas City Chiefs
Rd 6Curtis Painter QBIndianapolis Colts

2008 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Penn State7–⁠111–⁠28
Ohio State7–⁠110–⁠39
Michigan State6–⁠29–⁠424
Northwestern5–⁠39–⁠4
Iowa5–⁠39–⁠420
Wisconsin3–⁠57–⁠6
Minnesota3–⁠57–⁠6
Illinois3–⁠55–⁠7
Purdue2–⁠64–⁠8
Michigan2–⁠63–⁠9
Indiana1–⁠73–⁠9

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.