Purdue’s red zone struggles continued after its defense gave up 21 points in the third quarter, and the Boilermakers fell 34-29 on Homecoming to a Maryland team that had lost six straight. Defensive coordinator Kevin Kane was fired Sunday.
Barry Odom paused when he was asked whether Saturday’s 34-29 Homecoming loss to Maryland was the toughest of his Purdue tenure. Then, he agreed that it was.
“Devastating loss,” Odom said. “That probably doesn’t even put it into the right words how tough it is for everyone.”
The numbers back him up. Maryland (3-6, 1-5 Big Ten) came to Ross-Ade Stadium riding a six-game losing streak and a 13-game Big Ten skid, playing just its second game under interim coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim. Purdue (3-6, 2-4 Big Ten) was favored and led 12-7 at halftime. Then, the Terrapins scored 21 points in the third quarter and held on.
It was Purdue’s third straight loss, and Maryland’s first win in nearly two months.
The fallout came fast. On Sunday, Purdue fired defensive coordinator Kevin Kane.
How Maryland Flipped It After Halftime
For 30 minutes, Purdue’s defense looked like the group that stymied Illinois and Minnesota. Maryland managed 108 yards and five first downs in the first half, Trey Smith picked off a tipped pass, and the Terrapins’ only points came on a Malik Washington touchdown run. Purdue built a 9-0 lead on three Jacobo Echeverria Lozano field goals and took a 12-7 lead into the break after his fourth.
The catch was that all 12 of those points came on field goals.
Maryland needed one possession to take the lead in the second half. Washington hit Na’eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding on a short pass, and Gladding took it 44 yards for a 14-12 lead. Two plays into Purdue’s next drive, Ryan Browne was sacked and fumbled, Daniel Wingate recovered it deep in Purdue territory, and Washington scored from a yard out to make it 21-12.
Purdue answered with a 30-yard Xavier Townsend touchdown on a jet sweep to cut it to 21-19. On the very next snap, Terrapin running back DeJuan Williams went 75 yards for a touchdown.
A bad snap on a third-and-goal from the 1-yard line forced Purdue to settle for a 22-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter, making it 28-22. Then on second-and-19, Chris Durr Jr. caught a screen pass and weaved through the Purdue defense for an 87-yard touchdown and a 34-22 lead.
Purdue kept fighting. Fame Ijeboi finished a 13-play, 75-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run with 3:50 left, and the defense got a stop to give Browne one more shot from his own 5 with 1:01 to play. He moved Purdue to the Maryland 11, but an illegal substitution penalty backed the Boilermakers up to the 16, and Browne was sacked on the final play.
Red Zone Woes Cost Purdue Again
Moving the ball wasn’t the problem. Purdue ran 80 plays to Maryland’s 45, and Browne threw for 296 yards, completing 24 of 38 passes to eight different receivers. Tra’Mar Harris led the way with 76 receiving yards on three receptions.
Finishing drives was the problem. Purdue reached the red zone six times and scored one touchdown, Ijeboi’s late run. Four trips ended in field goals, and the last one ended with Browne’s sack on the game’s final play. Up front, the offensive line gave up seven sacks for 61 lost yards.
Odom said there were “frustrations on the headset” among the offensive staff “when we got down into the red area and weren’t able to capitalize.”
None of that falls on Echeverria Lozano. The true freshman went 5-for-5, and his 47-yarder on the opening drive broke Travis Dorsch’s Purdue freshman record of 16 field goals in a season. He’s now 21-of-22, already fourth on Purdue’s single-season list, and his five makes were the most by a Boilermaker since Mitchell Fineran hit five in the 2022 Big Ten Championship Game.
A pair of Indiana natives also stood out. Chandler’s Antonio Harris led Purdue with 51 rushing yards on just five carries, including a 39-yard run. McCordsville’s George Burhenn threw key blocks on both of Purdue’s touchdowns.
Big Plays Sink the Defense, and Kane Is Out
The second half wiped out everything the defense did in the first. Maryland piled up 282 yards and 27 points after halftime and averaged 8.7 yards per play for the game. Washington completed 13 of 18 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns, and Durr finished with 127 yards on four catches.
“You can’t play as well as we did early on defense and then, all of the sudden, you give up four explosive plays for touchdowns. You’ll never win games doing that,” Odom said.
It’s been the story all season. Purdue ranks last in the Big Ten in total defense at 415.4 yards per game and has given up a conference-high 50 plays of 20 yards or more. One day after the loss, Odom fired Kane, who was Purdue’s defensive coordinator under Ryan Walters in 2023 and 2024, spent last season at Minnesota, and came back to West Lafayette this year. Odom hasn’t said who will call the defense for the final three games, and he’s expected to address it at his Monday press conference.
Looking Ahead: Purdue Visits Iowa
The schedule doesn’t get any easier. Purdue’s last three opponents, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Indiana, are a combined 21-6, and the Boilermakers will be underdogs in all three. What’s left is finding some answers heading into year three under Odom, starting with a defense that just lost its coordinator.
Purdue opened as a 17.5-point underdog for Saturday’s trip to Kinnick Stadium, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Iowa (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten) has won two straight since a 13-10 loss at Minnesota, shutting out Wisconsin 30-0 and beating Northwestern 24-10, and it has allowed just 23 points over its last three games. The Hawkeyes are still in the College Football Playoff conversation.
Purdue leads the all-time series 50-41-3, helped by 20 straight wins from 1961 to 1980, but Iowa has won the last two meetings. The Boilermakers have pulled off a stunner in Iowa City before, though. In 2021, Warren Central product David Bell caught 11 passes for 240 yards as Purdue upset No. 2 Iowa 24-7.
To have a chance this time, Purdue has to finish drives. It ranks fourth in the Big Ten in red zone scoring, but 15th in touchdown rate, and it leads the conference with 15 red zone field goals. Echeverria Lozano hasn’t missed since the Wake Forest game, but Purdue won’t beat Iowa three points at a time.
Barry Odom believes the preparation has been there. The execution just hasn’t.
“We’re missing that component,” Odom said. “In my 27 years of coaching, it’s maybe my biggest frustration.”
