Purdue Boilermakers will provide a gut check moment for Notre Dame position group that has underwhelmed so far in 2025

The Purdue Boilermakers were an absolute train wreck under former head coach Ryan Walters, but energy has been injected back into the program already under Barry Odom this past offseason. Notre Dame football is set to host Purdue this weekend for a very important matchup. Head coach Marcus Freeman needs to have his Fighting Irish squad ready to go and get back to their winning ways. 

While the Boilermakers are still a roster in major transition, there are still some talented players that could present some issues if Notre Dame lets them. That includes quarterback Ryan Browne and star linebacker Charles Correa. This Irish team can’t just walk into the matchup and take Purdue for granted, especially with how the defense has been playing. 

Make no mistake about it, however, Notre Dame is much more talented and deeper than this Purdue squad. That is particularly true, at least on paper, in the trenches. The biggest advantage that the Fighting Irish have in this game is their defensive line versus the Boilermaker offensive line. That group for Odom’s squad is one of the worst in college football. 

It's gut check time

Notre Dame fans are going to notice a name on that list with starting left tackle Joey Tanona, originally a member of the 2022 recruiting class for the Irish. Tanona will be joined by Jalen St. John, Bradyn Joiner, Ethan Trent, and Bakyne Coly on the front line for the team. That group has struggled mightily so far this season, especially during their matchup against the USC Trojans, allowing 31 quarterback pressures. 

Although the Irish defensive line hasn’t been great through two games, that is still a unit with a ton of talent. That is especially true on the edge, where the duo of Boubacar Traore and Bryce Young both need to become a lot more consistent. Add in the likes of Jordan Botelho and a hopefully healthy Joshua Burnham should be a lot for the offensive tackles to handle in this matchup. 

On the inside, the defensive tackle rotation needs to play a whole lot better overall. Jason Onye, Jared Dawson, Gabriel Rubio, and Donovan Hinish have all made a couple of flash plays over the first couple of weeks, but it hasn’t been nearly as consistent enough. With that interior battling against a struggling unit like Purdue, they are going to need to put together an impressive display. 

If the Fighting Irish do not have a dominant showing against this Purdue defensive line, then the alarms should start to sound if they haven’t already. The talent gap is obvious, and if they aren’t able to take advantage of it, there is a much bigger problem. This is a gut check opportunity for Notre Dame.