Purdue Names Honorary Captain for Week 2 vs. Southern Illinois

Johnson finished his career in professional football with 480 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 11 forced fumbles, and four fumble recoveries. He also made two postseason appearances, reaching the playoffs with the Bengals in 2005 and with the Panthers in 2008.

This is the second straight week in which Purdue has welcomed a defensive player back to Ross-Ade Stadium. Last Saturday, former defensive end Ryan Kerrigan returned to Purdue to serve as the honorary captain for the Week 1 game against Ball State.

Purdue defeated Ball State 31-0 to start the season 1-0.

Kickoff for Saturday's game between Purdue and Southern Illinois is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The game is scheduled to air on Big Ten Network.

Speaking of defense ...

While we're on the topic of defense, Purdue's unit played well in Saturday's shutout win over Ball State, but it was far from perfect. Coach Barry Odom said he'd like to see better tackling from his team moving forward.

"We tackled well early, we had a lull a little bit in the second quarter," Odom said on Monday. "I think some of it, fundamentally, we have to take another step or two and close down the space between when we're lunging for tackles and running our feet. So, I think there are some things fundamentally we can do better."

Statistically, Purdue's defense finished the game with respectable numbers. Ball State totaled just 203 yards of offense, and the Boilermakers had four sacks and seven tackles for loss in the win.

On Saturday, Purdue will have a great opportunity to improve in that area, especially as key games against USC and Notre Dame loom.

"It's also swarming the ball. There were points in the game where I thought we played hard and did a great job of pursuing the football, and then there are other times we missed tackles," Odom said. "We have to be a great tackling team as the season goes on."