1. The losing team is in for a rough season
Both Purdue and Vanderbilt sit in the lower part of their conference’s hierarchy. Wins are tough to come by, so these winnable non-conference matchups are vital. With both teams already in a hole, a loss in this matchup is going to be extremely tough to overcome.
Beyond this week, the Commodores have about four games that look realistically winnable. Every year feels like a high-wire act between 6-6 and 3-9, and that often rests on these non-conference games. If Derek Mason loses to Purdue, the ceiling starts to look like 5-7.
Similarly, Purdue faces an uphill battle in the conference. Unlike Vanderbilt, however, Jeff Brohm’s team has already blown one of those opportunities to grab a win. Another defeat for Purdue would make an already deep hole even worse.
With Elijah Sindelar, Purdue does have the edge at quarterback. At the time of writing, they are a seven-point favorite at home. Not only would a loss here have season-long implications, but in a vacuum, this is not a game Brohm’s team should lose.