If Notre Dame wants to get back on track this season, they're going to need a major turnaround on defense and that starts this Saturday afternoon inside of Notre Dame Stadium when they take on the Purdue Boilermakers. These two in-state rivals met last season in West Lafayette and the Irish walked away with the largest margin of victory in the series history beating the Boilermakers at home 66-7. Now, Purdue has a new head coach, Barry Odom, and has started the season off 2-1 in this new regime.
The Chris Ash era hasn't been too kind to the Notre Dame defense, and they'll have to take the necessary steps to right the ship against an offense that's averaged slightly under 272 passing yards per game which ranks No. 33 in the country. We’ve broken down the top players to watch on the offensive side of the ball for Purdue and it begins with their playmaking quarterback under center.
Quarterback #15 Ryan Browne
Ryan Browne burst onto the scene last year against Illinois on the road when he posted some gaudy numbers in their 50-49 overtime loss to the Fighting Illini. Brown finished the day going 18 of 26 for 297 passing yards, threw three touchdowns, no interceptions and added 118 rushing yards on the ground. A strong argument was made for him to finish the season as their starter, but the Boilermakers ultimately went back to Hudson Card to finish the year. That's now in the past and the Michigan native has now taken over the starting role in Purdue's offense.
This season, he's already passed for 786 yards, thrown five touchdowns and rushed for 59 yards and two scores in three games. Unfortunately, he also threw three interceptions, including a pick six, last weekend against USC. Nevertheless, the Notre Dame defense will have to prepare for another quarterback who can make plays with his arm and his legs. The 6-4, 210-pound quarterback might not have the speed of Marcel Reed or the experience of Carson Beck, but if the Irish don't play sound football, he could be in for a big day in South Bend.
Matchup To Watch: Notre Dame's defense will have to find ways to generate pressure, get sacks and create negative plays with their front four defensive lineman, plain and simple. Through two games, Notre Dame is dead last in the country in tackles for a loss (2.0) and tied for last in the country in sacks through two games with one. Browne is a good player, and can make plays against defenses when they don't generate enough pressure. Last week, USC generated 31 total pressures against Purdue and finished the game with 12 hits plus sacks on the quarterback. It's not a coincidence Browne also finished the afternoon with three interceptions. Notre Dame's defensive line will have to win on Saturday.
Wide Receiver #2 Michael Jackson III
Flat out, if I'm Michael Jackson III, I'm licking my chops at the opportunity to play Notre Dame's defense this weekend. Jackson is the Boilermakers' primary slot receiver and is their team leader in receptions through the first two games. He's totaled 14 receptions for 149 yards, averaged 10.6 yards per catch and has a receiving touchdown so far this season. He had seven catches for 70 yards against USC last weekend and will be looking to repeat that performance against Notre Dame.
Jackson played for USC in 2023 and saw limited action and transferred to Purdue in 2024. Unfortunately, he didn't play much last season but is making the most of his opportunities in 2025. He's started all three games for Purdue in the slot and has only dropped one pass on 17 targets this season; Jackson has caught 14 of his 17 targets. He's good with the ball in his hands and had over 60 yards after the catch against the Trojans.
Matchup To Watch: Whoever plays the nickel corner position for Notre Dame on Saturday will have to elevate the level of play at that position. In week one, they have up six receptions for 82 yards and a touchdown against Malachi Toney who was the Hurricane's slot receiver. Last Saturday, they gave up seven receptions for 207 yards and a touchdown against the Aggies' slot receiver Mario Craver. Regardless of who plays, whether it's DeVonta Smith, who's questionable for the game, or Karson Hobbs, they'll have to win their matchup against Jackson.
Wide Receiver #0 Nitro Tuggle
Former Georgia wide receiver Nitro Tuggle was a highly touted recruit coming out of high school, but his career never panned out in Athens. He transferred to Purdue this past offseason and has been one of their big play threats on offense. So far this season, he's racked up 123 receiving yards on seven receptions, averaged 17.6 yards per catch and has two touchdowns. The 6-1, 195-pound Indiana native grew up in the shadows of South Bend in Goshen, Indiana. He's three for three on the season in contested catches, but has dropped two passes, one in each of the last two games.
Against USC, Tuggle caught four passes for 69 yards and a touchdown and will be looking to do the same in South Bend in what could be considered a "homecoming game" for the Goshen native. Opposing defenses have struggled from keeping Tuggle in front of them; he's had catches of 29 yards and 33 yards in each of the last two games. He's a big play threat that Notre Dame will have to contain.
Matchup To Watch: This is an interesting matchup for Notre Dame with their No. 1 cornerback Leonard Moore questionable for this matchup. His backup is a true freshman, Mark Zackery, and opposite of him is Christian Gray who has struggled mightily in his first two games in 2025. In the first game of the season, Moore was beat on a double play to end the first half for a touchdown while Gray has struggled in back to back games getting beat over the top. Defensive backs coach Mike Mickens will have to get his unit ready to take on the athletic skilled players on the perimeter for the Boilermakers.
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