Purdue at Ohio State: What to know about Saturday’s game

Where: Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

TV/Radio: Fox/1410

Series history: Ohio State leads 42-15-2, including 28-5-2 in Columbus. The Buckeyes have won two in a row overall. Purdue’s last win at Ohio State was 31-26 in 1988. They have only played three times since 2013.

Last meeting: Kyle McCord threw three touchdown passes and Marvin Harrison Jr. caught six passes for 105 yards and a score as the Buckeyes won 41-7 last season in West Lafayette.

Coaches: Ohio State’s Ryan Day is 63-9 overall and 43-4 in the Big Ten in six seasons, all at Ohio State. Ryan Walter is 5-15 in two seasons at Purdue.

Ohio State notes: The Buckeyes have allowed 30 points defensively the last two weeks after giving up 32 to Oregon in an early October loss… Ohio State is in the top 10 in four major defensive categories: total defense (2nd, 256.4 yards per game), scoring (3rd, 12.0 points per game), rushing (7th, 94.9 ypg.) and passing (8th, 161.5)… The Buckeyes have posted a goal-line stand in three consecutive games… Ohio State leads the Big Ten in third down defense and red zone defense… Sr. DE J.T. Tuimoloau has had a tackle for loss in six consecutive games… Emeka Egbuka has 170 career catches and passed Middletown native Cris Carter for fourth place in Ohio State career list last week… TreVeyon Henderson has 3,248 rushing yards at Ohio State and passed Carlos Hyde and Dayton native Keith Byars last week to move into ninth place in school history.

Purdue notes: Purdue is the last unranked team to defeat Ohio State, a 49-20 upset of the second-ranked Buckeyes in West Lafayette in 2018… The Boilermakers 75th in the nation in rushing yards (149 per game) and 103rd or worse in all other major categories… They are last in the Big Ten in scoring defense (36.9 ppg.), total defense (446.5 ypg.) and rush defense (203.3)… Purdue has seven wins against ranked opponents over the past six seasons, including three against teams ranked in the top three (No. 2 Ohio State in 2018, No. 2 Iowa in 2021, No. 3 Michigan State in 2021)… The Boilermakers have eight victories over a ranked Ohio State team, including four wins when the Buckeyes were ranked in the top five (1945, ‘60, ‘84, 2018)… TE Max Klare leads the Boilermakers in receptions (30), receiving yards (462) and receiving touchdowns (2), ranking third among Big Ten tight ends in receiving yards and catches… Offensive lineman Rod Green of Springfield is one of 11 Ohio natives on the Purdue roster.

Quoted: Walters on his team’s motivation after clinching a losing season: “The motivation is in the competition and the opportunities to go compete in some of the great venues in this conference and against some of the premier teams in college football. So, that’s the motivation. Again, like the want-to and the drive to continue to improve. Obviously we want to win games, and we are working tirelessly to do so, but the motivation is in the competition and the individual desire to get better.”

Prediction: Ohio State 45, Purdue 8

Next week: Ohio State will play Northwestern at Wrigley Field in Chicago next Saturday. Purdue will play its home finale against Penn State.