Three Things We Learned: The Bucket Game

Ben will have your full recap tomorrow but here's what we learned today:

• Purdue is very bad at football. There was a time when Austin Appleby looked like a pretty good QB, but that time was not today as the freshman finished 19 / 35 for 123 touchdown-less yards and three interceptions. Outside of an impressive 82-yard TD run by Akeem Hunt, the Boilermaker offense couldn't really do anything against a much-maligned Indiana defense. Indiana also handed them three more points on a Tevin Coleman fumble just outside the redzone, and Purdue failed to score a touchdown.
• Indiana is not much better but that is IRRELEVANT. Zander made far fewer mistakes than his Purdue counterpart and in a game where scoring opportunities were low, that's incredibly important. The true freshman was particularly gutsy down the stretch, using his feet to keep plays alive and to score the game-winning touchdown. His pass to Nick Stoner on third down wasn't an explosive downfield play but it kept the drive alive. Very nice snag by the senior as his momentum carried him to the ground out of bounds, as well.
• It's tough to think about what could have been this year. The Bucket is the finest of consolation prizes, but this year will always have a "one that got away" kind of feel with the rotten luck we had in the injury department. Hopefully those that remain with the program can build on this win and use the experience to achieve next year what we thought we could achieve this year. We'll be dissecting the departures and arrivals over the next couple of weeks.