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The original was posted on /r/cfb by /u/bigstu_89 on 2023-10-08 20:51:24.

After defeating the Maryland Terrapins on Saturday, the Ohio State Buckeyes find themselves in a familiar position: heading to West Lafayette while ranked in the top 5 in the AP poll to face an unranked Purdue Boilermaker squad. Perhaps the most notable victim of the Spoilermakers, the 3rd ranked Buckeyes come into this game looking much different than other Buckeye teams of the past decade, averaging fewer points per game than any Ohio State team since 2011. With an offense that isn’t humming as usual this may not be the easy game before hosting top 10 Penn State that the Buckeyes are hoping for.

2 years ago I shared my findings on Purdue’s history of upsetting top 5 teams while unranked with you fine folks and noted a few trends I had noticed along the way. And just who does Michigan face as Big Ten West Champions? None other than the unranked Purdue Boilermakers in Indianapolis, IN. Michigan even comes in ranked 2nd in the AP, a dreaded ranking when playing the unranked Boilermakers. Purdue is comes into this matchup 5-6 all time while unranked against the 2nd ranked team in the land, their most successful matchup in the top 5.

Series Notes

Ohio State is unranked Purdue’s most frequent top 5 opponent with 14 prior meetings and, with Purdue sporting a 3-11 over these meetings, the Spoilermakers’ most frequent victim. This will be the first such meeting since 2018 when Purdue upset then 2nd ranked Ohio State 49-20 in West Lafayette. All 3 of Purdue’s victories in this series have come at Ross-Ade Stadium, with the others coming in 1984 (28-23) and 1960 (24-21). The 2018 games was the start of a 3 game Spoilermaker streak (Purdue would defeat top 5 Iowa and Michigan State in 2021) and also then Offensive Coordinator’s first trip to West Lafayette.

ALERT:

A Spoilermaker Watch has been issued as conditions are favorable for the development of another unranked Purdue upset over a top 5 team. The Buckeye offense has not looked itself in 2 road games in Indiana thus far this year. Will Ryan Day shake off ghosts of games past and escape Ross-Ade? Or, will this trend continue and give Ryan Walters his first signature win? After all, he is always watching, always waiting, always ready for his next victim.