Will the Purdue Boilermakers Get Back on Track After Two Defeats?

The consensus among most Purdue fans is "It's basketball season," but there is still football to be played, even after two embarrassing losses to Ohio State and Illinois.

In these two defeats the Boilermakers were outscored 93-10 in there last two outings on a road trip that the team would surely like to believe didn't happen. Their ability to neither move the ball nor stop the ball from being moved led many Boilermaker fans to believe they were taken back to the Collettto era.

The road trip is over, however, and the Boilermakers (4-4) will be looking to upset the No. 9-ranked Wisconsin Badgers (7-1) in an afternoon matchup at Ross Ade Stadium in beautiful West Lafayette.

Wisconsin comes into the game with one of the best rushers in the nation leading them in John Clay.  Clay the 6'1", 255-pound bruiser has run through opponents all season. He has compiled an impressive statline, running for 887 yards and 13 touchdowns this season.

In comparison, Purdue has one of the worst rush defenses in the Big Ten.  This being said, look for Clay to have a big game against the Boilermakers as Purdue looks to try to slow him down.

Purdue's offense has been far from impressive the past two games, scoring only one touchdown and field goal.  

With quarterback Rob Henry suffering an injury against Ohio State, the Boilermakers will be considering giving the start to true freshman Sean Robinson. In the game against Illinois, Robinson was 7-for-20 with 52 yards and a touchdown. Far from Breesus-type numbers.

The Boilermakers will need to get their offense back in order if they plan to even have a chance in this game.  Against Illinois they were 2-for-14 on third down.  This is a stat that will need to change if the Boilermakers expect to win another game this season.

Purdue's defense also needs some serious help. Although Ryan Kerrigan continues to solidify himself as the best defensive end in college football, the defense allowed 391 yards against Illinois and didn't cause a single turnover. Granted, the offense didn't do much to give them any breathers, the defense still has no excuse to play this poorly.

This game against Wisconsin is very important to Purdue.  If they do not even make a reasonable effort against a tough Badgers team, many people will be calling for Danny Hope's job.

I would like to say this one was going to be close, but I just can't bring myself to predicting that.

Wisconsin 45, Purdue 24.

James Evens is a Purdue student and Basketball/Football Featured Columnist for the Boilermakers, along with being a Writing Intern at Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter, or like him on Facebook.