High-scoring Purdue, C. Michigan to meet again

INDIANAPOLIS - Purdue and Central Michigan aren't likely to offer much for fans of hard-nosed defense on Saturday.

Purdue beat the Chippewas 45-22 in West Lafayette last regular season, then won 51-48 in the Motor City Bowl on a late field goal by Chris Summers.

Many of the stars from those games are back.

Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter passed for 360 yards and three touchdowns against the Chippewas last September, then threw for a school-record 546 yards in the bowl game. Central Michigan coach Butch Jones said Painter might be the best quarterback in the nation.

"Obviously, if you start with them on offense, it starts around Curtis Painter," Jones said. "He's as good a quarterback as I've ever seen. He can defeat tight coverage, he's got great touch on the ball, he's in control of their offense, he's got a strong arm."

Purdue coach Joe Tiller said it wouldn't be fair to expect the same level of production from Painter that he had in the previous matchups with the Chippewas.

"What we hope is that he has a third one in him," Tiller said. "But, you know, I don't think there's any guarantees in life that that's going to happen. We're going give him that opportunity to throw the football, that's for sure."

Central Michigan counters with Dan LeFevour, an athletic signal caller who gave Purdue's defense fits last season. LeFevour passed for 364 yards and two touchdowns in the regular-season game, then threw for 292 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 114 yards and two touchdowns in the bowl game.

Tiller said LeFevour has continued to improve. This season, the junior has passed for 828 yards and run for 116.

"I thought he made some mistakes here in West Lafayette that he didn't make in Detroit (Motor City Bowl)," Tiller said. "And I don't see him making those mistakes, so obviously he's matured. He's really at the height of his college days anyways. I don't know if he can play better than he's playing right now."

There's no reason to believe the two teams can't put on another offensive display. Purdue (1-1) is averaging 34 points and 405 yards per game, while Central Michigan (2-1) is averaging 26 points and 376 yards.

Purdue is coming off a 32-26 double-overtime loss to nationally ranked Oregon. Central Michigan came back from a 14-0 deficit to beat Ohio 31-28 last Saturday.

Purdue has two significant records at stake. Tiller can become Purdue's winningest coach with his 85th victory, and running back Kory Sheets needs one touchdown to tie Mike Alstott's school record of 42 career touchdowns.

Sheets ran for 180 yards and two touchdowns in the loss to Oregon, and ranks among the nation's rushing leaders. Greg Orton is Purdue's top receiver with 13 catches for 171 yards.

Central Michigan's top skill players are Ontario Sneed, who has rushed for 110 yards and three touchdowns and has 98 yards in receptions, and Antonio Brown, who leads the Chippewas with 193 receiving yards.

Tiller rattled off the names with ease because of the familiarity between the teams. Tiller said the matchup has the feel of a conference game, even though Purdue is in the Big Ten and Central Michigan is in the Mid-American Conference.

"I know who Ontario Sneed is, Antonio Brown, you know, Dan LeFevour," Tiller said. "I don't need people to remind me what their names are. Usually I know players' numbers, I don't know their names. I know these guys names."

Tiller likes the idea of finding a new way to compete with a familiar opponent.

"It's a different experience, and one we look forward to," he said. "It's a challenge to try to find a way to come out on top when you play a team this often, this frequently."

Purdue will try to avoid nearly squandering a big lead, while Central Michigan is worried about falling behind. In last year's regular-season game, Purdue led 38-0 before giving up the next 22 points. In the bowl game, the Boilermakers led 34-13 at halftime, but Central Michigan tied the game at 48 with 1:09 to play.

"We learned it ain't over till it's over," Tiller said.

Jones said Central Michigan has continued its trend of slow starts. The Chippewas have been outscored 24-3 in the first quarter of games this season.

"As talented a team as Purdue is, we can't get down early like we did in the two games last year," he said.