Sports

Purdue Football Refuses To Fix Confusing Field Issue That Led To Humiliating Penalty In 1-Win Season

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Purdue football

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The Purdue football team was bad in 2024. There’s no other way to put it.

The Boilermakers won just one game on their way to a last place finish in the Big Ten. Despite the struggles, and one embarrassing viral moment, the program refuses to fix an issue in its control.

Purdue is currently prepping for the 2025 campaign with hopes of flushing last year’s dismal performance. The team is transitioning from Ryan Walters to proven winner Barry Odom.

The coaching change put a jolt of life into a fanbase that’s watched a lot of losing football over the last 24 games. Odom made a huge splash in the transfer portal to boost talent on the roster. The Boilermakers are trending up!

But, while much has changed, some has remained the same under the leadership of the new staff. One particular field issue resurfaced following a recent practice.

Purdue football has a confusing endzone design.

The Boilermakers’ endzone is typically painted black with the school name written in gold across the grass. The black then extends beyond the white boundaries that note the out of bounds area.

The design makes for a clean look. It also caused confusion during the 2024 Purdue football season.

Wide receiver De’Nylon Morrissette transferred in from Georgia last offseason. He landed an immediate role on the offense, starting four games and making 11 catches.

Morrissette hauled in two touchdowns on the season. It would’ve been three if not for Purdue’s poor endzone design.

During a game vs. Penn State, a wide open Morrissette looked bound to catch a touchdown pass. With no one around, he accidentally drifted out of the back of the endzone before making the snag.

The wideout was still in the black paint. He was, however, out of bounds. Despite making the grab, he was flagged for illegal touching and the play resulted in an incomplete pass.

Keep in mind that Morrissette’s previous school does not utilize the same endzone design. Georgia has clear boundaries set by notable color changes. The wideout got lost in the black paint at his new home stadium. It prevented a score!

The play didn’t impact the game as Purdue lost 49-10. It was still a humiliating moment in an embarrassing season.

The Boilermakers aren’t fixing the issue.

At least, it doesn’t seem so based on recent practice footage.

The design remains the same. It also appears to be equally as confusing to players as we saw one pass catcher drift out of bounds upon turning up field towards the large black endzone.

It is worth noting that this is the practice field. Maybe Purdue makes a change to the endzones in Ross-Ade Stadium this fall. Maybe they don’t.

While they aren’t the only team in college football to use the design, they have experienced the potential drawbacks firsthand.

The practice field design continues to be the same. It leads one to believe the stadium endzones will follow suit.

The Boilermakers have not learned from their mistake. Hopefully, it won’t bite them again!