Rutgers Scarlet Knights (3-4) vs. Purdue Boilermakers (2-5)
October 25, 2025 12:00 pm EDT
The Line: Purdue Boilermakers +1.5; Over/Under:
(Get latest betting odds)
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Purdue Boilermakers meet Saturday in college football action from Ross-Ade. Here’s a Purdue vs Rutgers prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Purdue vs Rutgers pick.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights Betting Preview
The Scarlet Knights got off to a nice start this year despite a tight 34-31 home win over Ohio in their opener. Rutgers rattled off wins in the next pair as well, dispatching Miami-Ohio and Norfolk State. A losing streak ensued for the Scarlet Knights in their next trio however, as they’d fall to Iowa, Minnesota and Washington in that time. In the loss to Washington on the road 38-19, Rutgers blew a three-point halftime lead by giving up 21 points in the third quarter. The Knights offense would end up with 493 total yards, 6.4 yards per play and 25 first downs. On the other side the defense coughed up 579 yards though, as well as 9.8 yards per play.
Last weekend versus Oregon, Rutgers was significantly outmatched. The Scarlet Knights gave up 14 points in the first quarter, 28 in the second and 14 more in the third during a 56-10 blowout home loss. QB Athan Kaliakmanis was 8-of-25 for 79 yards and a pair of interceptions. Tops on the ground was Ja’shon Benjamin with 18 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown, and KJ Duff topped the receivers in the loss with three catches for 41 yards.
Purdue Boilermakers Betting Preview
Over on the Purdue side, they came out of the gate looking pretty good but things have gone south since then. The Boilermakers beat Ball State and Southern Illinois in their first pair, then recorded four straight losses versus USC, Notre Dame, Illinois and Minnesota in the next quartet. In the loss to the Golden Gophers, the Boilermakers posted 456 yards on offense—with 253 of those coming on the ground—alongside 25 first downs. The trouble came on turnovers (four, including three picks) and penalties (nine for 71 yards), however. On defense Purdue did pretty well otherwise with 262 total yards and 17 first downs allowed.
Back on Saturday versus Northwestern in their latest outing, the Boilermakers failed to score in the first half and were down 13-0 by the break. That trend continued in the third and fourth quarters as Purdue limped to a 19-0 shutout road loss. QB Malachi Singleton finished 11-of-20 for 187 yards and a pick while also carrying a team-high 10 times for 20 rush yards. Malachi Thomas added seven totes for 34 yards on the ground and Devin Mockobee caught two balls for 52 yards to lead the receivers in the losing effort.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights @ Purdue Boilermakers Betting Trends: Week 9
Purdue Boilermakers Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 9, Mani Powell leads the Big Ten Conference for tackles (61) this season.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 9, Antwan Raymond leads the Big Ten Conference for rush attempts (120) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
- Purdue ranks 132nd among FBS teams for Q2 opponent points per game this season (12.1).
- Purdue ranks 130th among FBS teams for red zone percentage this season (69.2).
- Rutgers has recorded the equal-most home wins by a margin of three points or less of any FBS team this season (1).
- Rutgers ranks 131st among FBS teams for average point differential in third quarters this season (-5.7).
Purdue vs Rutgers Prediction
I’ll stay with Rutgers. That said, with both teams coming off pretty rough losses you could make a case either way here pretty easily. That said, Rutgers had a bad time at home versus Oregon over the weekend, notching just 202 total yards, 79 pass yards, 2.9 yards per play, 12 first downs, three turnovers and 5-of-18 on third-down tries. The defense came up with three takeaways but also gave up a staggering 750 yards, 415 rush yards, 29 first downs and 8-of-11 on third downs to the Ducks. That makes four straight losses for Rutgers, though they were fairly competitive and scored well in a couple of those.
As for Purdue, they notched eight penalties, three turnovers, 11 first downs and 5-of-14 on third-down conversion attempts in their shutout loss to Northwestern over the weekend. The Boilermakers defense gave up 232 rushing yards and 24 first downs on the other side. Purdue has now lost five straight themselves, though they’ve similarly put up a couple of decent points totals in that time. This game’s anyone’s guess; seems like a coin flip to me.
