EVANSTON, Illinois — Purdue football’s offense has a special package designed for quarterback Malachi Singleton.
Hippo, it’s called and on Oct. 11 at Minnesota, it resulted in a 40-yard touchdown run by the backup signal caller.
On Saturday at Northwestern, Singleton had to run the offense as it’s designed, typically with Ryan Browne behind center.
Singleton has been through this before, coming in against Tennessee and leading Arkansas to a victory as the Razorbacks’ backup QB.
Browne left Saturday’s 19-0 loss at Martin Stadium with a left shoulder injury after being tackled on the first play of the second half. Browne did not return. Purdue coach Barry Odom said afterward he had no update as of the postgame press conference and was unsure if Browne was able to return.
Enter Singleton, who said on Monday he always prepares as if he’s going to be the starter.
He finished 11 of 20 for 187 yards and one interception. Singleton also had a 20 rushing yards, including a 15-yarder.
“I was fully prepared to go in,” Singleton said after the Northwestern loss. “You know, it caught everybody off guard. But I felt like I went in there and I was prepared. I was confident. And we did move the ball a little bit. But it wasn’t good enough.”
Purdue had 245 of its 305 yards in the final two quarters with Singleton at quarterback.
Browne returned to the sideline after being evaluated.
“He was telling me what he saw, how they’re moving, little technique stuff,” SIngleton said of Browne’s impact after the quarterback change. “He definitely helped me out. He’s a great leader.”
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on X and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: What we know about Purdue football QB Ryan Browne’s injury, what he told backup
Reporting by Sam King, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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