Purdue Redshirt Freshman Running Back Devin Mockobee to Start Against Wisconsin

In a 43-37 win over Nebraska, redshirt freshman running back Devin Mockobee made his first career start and ran for 178 yards on 30 carries to set a single-season school record by a Purdue freshman. 

Despite being a walk-on, Mockobee leads the team with 453 yards rushing along with five touchdowns on the season. He will make his second straight start when the team travels to Wisconsin this upcoming Saturday. 

Mockobee made his first college appearance for the Boilermakers in a 56-0 victory over the Indiana State Sycamores during the second week of the season. He ran for a team-high 78 yards and made his first trip to the end zone. 

Since then, due to injuries in the backfield, Mockobee has seen increased playing time and has scored a touchdown in all but one game he has appeared in. The Boonville, Ind. native has rushed for 100 yards twice so far this season. 

"Really, he wanted to be here. He's a competitor," Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said. "He felt he could come in here and compete and do a good job in a very humble and modest way, so we were excited about it and we got him here.

"We liked what we saw, but we still didn't know for sure that he would be capable of this. I just think he has proven to everybody how good of a running back he can be, especially that he continues to work and get better and bigger and stronger."

Throughout his first year with the program, Mockobee showed flashes of his potential during practice and in scrimmages but hadn't yet earned the opportunity to showcase his skills in a game. 

But as Purdue built a dominant 35-0 halftime lead over Indiana State back on Sept. 10, Mockobee entered the contest late in the second quarter and split time with junior running back Dylan Downing. He attempted 13 runs and capped his rushing performance with a 14-yard score in the fourth quarter. 

His breakout game came in a 20-10 road victory over then-No. 21 Minnesota, where he accounted for 112 yards rushing on just 11 carries, which included a 68-yard explosion before crossing the goal line from 1-yard out on the very next play. 

"I just think as we continued to practice more and have live scrimmages, he always did a very good job and ran hard and was productive," Brohm said. "So he's earned it from day one, and I just think he's worked ready hard and we're fortunate to have him on our team."

Mockobee's emergence came at the cost of missing senior running back King Doerue for four weeks with a calf injury following the win over the Sycamores. He made his return to the field against the Cornhuskers, seeing eight carries for 31 yards while adding another 38 yards in the passing game. 

Doerue will continue to ease himself back to form and may find himself limited in practice leading up to the team's road game against the Badgers. 

"Whatever he can give us we'll use, he was not at full strength," Brohm said of Doerue. "I think our guys understand practice does matter. And for those guys that aren't able to practice a whole lot, playing in the game is more of a challenge. Yes, we have to balance doing that for some of our guys."

Brohm also said that Downing will not play against Wisconsin on Saturday. He is dealing with a foot injury and was unable to suit up against Nebraska. Wide receiver Tyrone Tracy and running back Kobe Lewis will figure to play a role in the backfield.