Notre Dame's offensive production took a big hit against Purdue as four starters sat out much, if not all, of the game. Senior fullback James Aldridge (shoulder), junior tailback Armando Allen (ankle) and sophomore wide receiver Michael Floyd (collarbone) each missed Saturday's game. While Aldridge and Floyd look to be out for an extended period of time, Allen's injury doesn't seem to be too serious.
"I think Armando surprised me how close he looked during pregame," Weis said Sunday. "I wasn't expecting him to look as good as he was. He was politicking to play in the game [Saturday] and I think he could have played. He'll be ready to [practice] Tuesday so I don't think there will be any hesitations."
Junior quarterback Jimmy Clausen (turf toe) started the game, but took only 24 snaps total after missing the second, third and part of the fourth quarters. He looked to be hobbling for much of the game due to the injury he suffered against Michigan State.
"[Clausen's] toe is a lot better today that it was last week at this time," Weis said. "Last week it was really swollen. He's been in a boot for a few days, but today he's not in a boot and the swelling is down. We are going to try to get through this week so we can give him some rest next week during the bye week."
Another streak gone
For the second straight week, the Irish were able to break a losing streak, this time a five-game road losing streak against Big Ten opponents.
"This was a huge win for us, especially on the road," Rudolph said. "We don't want that label on us as a team that can't go on the road and win games. To pull this one out is huge for us confidence wise."
The last time Notre Dame knocked off a Big Ten opponent on the road came against Michigan State Sept. 23, 2006 when the Irish defeated the Spartans 40-37 in a game that also came down to the final minutes.
Mixing it up
Weis said some of the different looks shown against Purdue were to help compensate for the absence of Michael Floyd and Allen from the offense.
"We put in a lot of stuff this week, and a lot was injury related," Weis said. "You're going into a game after losing Michael where people could roll to Golden, what's one way you can compensate for that? Put him in the backfield."
