Austin Appleby wins Purdue’s starting QB job

It was only a matter of time before Purdue named Austin Appleby its starting quarterback, and head coach Darrell Hazell did just that on Tuesday.

Appleby, a redshirt junior, outlasted redshirt freshman David Blough to grab hold of the starting gig. He took the majority of the team’s first-team reps throughout the spring and during preseason camp.

“I like where he is right now,” Hazell said of Appleby, per Purdue Athletics. “He did a good job taking care of the ball throughout fall camp and made enough of those makeable plays, and that’s why we are going with Austin.

“I think he’s so much better at understanding everything around him. My message to Austin was he has to think like the head coach in terms of the big picture. Situational football, red zone, coming off the goal line, understanding if it’s third-and-long get us to a fourth-and-short, so we can go for it. I think that’s where he’s made strides.”

According to the Associated Press, Appleby threw two touchdown passes and no interceptions while Blough threw two interceptions and one touchdown in a scrimmage on Saturday.

Appleby started the final seven games of the 2014 season for the Boilermakers after Danny Etling was benched. Etling has since transferred to LSU.

In 10 total games played in 2014, the 6-foot-5, 239-pound Appleby threw for 1,449 yards, 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while completing 52.9 percent of his passes.

In his seven starts, Appleby had a 1-6 record with his lone win coming in a 38-27 decision at Illinois.

The Boilermakers, who were 3-9 last season, open up at Marshall on Sept. 6.

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