Aidan O'Connell: The Underdog Story of the Las Vegas Raiders Future Starter
By CJ Errickson
![Las Vegas Raiders, Aidan O'Connell, QB, #4 Las Vegas Raiders, Aidan O'Connell, QB, #4](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3222,h_1812,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/GettyImages/mmsport/28/01h7x9kvdqm492dnwm9b.jpg)
O'Connell started at the bottom at Purdue
Initially, Aidan O'Connell was listed as the 8th quarterback on the Purdue Boilermakers depth chart when he walked on in 2017. He did not play at all in his first two seasons, but in his third year - he played in six games while starting in three of them.
The biggest moment of his early career came against the Nebraska Cornhuskers in November of 2019. Aidan was listed as the third quarterback on the depth chart, the walk-on entered the game for his injured counterpart and orchestrated a game-winning drive showing off both his poise and accuracy. He went 6-7 for 62 yards passing in the game's biggest moment.
For the rest of the season, he was named the starter, and the following week ended a five-game losing streak of Purdue losing to Northwestern.
What. đź‘Ź A. đź‘Ź Day. #BoilerUp đźš‚ pic.twitter.com/96OauQSZpT
— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) November 9, 2019
From then on, the legend of the small town Lincolnshire, Illinois native began.