Purdue (4-3, 3-1) outplayed, outcoached and most of all showed more heart and more toughness in crushing Ohio State (7-1, 4-1) 49-20 at Ross-Ade stadium in West Lafayette.
The No. 2 ranked Buckeyes entered the game two-touchdown favorites but never led and were outscored in the second half by a whopping 35-17 margin.
The Buckeyes had built an undefeated season-record on the basis of a one-dimensional passing offense that has been able to outscore opponents despite what has been a weak defense. That passing game has covered up glaring weaknesses in the running game, especially in the red zone.
Despite the shortcoming the Buckeyes were winning games, but against the Boilermakers they all caught up with them. The result was a thumping that will not be quickly or easily forgotten.
The Buckeyes hung close in the early going. A Purdue touchdown led to an early 7-0 lead.
OSU was able to put together a scoring drive to answer the early Boilermaker touchdown with a field goal to pull to within four at 7-3. The kick closed the gap, but OSU lack of physicality in the running game, particularly in run blocking, was exposed on the drive. The Buckeyes had a 1st-and-goal on the 8 but could advance just one yard closer to the end zone in three plays.
The Buckeyes had another good looking drive that began on their own two-yard line and moved the ball 84 yards in 15 plays but bogged down when they again could not move the ball in the red zone. After advancing to a 1st-and-10 at the Purdue 17, the could move only one yard closer. On 4th down Blake Haubeil missed a 33 yard field goal attempt wide left and OSU came up empty.
The inability to get tough yards in the red zone was an omen of things to come.
The 7-3 score held until Purdue’s last possession of the first half. The Boilers started at their own 20-yard line and moved quickly to a 1st-and-10 at the OSU 20. Four plays later and with just 31 seconds remaining in the half the Boilers faced a 4th-and-3 at the 13 and sent their kicker onto the field for an apparent field goal attempt. Instead they ran a fake field goal that went for four yards and a first down at the nine. The Boilers scored on the next play to make it 14-3 at the half.
The Buckeyes received the second-half kickoff and drove to a first and goal at the 10-yard line. The red zone woes again surfaced and they gained just four yards before settling for another field goal from Haubeil to make it 14-6, but Purdue answered immediately with a touchdown drive to make it 21-6.
The fourth quarter proved to be OSU’s undoing. The Boiler offensive line was able to open running lanes for Purdue running backs. The physical play allowed a 42-yard rushing touchdown by running back D.J. Knox to make the score 28-6 early in the fourth quarter.
OSU finally put a touchdown on the board on a 34-yard pass from Dwayne Haskins to Johnnie Dixon to make it 28-13. Purdue answered immediately with another rushing touchdown by Knox, this one from 40 yards out to make it 35-13. Another TD toss from Haskins to Terry McLaurin made it 35-20 but that was as close as the Buckeyes were going to get. Purdue immediately answered with a 43-yard touchdown pass of their own, then closed out the scoring with a pick-six to make the final 49-20.
OSU’s offensive line showed almost no ability to block in the running game. The Buckeyes tallied just 76 yards rushing on 25 attempts. Mike Weber was OSU’s leading rusher with 45 yards. The Boilermakers, meanwhile, rushed for 161 net yards and scored three touchdowns on the ground. Tailback D.J. Knox went for 128 yards on 16 carries and scored three touchdowns.
The lack of a rushing game forced OSU to the air. Haskins attempted a school-record 73 passes. He completed 49 for a school-record 470 yards and two touchdowns with the one interception. The gaudy passing numbers were wasted however, when the Buckeyes could not generate any kind of running game and were so weak in the red zone.
Purdue quarterback David Blough was 25 of 43 for 378 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman sensation wide receiver Rondale Moore had 12 receptions for a game-high 170 yards. Purdue had no turnovers in the game. OSU committed a whopping 10 penalties that were often costly. The Buckeyes actually out-gained Purdue 546 total yards to 539 but were unable to put points on the board to match the yardage.