Purdue Defeats Indiana 30-16, Clinches First Big Ten West Title in Program History
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — For the first time in program history, Purdue will represent the Big Ten West in the conference championship game.
Led by sixth-year senior quarterback Aidan O’Connell, the offense brushed off a slow start and rallied in the second half to take down in-state rival Indiana 30-16 on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. With the win, the Boilermakers took sole possession of the division while simultaneously claiming the Old Oaken Bucket.
Purdue will play an undefeated Michigan squad in the Big Ten Football Championship Game next Saturday, Dec. 3, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
“You put in a lot of hard work — your players do, your coaches do — for dreaming about this opportunity," Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said after the game. ”Obviously, a lot of things had to go our way, and we understand that.
"But our guys just competed hard all year long. We tried to learn from our mistakes. They battle and play, and every game's not perfect. Every game goes back and forth, but we found a way to do enough to win."
Purdue gashed the Indiana defense on its opening possession, moving the ball 57 yards in eight plays before eventually settling for a 29-yard field goal. But the Hoosiers punched back on their first drive, crossing the goal line after just two plays.
Freshman running back Jaylin Lucas burned the Boilermakers down the left sideline, taking his first carry of the game 71 yards for a touchdown. Indiana registered 166 yards on the ground in the first half and dominated the time of possession by controlling the ball for more than 20 minutes.
After moving the ball with ease to open the game, Purdue then struggled to find a rhythm offensively. The team punted three straight times and could only manage 133 yards of total offense before halftime. O’Connell completed seven passes for 113 yards, including a screen to sixth-year wide receiver Charlie Jones that went for 58 yards to the Indiana 34-yard line.
But the Hoosiers, who entered the matchup allowing a Big Ten worst 34.3 points per game, were stout defensively. O’Connell was sacked twice in the first two quarters, losing 17 yards, and Redshirt freshman running back Devin Mockobee carried the ball five times for 35 yards.
Indiana led Purdue 7-3 at the break and was forced to turn the reins to redshirt junior quarterback Connor Bazelak after redshirt sophomore Dexter Williams II was carted off the field with an injury.
The Boilermakers showed up on defense after halftime, forcing two straight three-and-outs and allowing just 45 total yards in the third quarter. The offense took advantage with back-to-back touchdown drives, taking a 17-7 lead.
"We just came together as a defense at halftime and got some right adjustments," junior defensive end Kydran Jenkins said. "We started attacking them more and playing more physical because in the first half they were beating us at the line of scrimmage. But I felt like in the second half, we came out and won the line of scrimmage."
O’Connell capped an eight-play, 82-yard drive with a touchdown pass to redshirt senior tight end Payne Durham. On the next possession, Mockobee slashed through the Hoosiers’ defense for a 27-yard score. The walk-on came to life in the second half, finishing the game with 157 yards from scrimmage on 20 touches.
"After having to miss out on a game, especially because of an injury, it just sort of gives me a fire because I hate not being able to play," Mockobee said. "Especially when I've been in a position now where I sort of have a role to fill. I definitely felt like I needed to come out here and make a big statement for myself."
But right as Purdue began to pull away, the defense was charged with untimely penalties. Indiana mounted a pair of drives that ended in the red zone, but only managed three points as the Boilermakers came away with a blocked field goal attempt. Bazelak was 24-of-42 for 201 yards passing with one touchdown and one interception.
"We knew we were going to have to gain an edge in all three segments, and that was critical," Brohm said. "I thought we did a good job kicking away from their returner, good job making the tackle, good job on our punts. It was critical for us to play well on special teams, and they came through for us today.
The offense put a stamp on its road performance as O’Connell connected with Jones for a huge 60-yard touchdown through the air, giving Purdue a 24-10 lead with 9:38 left to play. Jones tallied a team-high 143 yards receiving on four catches, and the Boilermakers cruised the rest of the way.
"It feels good to be able to come out in a big game like this and do the things that we did," Jones said. "It just makes me feel that much better about the decision I made coming to a program like Purdue. With the guys that we have in our locker room and to be able to get a great team win like this and do something that hasn't been done here before, it's a pretty awesome feeling."
Redshirt senior cornerback Cory Trice delivered the dagger in the fourth quarter by intercepting Bazelak and returning the football eight yards for a Purdue touchdown. Indiana found its only touchdown of the second half with no time remaining.
Michigan is coming off a massive 45-23 victory on the road against rival Ohio State. The Boilermakers haven't played the Wolverines since the 2017 season and have lost the last four games in the series.
"They play great defense, they've got a running game, the quarterback's athletic and can make plays. Obviously, they're in the hunt to win the whole doggone thing," Brohm said. "We'll have more than our hands full, and we're going to just enjoy this a little bit before we get going on them.
"As we get towards the end of the week, we'll try to get a little swagger back going, and see if we can go out there and give it a shot."
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.