CHAMPAIGN — Aidan O’Connell passed for 237 yards and three touchdowns, two to Payne Durham, and Purdue beat No. 21 Illinois 31-24 Saturday at Memorial Stadium to turn the Big Ten West race into a muddled mess.
The win gives the Boilermakers (6-4, 4-3) a crucial head-to-head tiebreaker over the Illini (7-3, 4-3), who have lost their last two games.
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The Boilermakers finish the season with favorable matchups against Northwestern and Indiana.
Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota were still alive in the division, too, entering Saturday with 3-3 records. The Badgers and Hawkeyes were playing each other.
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Purdue scored on three-straight drives to take a 28-21 lead on Durham’s 13-yard touchdown reception with 13 minutes, 13 seconds remaining, finishing a drive that was aided by three Illinois penalties.
The Boilermakers gave O’Connell excellent protection, holding a highly-rated Illinois defense to zero sacks.Purdue sacked Illinois QB Tommy DeVito twice, including a costly 17-yard sack that took the wind out of a second-half drive.
O’Connell completed 25 of 40 attempts and threw one interception. Devin Mockobee rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries.
DeVito struggled against pressure and threw his first interception since Sept. 10. He completed 18 of 32 passes for 201 yards and a score.
Purdue became the first team to hold Illinois star Chase Brown to fewer than 100 rushing yards this season. The nation’s leader in rushing yards also appeared to suffer a leg injury late in the game, when he had to be helped off the field.
Durham made his first touchdown grab to cap a 90-yard drive that put the Boilermakers up 21-14 midway through the third quarter, but Illinois answered as DeVito connected with Brian Hightower for a 6-yard score with 1:13 remaining in the quarter.
Purdue’s Kieren Douglas intercepted a tipped pass with 3:37 remaining, and the Boilermakers killed plenty of clock with a few runs and a critical 15-yard reception by TJ Sheffield on 4th-and-9 to escape with the victory.
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Mitchell Fineran secured the result with a chip shot 25-yard field goal before Illinois kicker Caleb Griffin added a late 38-yarder with 17 seconds left.
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Brown nudged Illinois in front with a 2-yard run at the 8:07 mark of the first quarter, capping a 74-yard drive. He added an 8-yard touchdown run in the second quarter.
Purdue: The Boilermakers entered Saturday on a two-game losing streak. Credit the effort in the trenches — the Boilermakers never gave up a sack and paved the way for Mockobee to clear 100 yards against one of the country’s top defenses.
Illinois: Back-to-back home losses have tempered the enthusiasm of a 7-1 start, and things don’t get any easier next week at No. 3 Michigan. Still, the Illini are a victory away from their first eight-win season since 2007 and have chance to get to the Big Ten title game for the first time. Illinois holds the tie-breaker over Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Purdue: Hosts struggling Northwestern next Saturday.
Illinois: A trip to No. 3 Michigan looms next Saturday.
