Tough nuts to crack? Not for Purdue
D.J. Knox rushed for 128 yards and three touchdowns, David Blough threw for three more scores and Purdue shook up the College Football Playoff chase with a 49-20 blowout of No. 2 Ohio State on Saturday night in West Lafayette, Indiana.
The Boilermakers (4-3, 3-1) won their fourth consecutive game and their second in a row over a ranked team. It was their biggest upset since taking down then-No. 2 Ohio State 28-23 on Oct. 6, 1984. Purdue also set a school record for points scored against the Buckeyes, besting the previous mark of 41 in 1967.
Mistake-prone Ohio State (7-1, 4-1) had its 12-game winning streak snapped.
Blough outplayed Heisman Trophy candidate Dwayne Haskins Jr. on a night the Buckeyes didn’t reach the end zone until early in the fourth quarter.
Blough went 25 of 43 with 378 yards and sealed the victory with a 43-yard pass to Rondale Moore with 3:37 to play. It was Blough’s third consecutive 300-yard game and his fourth this season.
Haskins wound up 49 of 73, shattering the single-game school records in both categories, and had 470 yards and two touchdowns and one interception.
Michigan 21, Michigan State 7
Shea Patterson threw a six-yard touchdown pass to Nico Collins and a 79-yard touchdown pass to Donovan People-Jones as the No. 6 Wolverines snapped a streak of 17 consecutive losses to ranked teams on the road. Patterson finished 14-for-25 for 212 yards.
The Wolverines (7-1, 5-0) had lost eight of 10 against the No. 24 Spartans (4-3, 2-2).
The rivalry was kicked up a notch before kickoff when the Spartans walked from one end zone to the other with their arms locked and encountered a few Wolverines stretching in the middle of the field when contact was made and words exchanged.
“Total bush league,” Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said. “Apparently [Michigan State] coach Mark Dantonio was five yards behind, smiling.”
“That’s B.S.,” Dantonio said. Michigan linebacker Devin Bush later dragged and kicked his cleats to rip the grass under the Spartans’ white logo at midfield.
“I just got caught up in the moment with my emotions,” Bush said.
The Spartans were held to 94 yards and failed to convert any of its 12 third downs. Quarterback Brian Lewerke was 5-for-25 for 66 yards but did catch a four-yard touchdown pass from receiver Darrell Stewart.
“Our defense was lights out,” Harbaugh said. “That’s a dream game.”
Spartans receiver Felton Davis tore his Achilles tendon and will miss the rest of the season.
Nebraska 53, Minnesota 28
The Cornuskers (1-6, 1-4) scored on three of their first four possessions en route to a 28-0 lead and held on for their first victory of the season, ending their programrecord 10-game skid.
Backup quarterback Tanner Morgan replaced Zack Annexstad to open the third quarter and led two consecutive scoring drives to pull the Gophers (3-4, 0-4) to 2822. Annexstad was treated and released from a Lincoln, Nebraska, hospital after suffering an “internal injury in his midsection,” according to Gophers coach P.J. Fleck.
Nebraska rushed for 383 yards and totaled 659. Devine Ozigbo ran for 152 yards, Taylor Martinez had 125 and Maurice Washington 109. Martinez completed 25 of 29 mostly short passes adding up to 276 yards and three touchdowns.
Penn State 33, Indiana 28
Trace McSorley passed for 220 yards, ran for 107 and had a hand in three touchdowns to lead the No. 18 Nittany Lions (5-2, 2-2).
For the host Hoosiers (4-4, 1-4), Peyton Ramsey found J-Shun Harris for a 21-yard touchdown pass with 49 seconds left. The Hoosiers recovered the ensuing onside kick, but were unable to finish off the comeback.
Iowa 23, Maryland 0
Quarterback Nate Stanley had an off day (11-for-22, 86 yards), but the defense yielded only 115 yards and seven first downs to lead the No. 19 Hawkeyes (6-1, 3-1) past the visiting Terrapins (4-3, 2-2).