Recap: Purdue falls to No. 1 Ohio State, 34-10
Purdue football was on the wrong end of an eighth straight game on Saturday. The Boilermakers fell at the hands of the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes in Ross-Ade Stadium, 34-10. The defeat drops Purdue to 2-8 on the year and 0-7 in conference play, and extends the programs winless streak against power conference foes to 19 straight.
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Purdue struck first in Ross-Ade Stadium, marching down the field with a 12-play, 70-yard drive, but were forced to settle for a 40-yard field goal connection by Spencer Porath for the opening score of the contest. That would be the extent of Purdue’s offensive success in the opening 30 minutes of action.
Ryan Browne and the offense had the one scoring drive and were held under 20 yards on each remaining drive in the first half, which included three punts and an interception. That kept the Boilermakers at just 109 yards of offense and six first downs. Browne was 8-15 for 67 yards and the aforementioned turnover.
PDF: Purdue-Ohio State statistics
After the Boilermakers took their 3-0 advantage, the Buckeyes woke up and got rolling. Julian Sayin was nearly flawless in the first half, to the tune of 15-17 passing for 182 yards and a touchdown. Sayin would orchestrate three straight touchdown drives, all of which took 5+ minutes off the clock, after a punt on the opening possession of the day, to guide the Buckeyes to a 24-3 halftime lead.
The Purdue defense struggled in coverage against the potent passing attack of the Buckeyes, even in the absence of star receiver Carnell Tate. Fellow future pro Jeremiah Smith was a one-man wrecking crew, hauling in ten catches for 137 yards and a score. Ex-Boilermaker tight end Max Klare was the other go-to target of Sayin on the day, pitching in five catches for 59 yards in his return to West Lafayette.
Sayin would finish his day of work early, with a line of 27-33 passing for 303 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Purdue did come away with an interception in the end zone, the first of CJ Nunnally’s career, to halt one of the scoring opportunities of the Buckeyes. That was the lone bright spot on a day in which the Buckeyes surpassed 460 yards of offense, which marked the fifth time Purdue had allowed such a number this season.
Ohio State milked the clock, with a touchdown and a field goal, in the second half to sneak out of West Lafayette with a stress free victory over the Boilermakers. The Buckeyes held the significant advantage in time of possession, having the ball for over 40 minutes.
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Running back CJ Donaldson accounted for two of Ohio State’s three rushing touchdowns, while backup quarterback Luke Kienholz had the third. The Buckeyes had 163 yards on the ground, being led by freshman tailback Bo Jackson, who finished with 75 yards.
Purdue was limited to under 200 yards of offense and 10 points, the former being its lowest output on the season. It appeared that the Boilermakers were going to be held without a touchdown during Big Ten play, before Malachi Singleton hit Jesse Watson for a touchdown with 1:45 to play.
A ground game that had been making strides was stifled against a tough Ohio State front, finishing with 92 yards on 22 carries. Ryan Browne was held to 10-19 passing for 76 yards and an interception, and the yardage total was his fewest this season in a full game played. Rico Walker emerged as Purdue’s leading receiver, with just 30 yards on his lone catch.
Barry Odom and company have another tall task ahead, with a trip to Seattle to take on No. 23 Washington next Saturday night.
