No. 8 Huskers pull away from Purdue in 2nd half, win 27-14

Nebraska's victory over Purdue won't convince skeptics who've been saying the No. 8 Cornhuskers aren't worthy of a top-10 ranking.

The wait to find out how good they really are is almost over.

In their final tuneup before their Big Ten West showdown at No. 10 Wisconsin, they came back from a four-point halftime deficit to beat the Boilermakers 27-14 Saturday.

Once again, and this time against a 24-point underdog, the Huskers (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) underperformed against a lesser opponent until pulling away in the second half. Still, they'll take their best record since 2001 into the game in Madison.

"These games, they haven't been pretty," linebacker Josh Banderas said. "My heart's been going in a lot of them. I'd like to have a couple where that' s not the case. But we're going to find that our will to win is up there with the best in the country. No matter what team is in front of us, we're going to find a way to win somehow."

Tommy Armstrong Jr. accounted for 303 yards of total offense and two touchdowns, and Purdue (3-4, 1-3) managed only 94 yards in the second half in interim coach Gerad Parker's first game since taking over for the fired Darrell Hazell.

"What a great first half we played," Parker said. "We battled through some tough things and had fun with it and smiled about it whether things worked or not. I thought we did the same thing with our effort the second half. It's just one of those things where they made more plays than we did."

The Huskers lost 55-45 at Purdue last year, and Memorial Stadium was in a stunned silence as the Boilermakers pulled out to a 14-10 lead on David Blough's two touchdown passes to DeAngelo Yancey, the second one an 88-yard catch-and-run.

But the Huskers scored on three straight possessions after going three-and-out on their first series of the second half.

"This will sound like a little bit of a broken record, but we're extremely happy to win the game," coach Mike Riley said. "My feelings are Purdue came here and played hard and their intentions were to win. Their quarterback is a good player and made plays, and so did their team. We struggled in a lot of ways and just had to stay with it."

Armstrong's 40-yard pass to De'Mornay Pierson-El gave the Huskers the lead, and Alonzo Moore went 24 yards for a touchdown on a jet sweep and Drew Brown kicked a career-long 51-yard field goal for the game's final points.

The Huskers, with a banged-up offensive line and facing a Purdue defense crowding the line of scrimmage, leaned on the pass far more than expected against the Big Ten's worst rushing defense. Armstrong was hit-and-miss, and they went punt-punt-punt-interception on their last four series of the half.

Leading Nebraska on the road at half in his first game since replacing Hazell left Parker emotional for his halftime interview with an ABC sideline reporter.

"I'm almost in tears and got chills all over me," he said.

THE TAKEAWAY

Purdue: Parker said the Boilermakers would play as if they had nothing to lose, and that's what they did. They went for it on fourth down four times, converting twice and scoring a touchdown on one of them.

Nebraska: The Huskers continue to scuffle with lesser opponents. They could be in trouble if they don't step up their game against the tougher opponents that are fast approaching.

KEY NUMBERS

Armstrong was 17 for 31 for 252 yards and ran 10 times for 51, and he set the school record with his 13th game with 300 yards or more of total offense. Terrell Newby had 82 yards on 22 carries for the Huskers.

Blough was 25 of 43 for 309 yards, the fifth 300-yard day of his career and his most in a road game. Yancey caught four balls for 100 yards.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Even though at least one team ahead of them in the poll will have lost, the Huskers don't merit a promotion after an uninspired performance. They might even slip a spot or two.

UP NEXT:

Purdue: The Boilermakers host Penn State to begin a stretch of three home games in four weeks.

Nebraska: Their season-defining stretch starts at No. 10 Wisconsin next Saturday and continues the following week at No. 2 Ohio State.

Wadley rushes for 170 yards and Iowa tops Purdue 49-35

 Iowa scored touchdowns on five of its six opening-half possessions and defeated Purdue 49-35 on Saturday, winning its school-record ninth consecutive road game.

The Hawkeyes (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten) broke the former school record of eight consecutive road victories set from 1920-23. Of the nine consecutive road triumphs, eight have been against Big Ten opponents.

Iowa, 3-0 this season in Big Ten road games, completely dominated the first two quarters, running 41 plays for 397 yards, successfully converting 7 of 8 third-down opportunities.

Hawkeye quarterback C.J. Beathard ran 16 yards for one touchdown and passed 42 yards to wide receiverRiley McCarron for another first-half TD.

Running back LeShun Daniels ran 1 and 4 yards for Iowa touchdowns, and Akrum Wadley added a 75-yard TD run with 1:18 remaining in the second quarter, giving the Hawkeyes a 35-7 lead through 30 minutes.

Purdue's David Blough threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to tight end Brycen Hopkins and a 53-yard touchdown pass to tight end Cole Herdman, trimming the Iowa lead to 35-14. Beathard countered with a 5-yard TD pass toNoah Fant, giving the Hawkeyes a 42-14 advantage.

Blough's 7-yard touchdown pass to Bilal Marshall with 8:40 remaining pulled the Boilermakers (3-3, 1-2) to within 42-21, and his 54-yard TD pass to DeAngelo Yancey with 5:36 left cut the deficit to 42-28.

Iowa cornerback Desmond King's 41-yard interception return for a touchdown with 1:44 remaining capped the Iowa scoring before Blough threw his fifth TD pass - a 37-yarder to Hopkins - with 17 seconds left.

Blough finished 30 of 60 for 458 yards.

TAKEAWAYS:

IOWA: The Hawkeyes had two backs each rush for more than 100 yards in the same game for the first time since 2008 (Wadley, 180 yards; Daniels, 146).

PURDUE: The Boilermakers, winners at Illinois last week, now are 0-9 in the next game following a victory during coach Darrell Hazell's four seasons at Purdue.

UP NEXT:

Iowa: Hosts Wisconsin on Saturday.

Purdue: Visits Nebraska n Saturday.

Purdue pulls out overtime win at Illinois, 34-31

 Freshman kicker J.D. Dellinger hit a 28-yard field goal in overtime Saturday to lead Purdue to a 34-31 road win over Illinois.

Purdue (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) battered Illinois with a run game that piled up 231 yards, and relied on the run and a turnover to get the win in the first overtime.

Illinois took the ball first but sophomore quarterback Chayce Crouch fumbled and Purdue safety Leroy Clark recovered.

From there running back Richie Worship moved the ball 15 yards on three carries to set up Dellinger.

Illinois (1-4, 0-2) kicker Chase McLaughlin had a chance to win the game on the final play of regulation but his 41-yard attempt clanged squarely off the right upright. McLaughlin made three field goals, including one from 47 yards, and had been a perfect 8-8 on the year.

In his first start, freshman running back Brian Lankford-Johnson led the Boilermakers with 18 carries for 127 yards and a touchdown. He started in place of the injured Markell Jones, who did not play.

Crouch took over in the second quarter for injured Illini quarterback Wes Lunt. Crouch, a sophomore, carried the ball 17 times for 137 yards and two touchdowns.

Lunt was knocked out of the game in the second quarter on a big hit by linebacker Danny Ezechukwu, who was flagged for roughing the passer. The extent of his injury was not immediately known.

THE TAKEAWAY

Purdue: The Boilermakers are out of the Big Ten West cellar and, a week after taking a 50-7 beating at Maryland, suddenly have a winning record and are halfway to bowl eligibility. But their run defense was still a problem. A week after giving up 400 yards to Maryland, Purdue saw an Illinois team that has at times struggled to move the ball on the ground run for 315 yards.

Illinois: It isn't clear yet just how long Lunt will be out, but the Illini got a pretty good look at what their offense is likely to be if he misses any time. Crouch does not throw the ball deep very well and struggled to connect with his receivers even on short passes. But he ran for more yards Saturday, a lot more, than Lunt has in his college career. Illinois is still in search of its first Big Ten win, and its first win since the opener against Murray State.

UP NEXT

Purdue: The Boilermakers host Iowa next Saturday, the first Big Ten home game on their schedule.

Illinois: The Illini make their first trip to Rutgers since the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten and just the third meeting between the schools. The last game, in New Jersey, was a 33-0 Rutgers win in 2006.

Unbeaten Maryland wallops Purdue 50-7 in Big Ten opener

Ty Johnson ran for 204 yards on seven carries, and unbeaten Maryland used a strong defensive performance to breeze past Purdue 50-7 Saturday and provide first-year coach DJ Durkin a victory in his first Big Ten game.

The Terrapins (4-0, 1-0) scored four touchdowns and amassed 293 yards in taking a 29-0 halftime lead. Maryland finished with 400 yards rushing and outgained the Boilermakers 496-205 overall.

Purdue (2-2, 0-1) had no answer for the no-huddle offense that has scored a school-record 173 points over its first four games.

Taking over at Maryland after serving as Michigan's defensive coordinator in 2015, Durkin has the Terrapins operating at a high level on both sides of the ball.

Perry Hills threw two touchdown passes to Teldrick Morganand ran for an 11-yard score. Johnson peeled off a 76-yard run and scored on carries of 8 and 48 yards, andLorenzo Harrison chipped in with a 62-yard touchdown sprint.

The defense sacked David Blough six times. The Boilermakers were ranked second in the nation in third-down conversions (59 percent), but in this game they went 6 for 20.

It was 36-0 before Purdue finally scored, on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Blough to Cole Herdman with 13:30 remaining.

Coming off two straight 300-yard games, Blough was limited to 46 yards passing before halftime and finished 18 for 41 for 132 yards.

The Boilermakers were guilty of a variety of ill-timed penalties, poor tackling and shoddy blocking by the offensive line.

Even when the Terrapins made mistakes of their own, Purdue couldn't capitalize. Maryland hadn't committed a turnover all year until Hill threw an interception on the opening series. The Terrapins subsequently jumped offside on third down, but Purdue's J.D. Dellinger was wide right on a 35-yard field goal try.

Maryland promptly moved 80 yards in six plays, then fooled the Boilermakers with an unbalanced formation on the 2-point conversion.

On Purdue's next series, an illegal formation wiped out a successful third-down play and forced a punt. Not long after that, Harrison burst up the middle on his 62-yard run.

Johnson's first touchdown made it 22-0.

Desperate for a spark, Purdue coach Darrell Hazell opted to for it on a fourth down from the Boilermakers 32. They made it, but it merely delayed Maryland's next touchdown.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

After this surprisingly lopsided victory, Maryland might receive a few votes in the AP Top 25 poll as the list of unbeaten teams in the nation continues to dwindle. Then again, the Terrapins' victories have come against Howard, Florida International, Central Florida and a Purdue team playing its first road game.

UP NEXT

Purdue: The Boilermakers travel to Illinois for a West Division matchup Saturday. The Illini lost to Nebraska 31-16 on Saturday.

Maryland: The Terrapins take a short trip north to face Penn State and former Maryland assistant coach James Franklin.

Blough throws for 300 yards, 2 TDs; Purdue tops Nevada 24-14

 David Blough threw for 300 yards and two touchdowns, Markell Jones had a go-ahead score in the third quarter and Purdue rallied past Nevada 24-14 on Saturday.

Purdue, which turned it over four times, pulled within 14-10 late in the second quarter on Blough's 48-yard touchdown pass to Bilal Marshall. Purdue's defense dominated the third, limiting Nevada to 23 yards on 11 plays.

"We showed a lot of character," said Blough, who was intercepted five times during a loss to Cincinnati on Sept. 10. "The TD pass to Marshall at the end of the first half was the play of the game. It was big for us."

Jones' 5-yard TD run capped a 12-play, 49-yard drive and the Boilermakers (2-1) added a TD with1:17 remaining in the fourth on Blough's 51-yard pass to Brycen Hopkins. Jones finished with 124 yards for his third career 100-yard game.

"To be down at halftime, the guys showed a lot of grit to overcome four turnovers," Purdue coach Darrell Hazell said. "The defense was phenomenal in the second half, and the score before halftime gave us momentum. It lifted our sideline. At halftime, we had a lot of energy in that locker room."

Tyler Stewart threw touchdown passes of 15 yards to Hasaan Henderson and 6 yards to James Butler for Nevada (2-2). The Wolf Pack converted a Blough interception and a Jones fumble into first-half touchdowns for a 14-3 lead.

The Wolf Pack had an opportunity to pull even at 17 with 4:16 remaining in the fourth, but Brent Zuzo hooked a 27-yard field-goal attempt wide left, and Blough iced it.

"They made plays at the end when we should have," Nevada coach Brian Polian said. "There were a lot of mistakes made in the game, and things didn't always go well. Still, we had a chance to win the game in the end, and we didn't do it."

Purdue outgained Nevada 466-253.

TAKEAWAYS:

PURDUE: The Boilermakers were sloppy offensively throughout the game, but their defense pressured Stewart throughout the day and did not allow a point during the game's final 35:56.

NEVADA: The Wolf Pack came in featuring a strong rushing attack, averaging 208.3 yards a game, but had only 90 at halftime and lost 4 yards rushing during the third quarter when all the momentum shifted to Purdue. Including five sacks, Nevada finished with only 68 rushing yards.

UP NEXT:

PURDUE: The Boilermakers begin Big Ten play at Maryland on Oct. 1.

NEVADA: The Wolf Pack start Mountain West competition at Hawaii on Oct. 1.

Moore leads Cincinnati over Purdue 38-20

Tommy Tuberville was a 3-year-old the last time Cincinnati won a road game against a Big Ten Conference opponent, defeating Indiana in 1957 in Bloomington.

Tuberville, who will celebrate his 62nd birthday on Sept. 18, got an early present Saturday when the Bearcats dominated Purdue, 38-20 in Ross-Ade Stadium.

Quarterback Hayden Moore passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more, and linebacker Mike Tyson intercepted Purdue's David Blough three times, laying the foundation for a relatively easy victory.

"With five turnovers, you're going to win most of your games," Tuberville said. "I don't care if you are playing on the moon. That was a good game for us. I thought we handled it well."

Purdue (1-1) was trying to start the season 2-0 for the first time since 2007, but Blough was intercepted five times, and J.D. Dellinger missed a 28-yard field goal. Three interceptions of Blough set up Cincinnati touchdowns.

"I was just doing my job," Tyson said of his three interceptions. "If it wasn't for our defensive front playing so well, I wouldn't have gotten any interceptions."

Blough threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Domonique Young and a 36-yarder to DeAngelo Yancey, and Richie Worshipran 4 yards for another Purdue score. Blough passed for 401 yards.

The Bearcats' ability to successfully convert on third down was at the core of their offensive dominance. Cincinnati converted 12 of its first 14 third-down situations.

Moore threw touchdown passes of 5 and 28 yards to Nate Cole and 20 yards to D.J. Dowdy and ran 9 and 23 yards for scores. His 23-yard TD run with 2:19 iced the outcome.

"We got a little conservative in the fourth quarter, but it was a big win for us," Tuberville said.

Moore completed 19 of 32 passes for 250 yards and ran eight times for 58 yards.

Cincinnati drove 85, 80, 75, 32 and 49 yards for touchdowns and had another 13-play, 79-yard drive that produced a 26-yard Andrew Gantz field goal in the third quarter that extended the lead to 24-7.

Safety Tyrell Gilbert's fourth-quarter interception of Blough set up the 28-yard touchdown pass to Cole, pushing the Cincinnati lead to 31-7 with 14:10 to play.

"When you can't get off the field on third down, and then you have too many turnovers, you're not going to win," said Purdue coach Darrell Hazell, now 7-31 in his fourth season with the Boilermakers with four victories against FCS opponents.

TAKEAWAYS:

CINCINNATI: Tyson intercepted Blough three times, once in the end zone, and Gilbert made a key pick to set up a score, allowing the Bearcats to win the turnover battle. In its season-opening victory against Tennessee-Martin, Cincinnati turned the ball over three times. Coupled with Moore's solid day, the Bearcats won each side of the ball.

PURDUE: The Boilermakers' defense allowed 7.6 yards each time Cincinnati snapped the ball in the first half, when the Bearcats were 9 of 11 on third-down conversions. Coupled with the five interceptions of Blough, Purdue mistakes denied the Boilermakers a chance of rallying from what was once a 24-point deficit.

KEY NUMBERS

Blough's five interceptions are the most by a Purdue quarterback since Ohio State intercepted Scott Hoffman five times in the Buckeyes' 1990 victory against the Boilermakers. Former Super Bowl winning quarterback Bob Griese was intercepted five times by Illinois in a 1966 game that Purdue actually rallied to win, 25-21.

INJURIES

PURDUE: The Boilermakers played without three starters - defensive end Austin Larkin (ankle), cornerback Da'Wan Hunte (ankle) and linebacker Jimmy Herman (hamstring) and then lost starting running back Markell Jones in the third quarter with a sprained shoulder.

UP NEXT:

CINCINNATI: The Bearcats return home to play No. 6 Houston on Thursday night, hoping to improve to 3-0 and spring a major upset.

"We were not looking ahead to Houston, but it's hard not to because we hear so much about them," Bearcats' running back Tion Green said.

PURDUE: The Boilermakers have a bye on Sept. 17 and will play Nevada on Sept. 24 in West Lafayette. It will be the first meeting between the schools.

Early takeaways spring Purdue over Eastern Kentucky 45-24

During coach Darrell Hazell's first three seasons at Purdue, defense certainly hasn't been the Boilermakers' forte, explaining in large part why this program entered Saturday's opener 6-30 beginning with 2013.

Seven of last year's 12 opponents scored at least 41 points in a 2-10 season, but defense provided all the momentum Purdue needed against Eastern Kentucky in Ross-Ade Stadium.

Leroy Clark and Gelen Robinson's first-quarter interceptions helped Purdue build an early 21-0 lead, and the Boilermakers outlasted the Football Championship Subdivision Colonels 45-24 in the season opener for both teams.

Clark's interception of Maty Mauk, the fifth-year graduate transfer quarterback from Missouri, set up Purdue's second touchdown and a 14-0 lead, and Robinson's 78-yard interception return for a score pushed the Boilermakers' advantage to 21-0 with 3:31 remaining in the first quarter.

Markell Jones scored on a 3-yard run to cap an efficient opening drive for Purdue.

"Obviously, we like to win the turnover battle, and that was a huge part of our preparation, as it is for every team," said Robinson, the son of former Purdue All-American basketball standout and NBA player Glenn Robinson.

"For me, it was great to do my part to help the defense win that battle. On my interception, as soon as I saw the quarterback flare out, I knew my job. I had help scoring when (cornerback) Myles Norwood blocked the quarterback."

Eastern Kentucky turned the ball over four times. The Boilermakers were guilty of one.

While Eastern Kentucky out gained the Boilermakers 284-243 during the first 30 minutes, Purdue built a led 28-18 at halftime, thanks to the 14 points as a result of interceptions.

"Any time you can play out front like we did, it takes a little bit of stress off you," coach Hazell said, "So it was good for us to get those turnovers and convert those turnovers into points. Then I thought our guys responded well in the second half by playing great defense and penetrating well."

First-year Eastern Kentucky coach Mark Elder said the first-quarter turnovers provided this game's storyline.

"You are not going to have a chance to win many games with three turnovers in the first quarter," Elder said, "We have to do a better job of protecting the ball. Our guys fought and played hard all game, but we got down by too much too early."

Boilermaker redshirt sophomore quarterback David Blough ran for two touchdowns and threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver DeAngelo Yancey, giving Purdue a 28-8 lead late in the second quarter.

"I thought we moved the ball really well," said Blough, who was 1-7 as a starter in 2015. "We sustained some drives and picked up some crucial third downs, but there's so many little things that we can do to make it that much better. We didn't score on one drive when we got inside their 10."

Jones carried 24 times for 143 yards for a Purdue team that now has won 13 consecutive home openers, including 4-0 for fourth-year coach Hazell, now 7-30 with the Boilermakers. Hazell is 4-0 against FCS opponents.

"You have to know that those 143 rushing yards all start up front," Jones said. "Those guys did a good job of imposing their will, which made it pretty easy for me to find holes and seams and hit them."

Each team struggled to generate any third-quarter offense, especially after Colonels quarterback Bennie Coney, who replaced Mauk in the first quarter, took a hard hit while scrambling and was helped to the sideline, prompting Mauk's return.

Purdue finally broke the second-half scoring drought on Blough's second TD run, a 1-yard plunge with 12:48 remaining in the game to extend the lead to 35-18.

J.D. Dellinger's 30-yard field goal with 4:56 to play capped a 13-play, 66-yard drive and gave the Boilermakers a 38-18 lead.

Blough finished 25 of 43 for 245 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Domonique Young caught eight passes for 74 yards.

Purdue capped its scoring with a 48-yard touchdown run from freshman Brian Lankford-Johnson with 4:23 left. The Colonels got a TD with 1:34 remaining to complete the scoring.

TAKEAWAY

Purdue: While the Boilermakers pulled away during the final 12:48, they led their FCS opponent by just 10 points heading into the final quarter in front of only 32,074 fans on a gorgeous September afternoon. Purdue finished with 512 yards of offense and snapped a four-game losing streak to end the 2015 season. The 32,074 was the smallest home crowd for a Purdue home opener since 25,000 watched the Boilermakers defeat Missouri 31-0 on Sept. 25, 1954, almost 62 years ago.

Eastern Kentucky: If Coney is able to play next week after taking a hard hit in the second half, the Colonels' coaching staff will have a difficult decision to make at quarterback. Mauk struggled at Purdue, but he was 17-5 as a starter at Missouri. It was clear Saturday that the Eastern Kentucky offense had a better rhythm with Coney under center.

"Our plan from the get-go was that we were going to put Mauk in for the first two series and Coney was going to play series three and four and we were going to go from there," Elder said. Bennie had a hot hand, so we kept him in there. For the second half, we had the same plan."

KEY NUMBERS

Purdue: The Boilermakers' key to limiting Eastern Kentucky to six second-half points centered on third-down conversions. The Colonels were 10 of 14 in the first half when they scored 18 points and 0 for 6 in the final 30 minutes when they scored six.

Eastern Kentucky: Coney finished 13 of 23 for 158 yards and a touchdown, while Mauk was only 2 of 7 for 18 yards with two picks. Mauk did rush eight times for 39 yards.

INJURY REPORT

Purdue was without starting cornerback Da'Wan Hunte (sprained ankle) and defensive end Austin Larkin (sprained ankle). Each starter, according to Hazell, should be ready for the Sept. 10 game against Cincinnati.

THE LAST WORD

"We did not come here to play close, and we certainly did not come here to lose by 21. We came here to win the game." --- Eastern Kentucky coach Mark Elder.

UP NEXT

Purdue: The Boilermakers are home again on Sept. 10, hosting Cincinnati at noon. The Bearcats defeated Purdue in September of 2013 in Hazell's first game with the Boilermakers, 42-7 in Cincinnati. The Bearcats opened the season Thursday night with a 28-7 victory against Tennessee-Martin.

Eastern Kentucky: The Colonels will attempt to give coach Mark Elder his first victory at EKU on Thursday when they play Pikeville.