COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Back-to-back fourth quarter touchdown drives for Purdue sandwiched in between two straight stops on point after attempts gave Purdue a 31-29 victory over Maryland on Saturday at SECU Stadium.
The Boilermakers (4-2, 2-1 B1G) picked up their second straight Big Ten road victory with the win over the Terrapins (4-2, 1-2 B1G). It is the first time Purdue has won on the road in back-to-back games since the 2018 season. The win also evens up the all-time series with Maryland at two games apiece. It is the fourth one possession game of the season for Purdue, who are 2-2 in those contests.
The defense for Purdue came up big for the second straight week against a potent offense. The Boilermakers produced three sacks to go with six tackles for loss and four pass break ups.
Head coach Jeff Brohm's squad produced two crucial stops with their backs against the wall. Safety Cam Allen blocked an extra point in the fourth that kept it at a six-point game. Then the Terrapins were turned away by a stout defensive effort on their two-point conversion attempt to tie it up with 0:35 seconds left.
Senior linebacker Jalen Graham returned to the field for his first action since the opener against Penn State and led the team with nine tackles (one for loss). Defensive end Khordae Sydnor had a big day of his own, recording a career high two sacks.
Redshirt senior cornerback Cory Trice knabbed his first interception of the year to give Purdue a pick in five of six games this season. Trice's takeaway led to the first touchdown of the day for the Boilermakers.
Quarterback Aidan O'Connell led the way for the offense, going 30-of-41 for 360 yards and two touchdowns. He found ten different receivers on the day to drive Purdue another crucial conference victory at the midway point of the season.
His primary target on the day was tight end Payne Durham. The big man went for 109 yards on seven catches and a touchdown and his huge fourth quarter helped seal the win for the Boilermakers. An endzone snag with 3:19 left tied the game and then a season-long 56 yard catch and rumble down to the two yard-line led to a Devin Mockobee touchdown that would be enough to see off the Terrapins.
Walk-on running backs Dylan Downing and Mockobee, who carried the offensive load the last two games for Purdue, bookended the scoring for the Boilermakers with a rushing touchdown each in this contest. The pair have run for a combined 524 yards and eight scores on the season.
DEFENSE STEPS UP
The Purdue offense turned the ball over to Maryland on three occasions, but the Boilermaker defense stood tall when they needed to and did not allow a single point off those turnovers.
Those three drives for the Terrapins resulted in a turnover on downs, a punt, and a missed field goal for a combined 35 total yards across 16 plays.
THE AIDAN O'CONNELL SHOW
The veteran O'Connell continues to light up the stat sheet and climb up the charts in his sixth season at Purdue.
• He now has 11 career 300-yard passing games, breaking a tie with Jim Everett (1981-85) for fourth most in program history. He is one shy of Curtis Painter (2005-08) for third.
• O'Connell has thrown for 200 or more yards in all, but one of his 20 career starts.
• O'Connell became the eighth quarterback in Purdue history to reach the 7,000-yard plateau in a career. He now has 7,288 career passing yards, 123 away from Jim Everett (1981-84) for seventh most in Purdue history.
NOTES
• The Boilermakers have scored 35 points off turnovers this season.
• His TD grab tonight was Durham's 16th career receiving touchdown. He is now tied with Dustin Keller (2004-07) and Antavian Edison (2009-12) for 11th in program history. He is also now tied for third in career touchdown receptions by a tight end. It was his second career 100-yard reception game.
• Wide receiver Mershawn Rice's two-foot, toe-tap touchdown from four yards out in the second quarter was his first scoring grab of the year and the second of his career. He tallied a career high five catches and finished with 54 yards.
• Purdue has 11 rushing touchdowns through six games this year, its highest season total since it ran for 20 scores in 2018.
• Wide receiver Andrew Sowinski and fullback Ben Furtney made their first receptions of the season. It was the first of Furtney's career.
• With one interception on Saturday, Purdue now has nine on the year. The Boilermakers have picked off a pass in five of its six games.
• Redshirt senior cornerback Cory Trice picked off the fourth pass of his career, three of them have come against Maryland.
• Deion Burks' 34-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter was the longest of the season by the Boilermakers.
• Cam Allen blocked Maryland's PAT that would have put them ahead by seven in the fourth quarter. It was Purdue's first blocked PAT since Jake Replogle denied Iowa on Nov. 21, 2015.
UP NEXT
The Boilermakers return to Ross-Ade Stadium for Family Day to host Nebraska on Oct. 15 at 7:30 p.m.
The Boilermakers (4-2, 2-1 B1G) picked up their second straight Big Ten road victory with the win over the Terrapins (4-2, 1-2 B1G). It is the first time Purdue has won on the road in back-to-back games since the 2018 season. The win also evens up the all-time series with Maryland at two games apiece. It is the fourth one possession game of the season for Purdue, who are 2-2 in those contests.
The defense for Purdue came up big for the second straight week against a potent offense. The Boilermakers produced three sacks to go with six tackles for loss and four pass break ups.
Head coach Jeff Brohm's squad produced two crucial stops with their backs against the wall. Safety Cam Allen blocked an extra point in the fourth that kept it at a six-point game. Then the Terrapins were turned away by a stout defensive effort on their two-point conversion attempt to tie it up with 0:35 seconds left.
Senior linebacker Jalen Graham returned to the field for his first action since the opener against Penn State and led the team with nine tackles (one for loss). Defensive end Khordae Sydnor had a big day of his own, recording a career high two sacks.
Redshirt senior cornerback Cory Trice knabbed his first interception of the year to give Purdue a pick in five of six games this season. Trice's takeaway led to the first touchdown of the day for the Boilermakers.
Quarterback Aidan O'Connell led the way for the offense, going 30-of-41 for 360 yards and two touchdowns. He found ten different receivers on the day to drive Purdue another crucial conference victory at the midway point of the season.
His primary target on the day was tight end Payne Durham. The big man went for 109 yards on seven catches and a touchdown and his huge fourth quarter helped seal the win for the Boilermakers. An endzone snag with 3:19 left tied the game and then a season-long 56 yard catch and rumble down to the two yard-line led to a Devin Mockobee touchdown that would be enough to see off the Terrapins.
Walk-on running backs Dylan Downing and Mockobee, who carried the offensive load the last two games for Purdue, bookended the scoring for the Boilermakers with a rushing touchdown each in this contest. The pair have run for a combined 524 yards and eight scores on the season.
DEFENSE STEPS UP
The Purdue offense turned the ball over to Maryland on three occasions, but the Boilermaker defense stood tall when they needed to and did not allow a single point off those turnovers.
Those three drives for the Terrapins resulted in a turnover on downs, a punt, and a missed field goal for a combined 35 total yards across 16 plays.
THE AIDAN O'CONNELL SHOW
The veteran O'Connell continues to light up the stat sheet and climb up the charts in his sixth season at Purdue.
• He now has 11 career 300-yard passing games, breaking a tie with Jim Everett (1981-85) for fourth most in program history. He is one shy of Curtis Painter (2005-08) for third.
• O'Connell has thrown for 200 or more yards in all, but one of his 20 career starts.
• O'Connell became the eighth quarterback in Purdue history to reach the 7,000-yard plateau in a career. He now has 7,288 career passing yards, 123 away from Jim Everett (1981-84) for seventh most in Purdue history.
NOTES
• The Boilermakers have scored 35 points off turnovers this season.
• His TD grab tonight was Durham's 16th career receiving touchdown. He is now tied with Dustin Keller (2004-07) and Antavian Edison (2009-12) for 11th in program history. He is also now tied for third in career touchdown receptions by a tight end. It was his second career 100-yard reception game.
• Wide receiver Mershawn Rice's two-foot, toe-tap touchdown from four yards out in the second quarter was his first scoring grab of the year and the second of his career. He tallied a career high five catches and finished with 54 yards.
• Purdue has 11 rushing touchdowns through six games this year, its highest season total since it ran for 20 scores in 2018.
• Wide receiver Andrew Sowinski and fullback Ben Furtney made their first receptions of the season. It was the first of Furtney's career.
• With one interception on Saturday, Purdue now has nine on the year. The Boilermakers have picked off a pass in five of its six games.
• Redshirt senior cornerback Cory Trice picked off the fourth pass of his career, three of them have come against Maryland.
• Deion Burks' 34-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter was the longest of the season by the Boilermakers.
• Cam Allen blocked Maryland's PAT that would have put them ahead by seven in the fourth quarter. It was Purdue's first blocked PAT since Jake Replogle denied Iowa on Nov. 21, 2015.
UP NEXT
The Boilermakers return to Ross-Ade Stadium for Family Day to host Nebraska on Oct. 15 at 7:30 p.m.