The offense scored some points, and the defense stepped up when it had to.
The good times are rolling once again in Evanston.
Northwestern escaped with a thrilling 26-20 victory over Purdue at Ross-Ade Stadium in a game that went to overtime.
Jack Lausch led the Wildcat offense with a strong showing, going 23-for-35 with 250 yards and a touchdown pass in overtime to end the game. Joseph Himon led the way rushing for Northwestern, recording 78 yards and a score on just six carries. Cam Porter was the team’s leading receiver, going for 85 yards on eight receptions. Defensively, Northwestern held Purdue’s Devin Mockobee-led rushing attack to just 47 total yards on the ground.
Quarterback Hudson Card anchored Purdue’s offense, throwing 21-for-37 with 267 yards and a touchdown pass. Max Klare led the way receiving, recording 78 yards on six receptions, while Jahmal Edrine had 54 yards and a touchdown on five receptions.
Purdue won the toss and elected to receive. Card gave Northwestern an early scare with a bomb deep to the right, but it was dropped by C.J. Smith. A Devin Mockobee eight-yard rush gave Purdue a 3rd-and-2, but the ‘Cats were ready on third down and stopped him behind the line of scrimmage to force a punt.
Starting at his own 30-yard line, Lausch got the ‘Cats started with a nine yard pass to A.J. Henning. After his first rush went for no gain, Cam Porter secured the first down for NU, which he followed with a 12-yard reception to move the ‘Cats into Purdue territory. However, they were moved back to midfield the next play following an offensive pass interference call on Thomas Gordon. After a lackluster second down, Lausch connected on a pass to Frank Covey that went for 27 yards, more than overcoming a brutal 3rd-and-16. However, the drive would stall out there, and a series of incomplete passes would result in Luke Akers nailing a 39-yard field goal to give the ‘Cats the first score of the game.
Purdue came back on the field ready to strike. On an early 3rd-and-6, Card found Smith on a deep ball that moved the Boilermakers 32 yards downfield. Subsequent passes to Jaron Tibbs and Klare would move them to the Northwestern 11-yard line, but following a pair of short runs, Theran Johnson broke up Card’s third-down shot to Tibbs in the end zone, forcing Purdue to settle for a chip shot field goal to tie the game.
The ‘Cats were in trouble early on their next drive, at risk of going three-and-out. However, on 3rd-and-10, Lausch connected with Calvin Johnson for 14 yards to avoid handing the ball back to Purdue. Joseph Himon then took the ball for 10 yards to put Northwestern around midfield. The very next play, Himon forced his way through Purdue’s front seven and absolutely tore down the middle of the field, taking the ball 51 yards to the end zone to give the ‘Cats their first offensive touchdown since they defeated Maryland on October 11. A successful extra point by Akers made it a 10-3 game.
The defense responded with an impressive drive of its own, forcing a three-and-out and giving the ball right back to the Wildcat offense.
Ryan Hilinski took over for Lausch on NU’s next drive, and on his first pass he connected with Frank Covey, who took it 16 yards before the ball briefly came out at the end of the play. Fortunately, the ‘Cats maintained possession, but they handed the ball to Purdue on a silver platter two plays later when Hilinski overthrew a deep pass right into the hands of Antonio Stevens.
Purdue’s attempt to capitalize on the turnover was unsuccessful. A 12-yard rush from Mockobee was a promising start for the Boilermakers, but the ‘Cats were able to force a fourth down after three short runs. With four yards to go, Purdue attempted to convert on fourth down. Ryan Browne connected with Shamar Rigby, but Johnson was right there to make the tackle and give Northwestern the ball right at midfield.
Lausch, who came back in the game following Hilinski’s interception, started the drive with a series of short passes and runs to move the ‘Cats downfield. He then connected with Marshall Lang for 21 yards before a nine-yard rush of his own moved the offense into the red zone.
On a crucial 3rd-and-1, Porter plowed through Purdue’s defense for three yards, and Lausch connected with him on the next play for eight more yards to bring the ‘Cats one yard shy of a score. After an unsuccessful attempt on second down, Porter leapt over defenders to reach the end zone, giving Northwestern its second rushing touchdown of the game. With the extra point attempt good from Akers, the ‘Cats held a commanding 17-3 lead with just over two minutes left in the first half.
Card came back in for Purdue, and he connected on three straight passes to Klare that went for 12, 13 and 14 yards, respectively. A subsequent 19-yard pass to Tibbs moved Purdue into Northwestern territory, but following four straight completions, Card missed the mark on his next two. On 3rd-and-10, he took the ball himself, coming one yard short of the first down. Instead of settling for a field goal, Card went for it once again on fourth down, this time connecting with Tibbs for 17 yards to bring the game to Northwestern’s 6-yard line with under a minute remaining. Following two more incompletions, Card hit Jahmal Edrine for the score, despite him being covered well by Josh Fussell.
Northwestern received the ball back with 25 seconds left, but the team chose to run out the clock, heading into the half with a 17-10 lead over the Boilermakers. Lausch finished the half going 9-for-13 with 104 yards, while Himon led the way for the ‘Cats on the ground with 61 yards and a score. For Purdue, Card was 10-for-17 passing with 141 yards and a touchdown pass, and Max Klare was the team’s leading receiver with 52 yards on four receptions.
Coming out of the half, Northwestern went three-and-out and opted not to go for it on fourth down and short from its own 34. Hunter Renner’s punt was returned by Dillon Thieneman, who took it 14 yards to the Purdue 38-yard line. The Boilermakers responded with a three-and-out of their own, punting the ball back to the Wildcats at their own 8-yard line.
The ‘Cats got off to a livelier start on their second drive of the half, with Lausch finding Henning for a 14-yard gain early on. But following a false start penalty on Cooper Lovelace, NU could not break open for another big play and was forced to punt the ball away once again.
Purdue began its next drive with a series of small plays that resulted in a pair of first downs. Jaylen Pate recorded a big-time sack on Card, but due to a face mask penalty called on Mac Uihlein, Purdue was handed 15 more yards. Then, Card connected with Edrine once again for 28 yards to get to the Northwestern 4-yard line, but the Wildcat defense stepped up, forcing Purdue to settle for another chip shot field goal after getting deep into the red zone.
With the lead reduced to four, Northwestern was looking for a big play. After losing four yards on his first down rush, Lausch scrambled up the middle before the ball popped out. Fortunately for the ‘Cats, the officials determined his knee was down before the ball came out, giving them a 3rd-and-11 where Lausch found Henning on the right sideline for 18 yards to keep the drive alive. Henning caught the ball on the next third down scenario too, this time bringing it just inches short of the first down marker as time expired in the third quarter.
Entering the fourth quarter, the ‘Cats were faced with a crucial fourth-and-one decision, and their trust in Cam Porter paid off with a four-yard gain. Lausch was sacked for a loss of seven, but a hands to the face penalty on Jireh Ojata on the next play gave NU another first down. Lausch connected with Lang on the next two plays to bring the ‘Cats into the red zone, but Purdue’s defense did not let them move any farther downfield. Akers drilled a 41-yard field goal to put Northwestern up by a touchdown with just over ten minutes to go.
Purdue got off to a hot start on its next drive, with Klare and Drew Biber each hauling in receptions for over ten yards. A toe tap catch by Edrine put Purdue at the Northwestern 14-yard line, and a pass by Rigby to Tibbs put the Boilermakers one yard short. On the next play, Mockobee forced his way into the end zone as Purdue tied up the game with just over five minutes to go.
Looking to reclaim its lead, Northwestern got started with a nine-yard pass to Porter. After a rush for no gain, Lausch found Porter once again for 15 yards for a critical third-down conversion. A holding penalty on Josh Thomson made it a 1st-and-20, but a second-down rush from Himon went for 16 yards to set up a 3rd-and-4 heading into the two-minute timeout. Lausch had Henning open, but he put too much power on the ball, and the ‘Cats were forced to punt the ball away.
With 1:41 to go and all three timeouts remaining, Northwestern’s defense looked to force a three-and-out. Michael Kilbane and Aidan Hubbard got to Card with a sack on first down, and Card had to throw the ball away on second. He connected with C.J. Smith for 12 yards on third down, but Purdue was still two yards shy of the first down. The Boilermakers punted the ball back to the ‘Cats with 58 seconds remaining.
Lausch began the drive with two short passes to Porter, followed by a nine-yard pass to Himon. However, having used all their timeouts earlier in the half, the ‘Cats were left with just two seconds on the clock to run a hail mary. Hilinski came in and connected with Hayden Eligon II for 36 yards, but it was not enough, and the ‘Cats were headed to overtime.
Northwestern won the coin toss and chose to defend first. Mockobee got things started for Purdue with a four-yard rush, but a pair of incompletions from Card forced a fourth down. However, instead of attempting a field goal, the Boilermakers went for it, but Card’s pass attempt was broken up by Damon Walters. However, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Theran Johnson set the Wildcats back 15 yards for their subsequent drive.
On Northwestern’s first play of overtime, Lausch found Porter, who took it for 18 yards. The very next play, he threw it to a wide-open Himon on the right side, who brought it in and took it to the house, as Northwestern escaped West Lafayette with a 26-20 victory.
The ‘Cats will have a week off before hosting No. 4 Ohio State at Wrigley Field on Nov. 16. Kickoff time is not currently set.