Purdue comeback bid narrowly misses No. 23 Illinois

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – After one of the most courageous comeback efforts in program history, the Purdue football team suffered a heartbreaking 50-49 overtime loss at No. 1 Saturday afternoon. 23 Illinois.

The Boilermakers trailed the redshirt freshman 40-28 early in the second half, 27-3, with five minutes left Ryan Browne led the team on two touchdown drives, giving Purdue a 43-40 lead with 46 seconds left. Illinois converted a 38-yard field goal as time expired to send the game into overtime.

After the Illini found the end zone to start overtime, the Boilermakers responded with a touchdown of their own Armad branch used his speed to beat the defenders all the way to the pylon. With the ball in its hands, Purdue went for a deuce to win the game.

On the final play of the game, Illinois applied pressure and stopped the Boilermakers to prevent the greatest comeback in Purdue history.

On a day without a starting quarterback Hudson mapBrowne stepped into the role of signal-caller and turned heads in the box score, completing 18 of 26 passes for 297 yards and three touchdowns while also recording 118 rushing yards on 17 carries for a 6.9 average in his first career start .

Browne became the third Purdue quarterback to pass for more than 200 yards and rush for more than 100 yards since Mike Phipps against TCU in 1969 and Brandon Kirsch against Michigan State in 2002.

The Clarkston, Michigan native also became just the sixth Boilermaker quarterback to eclipse 100 yards rushing in a game, joining Phipps, Bob Bobrowski, Gary Danielson, Rob Henry and Brandon Kirsch. His 118 rushing yards were the most by a Purdue quarterback since Henry's 132 yards rushing at Northwestern on October 9, 2010.

Max Klare led Purdue with a career-high 133 yards on six catches. Devin Mockobee scored 102 yards on 11 carries, marking his eighth career 100-yard game.

Kydran Jenkins paced the defense with 10 tackles, six solos, 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles-for-loss. Will Heldt also had a career-best 1.5 sacks and 1.5 TFLs.

Spencer Porath Goed 2-for-2 on field goals and converted all five PAT attempts. Keelan Crimmins only had to punt twice for 97 yards, with a length of 58 yards, his second-longest punting of the season.

Purdue fell behind 10-0 before Browne and Co. launched a nine-play, 74-yard drive that reached the Illini four-yard line. However, the boilers were kept as one Spencer Porath With just under six minutes left in the second quarter, he reduced the deficit to 10-3.

A tumultuous end to the first half spelled trouble for Purdue, as Illinois (5-1, 2-1 B1G) got the ball back and got into the end zone on nine plays.

Trailing 17-3 with less than two minutes to go before halftime, the Boilers' return team misinterpreted a kick that required an uncharacteristic dive back upfield, and Illinois pounced on it first. Starting from the Purdue 25-yard line, the Illini took advantage to put Purdue in a 24-3 hole at halftime.

After a field goal early in the third quarter extended Illinois' lead to 27-3, the Boilermakers needed a spark. They stormed all the way back and almost caused a historic surprise.

Browne found Junior Jahmal Edrine for a 53-yard score, good for Purdue's longest touchdown pass since its opening drive in the 2023 opener against Fresno State.

On the first game of the following trip, Nyland Green forced a strip sack on Illini quarterback Luke Altmyer. Heldt recovered the fumble and brought it home, Purdue's first scoop-and-score since Oct. 28, 2023 at Nebraska. It was Green's first career sack and forced fumble, as well as Heldt's first touchdown.

The Boilermakers turned Illinois over on downs on the following possession and marched down the field for a 24-yard field goal from Porath, suddenly flipping the script and making it a 27-20 game.

The Illini responded with a touchdown of their own, but Purdue wasn't done fighting. On six plays, Browne surgically led the offense down the field and finished with an eight-yard touchdown pass Jaron Tibbs.

Klare caught a pass for a successful two-point attempt, increasing the score to 34-28 Illinois, but the Illini answered again and took the lead by 12 late in the game.

The Boilermaker's crime could not be denied; With less than four minutes left, Mockobee capped a 10-play, 75-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown.

Trailing by five, the Boilermakers successfully recovered an onside kick Ben Freehillthe first time since September 28, 2019, against Minnesota.

Starting at the Illinois 43-yard line, the Boilermakers needed just three plays to take the lead with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Mockobee. Another successful two-point attempt by Edrine gave Purdue a 43-40 lead.

Illinois regained possession 42 seconds into regulation and got into field goal range, sending the game into overtime. Illinois jumped out to a 50-43 lead in the first game.

Mockobee went to the edge and scored 22 yards to the Illinois 3, and Branch capitalized on the next play with a 3-yard rushing score.

Lost 50-49, with the automatic two-point lead in double overtime, head coach Ryan Walters decided to pursue victory in the hostile environment. With the game on the line, the attempt was unsuccessful and Illinois escaped with a victory on home soil.



NEXT
The Boilermakers return home on a short week to host No. 3 Oregon on Friday night. Kickoff at Ross-Ade Stadium is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Fox.

NOTES
• Purdue totaled 536 yards of offense, including 239 yards rushing and 251 yards passing, the second-highest mark under a head coach Ryan Walters.
• In his first college start Ryan Browne Rushed for 118 yards on 17 carries and 20 yards while going 18 of 26 through the air for 297 and three touchdowns.
• Browne is the sixth quarterback in Purdue history to rush for 100 yards.
• Browne is also the first Purdue quarterback since Mike Phipps in 1969 to throw for 200 yards and over 100 rushing yards, surpassing Phipps' record of 286 passing yards and 104 rushing yards.
• Max Klare had a career day with six receptions for 133 yards. He caught a career-long 62-yard pass from Browne in the third quarter.
• Klare had the most receiving yards by a Purdue tight end since Payne Durham's 150-yard night against Oregon State in 2021. It was the sixth-most by a Purdue tight end since 1996.
• Devin Mockobee carried the ball 11 times for 102 yards and a touchdown. He moved into sixth place on the 100-yard game list with Montrell Lowe (1999-02) with eight. With his 17th score on the ground, he moved into 11th place on the career touchdown list with Otis Armstrong (1970-72).
• Purdue went a perfect 6 of 6 in the red zone.
• Kydran Jenkins led the team defensively with 10 tackles, six solos, 2.5 tackles-for-loss and 1.5 sacks.
• Jenkins moved to 12th in program history with 39.5, passing Tom Kingsbury (1977-80).
• The Boilermakers finished the game with eight tackles for a loss, the most against a Big Ten opponent since nine at Nebraska last year.
• Will Heldt scored his first career touchdown with a 16-yard fumble recovery. It was Purdue's first defensive score since then Kydran Jenkins scored a 55-yard fumble recovery against Nebraska.
• Spencer Porath combined with kicks from 22 and 24 yards. They were his fourth and fifth appearances of the year, all in a row, moving him into fifth place on the freshman season charts behind Scott Sovereen (1975).
• Keelan Crimmins launched his sixth punt of 50 yards or more with a 58-yard shoe, his second-longest punt of the season.