Purdue Football: 3 takeaways from controversial loss to Minnesota

Purdue football star Rondale Moore made his return to the lineup, but the Boilermakers fell short Friday night against Minnesota.

“You know what I think? I can’t really comment on it. It’s part of the game, and we’ve got to move forward, but yes, I didn’t like it at all.” Those were the words of Purdue head coach Jeff Brohm following Purdue’s 31-34 loss on the road to the Minnesota Golden Gophers Friday night.

Boilermaker tight end Payne Durham looked to catch the go-ahead touchdown with 52 seconds left when he was flagged for offensive pass interference.

Instead of leading 37-34, the Boilermakers found themselves with a first-and-25. The next play, Minnesota defensive back Josh Aune intercepted a pass from Jack Plummer to seal the Golden Gophers’ game. Brohm yelled for the official but never received “a good explanation” about why Durham was flagged on the play.

Purdue’s diminutive dynamo Rondale Moore returned to action with a career-high 15 receptions and 116 yards in what can only be described as a wild game. Moore also chipped in 20 rushing yards. His counterpart, David Bell, had eight catches for 104 yards and two touchdowns.

For the Gophers, Tanner Morgan has found another target in Chris Autman-Bell, who had five catches for 129 yards. Running back, Mohammed Ibrahim added 102 yards rushing and three touchdowns in the Gophers victory.

Here are three takeaways from Friday night’s game.