Purdue Football: 3 takeaways from road win against Maryland

Here are three takeaways from Purdue Football’s 31-29 win against Maryland. 

Purdue knows a lot about playing in close games this season. The 4-2 Boilermakers have played in four one-possession games. All four of those games have been decided by four points or fewer. Two of those games (Penn State and Syracuse) could have been wins, and the story of the Boilermakers’ season would be different.

This afternoon, the ball bounced Purdue’s way in its 31-29 road win against the Maryland Terrapins in College Park, Maryland. Boilermaker quarterback Aidan O’Connell led the way with 360 yards and two touchdowns. O’Connell’s favorite target this afternoon was tight end Payne Durham, who had 109 receiving yards, including a 56-yard reception that set up the go-ahead score.

Much like its game against Minnesota, the Boilermakers were aided by mistakes by their opponent. The Golden Gophers turned the ball over three times last week, and the Terrapins stifled drives with penalties. The Terps committed nine penalties for 76 yards, many of which stopped drives.

Purdue struggled running the football today, with just 13 rushing yards. But leading rusher Devin Mockobee scored what would turn out to be the game-winning touchdown after a two-point conversion attempt by Maryland would be negated by a penalty.

Here are three takeaways from Purdue’s win.