PURDUE DOMINATES MINNESOTA
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Dominating in all three phases of the game, the Purdue football team cruised to a 41-13 win over Minnesota on Saturday night in Ross-Ade Stadium.
A historic night from sophomore running back Fame Ijeboi, who led an electric rushing attack with 195 yards, paved the way for Purdue’s second straight Big Ten Conference win. The Boilermakers improved to 3-3 (2-1 B1G) and handed the Golden Gophers (4-2, 2-1 B1G) their first conference loss.
After defeating Illinois last week, Purdue has secured consecutive Big Ten wins for the first time since the final two weeks of the 2022 season, when the Boilers finished 8-4 and clinched a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game. The 28-point win was the Boilermakers’ largest margin of victory in a conference game since a 44-7 victory over Indiana in the 2021 Battle for the Old Oaken Bucket.
Playing against his former team, Ijeboi posted one of the all-time great performances by a Boilermaker running back, compiling 195 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries (6.3 average). His yardage output ranks 15th for a single game in program history, and it was the most since Markell Jones ran for 217 at Indiana on Nov. 25, 2017.
Ijeboi tacked on three touchdowns to bring his season total to nine, which ties Kory Sheets (2006) for the most by a Boilermaker through the first six games of a season since 1995.
A former Gopher from 2024-25, Ijeboi punished Minnesota all night with big gains of 30, 26, 22, 15, 14, 13 and 11 yards.
Quarterback Ryan Browne added a season-high 81 rushing yards on seven carries, scoring on a 12-yard run in the fourth quarter to extend Purdue’s lead to 34-13. He also completed 14-of-24 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown to George Burhenn in the first quarter. It was Burhenn’s second touchdown of the season and third of his career.
As Purdue exploded for 305 rushing yards, the Boilermaker defense held Minnesota to just 27 yards on the ground, the lowest total by a Purdue opponent in a Big Ten game since Oct. 9, 2004, at Penn State (18 yards). The Boilers totaled 458 yards of offense to the Gophers’ 273.
Jojo Hayden and Charles Correa each had six tackles to lead Purdue in stops. Hayden recorded his first career interception, picking off Minnesota quarterback Drake Lindsey at the end of the first half to preserve Purdue’s 20-3 lead at the break. It was Purdue’s largest halftime lead in a Big Ten game since Oct. 13, 2018, at Illinois (29-7).
Purdue averaged 6.6 yards per carry while limiting Minnesota to just 2.1. The Boilermakers also held a 25-10 advantage in first downs and ran 69 plays to the Gophers’ 51.
UP NEXT
The Boilers head into a short week with another home primetime game looming against Washington on Friday, Oct. 16.
Kickoff from Ross-Ade Stadium is set for 8 p.m. ET with the broadcast on FOX.
About The Author
