Braedyn Locke passed for three touchdowns and Tawee Walker ran for three more as the Wisconsin Badgers dominated visiting Purdue, 52-6, for their 18th consecutive victory over the Boilermakers in a Big Ten matchup Saturday.
Wisconsin (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) bounced back after lopsided losses to now top-ranked Alabama and No. 11 USC. The Badgers had 589 total yards to 216 for Purdue (1-4, 0-2 Big Ten), which lost its fourth straight game.
Locke, who became the starter after Tyler Van Dyke suffered a season-ending knee injury against Alabama, completed 20 of 31 passes for 359 yards with two interceptions. Walker, taking over the workload after leading rusher Chez Mellusi left the team this week for health reasons, ran for 94 yards on 19 carries.
Walker’s 1-yard run with nine seconds left in the half, followed by Locke’s 69-yard touchdown pass to Trech Kekahuna on the opening series of the third quarter put the Badgers up 28-6.
Locke hit Kekahuna with a 25-yard scoring strike to cap a nine-play, 98-yard drive on Wisconsin’s next possession to make it 35-6. Walker added a 17-yard touchdown run and Cade Yacamelli scored on a 30-yarder. Nathanial Vakos capped the scoring with a 26-yard field goal.
The loss capped a week of upheaval for Purdue, which has not beaten Wisconsin since 2003. Offensive coordinator Graham Harrell was fired earlier in the week and starting cornerback Markevious Brown was not with the team due to a “personal matter,” but was expected back next season, the school announced before the game.
Wisconsin recovered a muffed punt at the Purdue 12-yard line to set up its first score. On the following play, Walker went off the right side to put the Badgers up 7-0 with 8:04 left in the first quarter.
The Badgers extended the lead to 14-0 on their next possession on a 52-yard touchdown pass from Locke to Vinny Anthony II. The Boilermakers helped the 91-yard drive with a pair of 15-yard penalties.
Kyndrich Breedlove intercepted Locke twice in the second quarter, but the Boilermakers settled for field goals of 21 and 23 yards by Spencer Forath to pull within 14-6.
Wisconsin responded with an 11-play, 75-yard scoring drive to go up 21-6 at the half. Locke hit CJ Williams with a 19-yard pass to set up Walker’s 1-yard plunge.
–Field Level Media