7:32 Third Quarter; Purdue 21, Northwestern 19
The Wildcats came out of the half continuing their stingy defensive play, holding Ralph Bolden on three consecutive runs to force a three-and-out. The defensive line got some good pressure, and a blitz that included safety Brad Phillips made the stop on third down. Smith called for the fair catch and NU will start its drive at its own 23.
Brewer and Kafka were unable to connect on the first two plays of the drive, but on the second play a pass interference call gave the Cats a first down on the 38. Fields netted a one-yard loss on his first two carries, and a third down screen pass for Fields went nowhere, leading to a punt.
The rugby punt by Stefan Demos deflected off the back of a Purdue blocker, and after the ensuing chaos, Demetrius Dugar recovered the ball for NU. The play went under review and was confirmed. The Cats’ new line of scrimmage is the 34.
Kafka began NU’s new life with a keeper for two yards, but a big hit by the Boilermakers left the Cats with a third and long. However, anticipating the blitz on third down, Kafka ran a nifty screen to Schmidt, who made a nice cut to get the first down. Kafka then rifled the ball 11 yards to Demetrius Fields for another first down at the Purdue 12-yard line. Kafka kept the ball and ran up the middle for two yards, and then on second down missed a wide open Drake Dunsmore in the endzone. Facing heavy pressure, Kafka tried to escape, but a big sack by Antwon Higgs, a freshman, forced the Cats to settle for a 39-yard field goal by Demos, who is shaping up to be the player of the game for NU after notching his fourth field goal of the game. The drive after recovering the punt was 3:15 and consisted of eight plays.
