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Nov. 8, 1997

Purdue Stuns Spartans, 22-21

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Ed Watson's two-yard touchdown run with 40 seconds to play capped off a miraculous comeback, and Michigan State's Chris Gardner missed a 43-yard field goal with three seconds left, as 24th-ranked Purdue pulled off a stunning 22-21 victory.

Michigan State clearly had the game in hand, leading 21-10, and Gardner was attempting a 39-yard field goal with just over two minutes to play. But Purdue defensive tackle Leo Perez broke through the line to block the kick and defensive end Rosevelt Colvin scooped up the loose ball and rumbled 62 yards for the touchdown. Purdue (7-2, 5-1 Big Ten) trailed 21-16 after Billy Dicken's pass fell incomplete on the conversion attempt.

"We called a timeout, and Coach Spack (defensive coordinator Brock Spack) told us that we were going to block the kick and score, and we did," Colvin said.

The ensuing onside kick was recovered by Boilermakers wide receiver Chris Daniels, who threw a first-half touchdown pass, with 1:58 remaining. Dicken completed four passes, including a 14-yarder to Chris McKay down to the 4-yard line. Following a defensive penalty and Dicken's failed quarterback draw, Watson punched it into the end zone off right tackle to give Purdue its first lead of the game.

"I went to coach and asked for the play to be called for me," Watson said of the go-ahead score. "I wanted the opportunity to make the play. I just believed in the power of prayer to get me into the end zone."

Michigan State got the ball back at its own 33-yard line with 35 seconds remaining. After a nine-yard completion to Marc Renaud, Todd Schultz hit Gari Scott over the middle for a 25-yard gain to the Purdue 33 with 14 seconds left. Following another defensive penalty and a one-yard run by Renaud, Gardner was sent in to try the potential go-ahead field goal with seven seconds to go.

Purdue called timeout to ice the kicker, and that strategy apparently paid off because Gardner hooked the kick well left, giving the Boilermakers their first on-the-field win over the Spartans since 1991. They had a forfeit victory in 1994.

"I hit the ball off the inside of my foot and just totally choked," Gardner said. "Right now, I have to re-establish kicking the ball in a high-intensity situation."

"Divine intervention may have been on our side today," Purdue coach Joe Tiller said. "This game also shows why I don't get concerned about statistics except for the points on the scoreboard."

Wastson rushed for 115 yards on 24 carries and Dicken completed 17-of-32 passes for 150 yards as Purdue rebounded from last week's loss to Iowa.

Renaud ran 22 times for 114 yards and a touchdown and Schultz was 17-of-21 for 220 yards and a score, but the Spartans (5-4, 2-4) still suffered their fourth straight defeat after opening the season 5-0.

"We're feeling pretty low right now. We've lost four in a row and we're just not used to that," Schultz said. "They made some big plays on special teams, but as a team, we made some critical mistakes."

Purdue's offense, ranked 10th nationally coming into the game, struggled for the second consecutive week. After getting held to 52 yards and no points in the second half of last week's 35-17 loss to the Hawkeyes, the Boilermakers were limited to season lows of 320 total and 189 passing yards.

Trailing 14-7, Purdue safety Lee Brush picked off Schultz with 2:48 left in the third quarter. Watson gained 36 yards on six carries and the Boilermakers held the ball over six minutes in driving to the 3, but they had to settle for Shane Ryan's 20-yard field goal.

"This is a team that I haven't ever been associated with. We're a family, and we never quit," Brush said. "I have never been involved in a win like this. Never."

On Michigan State's ensuing possession, Schultz hooked up with Octavis Long, who had five catches for 96 yards, on a 65-yard touchdown bomb down the left sideline for a 21-10 lead with 10:08 to go.

Drew Brees replaced Dicken with 4:24 to play and was intercepted by safety Aric Morris at the Purdue 26-yard line with 3:47 left, seemingly sealing the win. Michigan State lost five yards on the next three plays before Colvin's pivotal touchdown.

"The field-goal block and run by Colvin, we had been working on for six weeks, and the onside kick, we floated it and planned for the opposition to backpedal," Tiller joked. "That play we've been working on for a lifetime."

Sedrick Irvin, who gained 81 yards on 17 carries, ran it in from two yards 6:49 into the game to give the Spartans the early lead.

Daniels' first career pass resulted in a 33-yard scoring strike to Brian Alford, tying the game early in the second quarter. But Michigan State took the lead midway through the period on Renaud's 20-yard TD scamper.

"This is about as disappointed as I've ever been," said Spartans coach Nick Saban. "We played the better game and deserved to win, but we didn't finish and do the little things."

When leading after three quarters, the Spartans had previously been 16-0-1 under Saban.