MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Frustrated over their second-half collapse at Southern California a week earlier, Braedyn Locke and the Wisconsin Badgers wanted to make sure they delivered a more complete performance Saturday.
Did they ever.
Locke threw for 359 yards and connected with Trech Kekahuna on two of his three touchdown passes as Wisconsin trounced Purdue 52-6 on Saturday to snap a two-game skid.
The Badgers (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) racked up the last 38 points of the game, reached the end zone on five consecutive drives and outscored Purdue 31-0 in the second half. The Badgers had been outscored 28-0 in the second half of their 38-21 loss to No. 11 USC.
“I was really just proud of our team for putting together four full quarters of football and never letting off the gas,” said Locke, whose 359 yards passing represented the seventh-highest total in school history.
Tawee Walker rushed for 94 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries as Wisconsin beat Purdue for an 18th straight time. Purdue (1-4, 0-2) last defeated Wisconsin in 2003.
Since beating Football Championship Subdivision program Indiana State 49-0 in its opener, Purdue (1-4, 0-2) has lost four straight games by a combined score of 184-44.
Locke went 20 of 31 and overcame two first-half interceptions to post the seventh-highest single-game passing yardage total in school history.
“What to me makes this that much better is there was adversity,” Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell said. “There were situations where we had to step up. It didn’t just go super smooth the entire time. Sometimes that’s even better.”
Indeed, Wisconsin gained a season-high 589 total yards despite losing running back Chez Mellusi during the week and then watching wide receivers Will Pauling, Bryson Green and Tyrell Henry go down with upper-body injuries in the first half. Wisconsin announced Thursday that Mellusi was leaving the team at least temporarily to work on his health.
“I feel like you couldn’t tell there was a drop-off today,” said Walker, who led a 228-yard rushing attack. “Our twos are not really twos. They’re 1Bs, like Coach Fick says.”
Purdue failed to reach the end zone and went 1 of 11 on third-down situations in its first game since firing Graham Harrell as offensive coordinator this week and handing the play-calling duties to Jason Simmons, who had been working as an offensive analyst.
“I’m going to look myself in the mirror,” said Purdue quarterback Hudson Card, who went 11 of 21 for 111 yards. “I’m going to look very broadly to be better, how I can be better in getting my team in the best situation to win.”
Locke’s first touchdown pass came when Vinny Anthony made a catch just inside Purdue’s 35 and raced into the end zone for a 52-yard touchdown. Locke’s next two scores went to Kekahuna, who ended up with six catches for 134 yards.
Kekahuna’s first touchdown came when he caught a pass around the Badgers’ 43 and outran the Purdue defense for a 69-yard score early in the third quarter. On Wisconsin’s next drive, Locke found Kekahuna in the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown.
Before Saturday, Kekahuna had totaled eight career catches for 106 yards.
Purdue trailed 14-0 early but crept back into the game after Kyndrich Breedlove intercepted Locke passes on back-to-back series. Purdue had been the last remaining Football Bowl Subdivision program without a takeaway this season.
The Boilermakers drove inside Wisconsin’s 5 after each interception but settled for Spencer Porath field goals of 21 and 23 yards.
“Obviously we would have liked to get touchdowns when we got inside there,” Purdue coach Ryan Walters said. “But the way we played in the second half, it wouldn’t have mattered.”
Wisconsin broke the game open by scoring touchdowns on each of its next five drives.
The takeaway
Purdue: The day started with Purdue announcing cornerback Markevious Brown was no longer with the program, though he could return next year. Things only got worse from there. Purdue stayed close for a while — Wisconsin only led 14-6 before reaching the end zone with nine seconds left in the second quarter — but the Boilermakers didn’t compete in the second half.
Wisconsin: The Badgers finally produced the big plays that had been missing for much of the season. Wisconsin entered Saturday with nine plays from scrimmage of 20-plus yards to match Louisiana-Monroe for the lowest total of any Football Bowl Subdivision team. The Badgers had six gains of at least 20 yards Saturday.
Up next
Purdue: At No. 24 Illinois next Saturday.
Wisconsin: At Rutgers next Saturday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Steve Megargee, The Associated Press
