Detroit, MI
The Purdue defense intercepted four passes and recovered two fumbles while Raheem Mostert returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown to power the Boilermakers to a 37-32 victory over Western Michigan in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl at Ford Field.
The final fumble recovery was by Bruce Gaston with less than two minutes to play to seal the Boilermaker victory.
Both teams end the season at 7-6.
It was Western's first appearance in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, which started in 1997 as the Motor City Bowl. Purdue made its second appearance in the bowl and first since 2007 when the Boilermakers defeated Central Michigan 51-48.
With Purdue leading 27-15 halftime, Western open the second half with a drive that resulted in John Potter's 21-yard field goal.
But the Boilermakers struck on a 33-yard scoring pass from Caleb TerBush to Gary Bush for a 34-18 lead. Western put it to nine on Tevin Drake's 1-yard scoring plunge late in the third quarter, making it 34-25. Carson Wiggs added a 26-yard field goal late in the quarter.
The Broncos made it a 5-point game with 4:28 to play on Alex Carder's 5-yard scoring pass to Chleb Ravenell.
After Western Michigan recovered a Purdue fumble at the Boilermaker 46, Bronco quarterback Alex Carder, on the next play, passed 46 yards to Jordan White for the game's first touchdown. On the fake PAT, placekicker John Potter took the snap and ran it in for the two points.
Late in the quarter, Albert Evans intercepted a Carder pass and returned it to the Bronco 38. The turnover led to a 9-play Purdue drive concluding on Reggie Pegram's 1-yard scoring run.
After an exchange of turnovers, Wiggs booted a 49-yard field goal to give the Boilermakers a 10-8 lead.
Western responded with a touchdown drive that ended in a 1-yard pass from Carder to Josh Schaffer for a 15-10 Bronco advantage.
Mostert then turned the game around with his 99-yard kickoff return, the longest in bowl history and in Purdue's bowl history.
The Boilermakers caught Western off guard by recovering an onsides kick and Pegram ended the scoring drive with a 1-yard TD run and 24-15 lead. Wiggs booted a 19-yard field goal to end the half.
For the game, White had a bowl record of 13 catches for 268 yards.
Akeem Shavers was the gave MVP. He had 22 carries for 149 yards.
The game had an attendance of 46,177, the largest crowd since 2007.
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