Hello, victory column!

Penn State football slayed its first Big Ten dragon, beating Purdue 31-17 on Saturday.

During postgame media, Matt Campbell said it was one of the team’s most complete efforts. Unlike the last four weeks, the Nittany Lions’ offense, defense, and special teams each maintained a standard to beat the Boilermakers.

Here’s a quick review of each position group’s performance against Purdue.

Quarterbacks: B-

Rocco Becht faced harsh scrutiny from Penn State fans for his three turnovers against Michigan.

After taking a bye week to recalibrate, Becht turned in a pedestrian performance against Purdue, but the most important thing is that No. 3 did not turn the ball over.

Becht completed 16 of 24 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown. He added 27 yards and a touchdown on 11 rushes.

Considering his top two playmakers, Chase Sowell and Koby Howard, were inactive, it was never going to be a gunslinging day for Becht.

Instead, he protected the football and managed the game well enough to secure a win.

Running Backs: A+

The Nittany Lions gashed Purdue on the ground with 55 carries for 269 yards and three scores.

Cam Wallace was the shining star in the backfield, running for 135 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. Wallace hadn’t received a carry since Week 4 against Wisconsin, but Campbell said two weeks of standout practices by Wallace “demanded” that he see action against the Boilermakers.

Carson Hansen logged a season-high 96 yards on 17 carries. Hansen also knifed in a short-yardage score. Penn State’s runners ended one of the year’s most concerning stats: no rushes of over 10 yards in Big Ten play.

Both Wallace and Hansen notched runs of over 40 yards, finally adding explosive runs to the blue-and-white offense while also sustaining drives that led to a dominant 43 minutes of offensive possession.

Receivers: D

Of everyone on Penn State, the receivers contributed the least to the win. But that’s not surprising, with both Sowell and Howard missing from the lineup.

Amarion Jackson led the unit with his two catches for 31 yards.

Brett Eskildsen continued his struggles, catching just one of four targets for 17 yards, and Zay Robinson caught his lone target for 7 yards.

Tight Ends: B

Penn State’s tight ends dominated the passing attack against Purdue.

Benjamin Brahmer led the way with four catches for 58 yards. Andrew Rappleyea also caught four passes for 45 yards and a touchdown.

Gabe Burkle caught his lone target for 12 yards.

Offensive Line: A

Anytime you run for over 260 yards, the offensive line likely kicked some butt. This held true on Saturday.

Penn State’s big guys up front dominated the line of scrimmage. They went six-for-six in power-run situations and surrendered just one sack and one hurry.

Front Seven: B+

Penn State’s front seven was stout against Purdue’s rushing attack, allowing just 33 yards on 15 carries.

Defensive tackle Armstrong Nnodim logged 1.5 tackles for loss, and defensive end Yvan Kemajou logged one. But the front again struggled to get the quarterback down. Kemajou was the only Nittany Lion to log a sack.

However, Caleb Bacon and Alex McPherson each recorded two quarterback hurries. Linebacker Tony Rojas and defensive tackle Keanu Williams also logged a hurry.

Secondary: A

Arguably Penn State’s most consistent position groups showed out again against Purdue.

The corners and safeties held quarterback Ryan Browne to a 34% completion rate, finishing with just 142 passing yards on 29 attempts.

Jamison Patton and Jeremiah Cooper each recorded an interception.

Special Teams: C+

Penn State’s special teams unit delivered an up-and-down, but mostly down, performance.

Punter Nathan Tiyce successfully executed a fake field goal on Penn State’s opening drive, moving the chains and ultimately setting up a touchdown from Becht to Rappleyea.

However, Tiyce also had one of his punts blocked and ran back for a touchdown, giving Purdue a crucial momentum swing and game-tying score.

Tiyce’s only other punt went for just 32 yards.

Kicker Ryan Barker kicked three field goals, but missed two from 55 and 42 yards out.

Robinson returned one punt for 11 yards, and Ethan Black returned a kickoff for 15.

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