Final Score: #12 Penn State 35 Purdue 7

Brief recap: Take away the first quarter, and this one was actually a pretty hard-fought contest. The problem? Penn State jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first 15 minutes and essentially crushed Purdue’s chances early. The Nittany Lions defensive line — Shaka Toney and Yetur Gross-Matos in particularly — smother quarterback Jack Plummer and stifled the Boilermakers offense. Aside from a drive late in the second quarter that resulted in a Purdue touchdown, the Boilers had absolutely no offense to speak of. Penn State’s offense was firing on all cylinders early, but looked like it might’ve gotten a little too comfortable with a big lead.

Key moment: Sean Clifford connected with Jahan Dotson for a 72-yard touchdown pass with just over 5 minutes left in the first quarter. That score gave Penn State a 21-0 lead just nine minutes into the game. The Nittany Lions exerted their dominance well before that, but this pretty much sealed Purdue’s fate.

Key stat: Purdue had -30 rushing yards, with Plummer accounting for -65, mostly because of 10 sacks. He’s going to need an ice bath tomorrow.

Key player: This is going to Penn State’s entire defensive line. Shaka Toney, Yetur Gross-Matos and Shaka Toney were outstanding in this one, racking up 10 sacks in the game. Just a remarkable performance, even against an undermanned and inexperienced offensive line.

What it means for Purdue: The Boilermakers were seriously undermanned in this contest. With no Rondale Moore or Elijah Sindelar, it was going to be tough for Purdue to move the ball against such a stout Nittany Lions defense. Obviously, the offense has some issues. But give Jeff Brohm’s bunch some credit. This game could’ve gotten really ugly, but the defense fought hard in the second half and kept the score somewhat respectable.

What it means for Penn State: Even after another dominant showing, there are going to be questions about how good Penn State plays against better competition. Fortunately, they’ll get a chance to prove their worth against an Iowa team with a strong offensive line, talented receivers and an experienced quarterback.