Irish Don’t Miss Becton in Romp Over Purdue : Nonconference: Notre Dame rushes for 428 yards in 39-21 victory.

With leading rusher Lee Becton sidelined because of an injury, ninth-ranked Notre Dame merely handed the ball to others.

With a groin injury sidelining Becton for at least four weeks, Randy Kinder gained a career-high 122 yards in the first half and finished with 143 and two touchdowns Saturday as the Irish defeated Purdue, 39-21. Ray Zellars had 156 yards in 14 carries, including a 62-yard touchdown run. They led a ground game that accumulated 428 yards in 54 carries--the most by an Irish team since it gained 467 against Purdue two years ago.

“All of our backs ran well,” Irish Coach Lou Holtz said. “He (Zellars) is an excellent fullback. Last week, he blocked extremely well, and this week he ran extremely well. He is a lot like those who played here before him who are now playing on Sunday (in the NFL).”

The run by Zellars put Notre Dame (3-1) ahead, 32-7, late in the third quarter. Purdue (2-1) fell behind, 39-7, before driving for two touchdowns by Corey Rogers in the final minutes on a one-yard run and a five-yard pass reception.

“The last eight minutes just put a bad taste in your mouth,” Holtz said. “Those first 52 minutes of the football game we played very well, with the exception of our goal-line offense.”

Kinder, making his first start of the season, scored on a three-yard run as the Irish opened a 19-7 halftime advantage. The sophomore, whose previous single-game best was 108 yards last season, also scored on a one-yard run in the second half as the Irish defeated the Boilermakers for the ninth consecutive year.

“Down the field things were just rolling, and it was a good feeling,” Kinder said. “The way the line was blocking, I was glad to be in there. Ray had that awesome run and everyone was able to really contribute.”

Said Purdue Coach Jim Colleto: “We didn’t tackle very well at all.”