Wisconsin Rolls Lucky No. 7 in Defeating Purdue

With less than three minutes to play and Wisconsin trailing Purdue by three points, Badger cornerback Scott Starks suddenly had the game sitting at his feet.

Starks returned a fumble by Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton 40 yards for a touchdown to lift No. 10 Wisconsin to a 20-17 win over No. 5 Purdue.

The Boilermakers (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) were clinging to a 17-14 lead when Orton, running on a bootleg, lunged for a first down. Starks hit Orton low and safety Robert Brooks hit him high, forcing the fumble.

Starks scooped up the loose ball and sprinted to the end zone with 2:36 to play, capping a stunning comeback for the Badgers (7-0, 4-0), who have started the season with seven consecutive victories for only the second time since 1912.

“If the ball would’ve been bouncing around, I probably would have just covered it,” Starks said. “But it was just sitting there. I saw the perfect opportunity there.”

The play was reviewed, and replays showed the ball was out before Orton’s arm hit the ground.

“I’ve been in this racket for a long time,” Wisconsin Coach Barry Alvarez said. “And I’ve never been part of a game like this.”

Orton tried to recover on the ensuing series, driving the Boilermakers to the Wisconsin 25. But Ben Jones’ 42-yard field-goal attempt was wide right, and the Badgers ran out the clock.

“We had a chance at the end, we just blew it,” Orton said.

Until Starks’ big play, the Boilermakers -- not the Badgers -- appeared poised to join Michigan as the only teams undefeated in Big Ten play.

Orton scored from six yards out with eight minutes to play to give Purdue a 17-7 lead. But that kicked off a scoring binge.

Sophomore quarterback John Stocco led a 73-yard drive that ended with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Booker Stanley to pull Wisconsin within 17-14.

The Purdue defense had a chance to secure the victory earlier in the drive when Kyle Smith dropped a Stocco pass that hit him between the numbers. Instead of an interception, the drive continued and Stocco connected with Stanley five plays later for the score.

“There were plays there to be made,” Purdue Coach Joe Tiller said. “The defense had a chance to make a play to stop the drive, and they didn’t. The offense had a chance to make a play to keep a drive going, and they didn’t. The kicking game had a chance to make a play, and they didn’t. When you don’t make plays, you don’t beat a team like Wisconsin.”

Fittingly, it was Wisconsin’s defense that came through, even after Mike Allen’s conversion attempt was blocked on the Badgers’ final score. “They’re a very good defense,” Orton said. “The best front four I’ve probably ever seen in the Big Ten.”