Porter scores 2 TDs and Northwestern beats Purdue; Wildcats become eligible for bowl game

Northwestern fans and students ran onto the field Saturday afternoon to celebrate a victory. Such a home finale didn't seem likely for the Wildcats a few months ago.

Cam Porter scored a pair of rushing touchdowns to help Northwestern become bowl-eligible with a 23-15 win over visiting Purdue.

After starting the season under the cloud of a hazing scandal and subsequent firing of longtime coach Pat Fitzgerald, the Wildcats (6-5, 4-4 Big Ten) are writing an unlikely but happy ending.

"It's been an incredible week," Northwestern coach David Braun said. "We accomplished something special today."

Braun, made interim coach this summer after Fitzgerald's dismissal, got his first win as coach. The school promoted him Thursday.

Ben Bryant hit Cam Johnson in stride for a 52-yard touchdown late in the third quarter to retake the momentum after Purdue (3-8, 2-6) scored to cut the lead to 9-6.

"It's a really good feeling," Bryant said. "All the things we've been through and how far we've come; it's really something to be proud of."

Porter gave Northwestern the lead for good with a 7-yard touchdown on its first possession and added a 34-yard scamper early in the fourth quarter.

The Boilermakers scratched starting quarterback Hudson Card hours before kickoff and rarely caught a break against a Northwestern defense that came up big when most needed. The Wildcats stopped a pair of fourth-down tries and had a pair of take-aways in the first half to lead 6-0 at halftime, then recovered a muffed punt early in the second half that led to a short field goal.

"I knew moving the ball and trying to get points was going to be difficult during the game," first-year Purdue coach Ryan Walters said. "We got down to the 1-yard line two times, and couldn't get in there."

Linebacker Xander Mueller, a Wheaton North graduate, sealed the victory with an interception of Ryan Browne at the Northwestern 30 with 19 seconds left.

"It gives us a ton of confidence," Johnson said of the defense's first-half effort. "It allows us to play loose knowing we're going to get the ball back quickly."

Tyrone Tracy Jr. had 160 yards on 16 carries and scored a touchdown for Purdue, which has lost five of six.