Stone throws for 2 TDs, Olsen kicks 2 FGs: Northwestern rolls to 4th straight win, 19-0 over Purdue

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EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Preston Stone passed for two touchdowns, Jack Olsen kicked a pair of field goals and Northwestern cruised past sliding Purdue 19-0 on Saturday for its fourth straight win.

Joseph Himon II rushed for 87 yards on 22 carries and Caleb Komolafe ran for 67 yards before leaving with an upper-body injury in the third quarter for Northwestern (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten), which has its best record through seven games since coming out 6-1 in 2020.

The Wildcats scored on their first three possessions, raced out to a 13-0 lead at halftime, then kept the Boilermakers' offense in check to send them to a fifth consecutive loss overall and 13th straight in conference play.

“I was excited about the way this football team started out the game,” Northwestern coach David Braun said. “I was excited about the way we continued to build momentum in the third quarter and ultimately really excited about the way our defense was able to close out with a shutout.”

Stone threw for 132 yards on 11-for-26 passing. He connected with Hunter Welcing for a touchdown in the second quarter, then Griffin Wilde in the third. Wilde has TDs in four straight games.

The Wildcats ran the ball 50 times for 232 yards. That helped Northwestern control the pace of this one and dominate in possession time — 38 minutes to 22.

“We know who we are,” Braun said. “It starts with the running game and it's built around that. We have to make sure we continually emphasize it.”

The Wildcats defense limited Purdue to 11 first-down conversions while Northwestern consistently advanced to 25 of its own.

"We’re super lucky to have the defense that we do," Stone said. “We had 11 guys flying around the whole game, not just doing their job, but really like setting the tone, honestly inflicting pain on that offense.”

Olsen has eight field goals on the season, all in the last four last four weeks.

The Boilermakers (2-5, 0-4) sputtered offensively after running up 456 total yards in a mistake-filled 27-20 loss at Minnesota last week.

Purdue quarterback Ryan Browne was limited to 31 yards on 5-for-10 passing before exiting with a left shoulder injury early in the second half. Backup Malachi Singleton threw for 187 yards with a key interception.

Malachi Thomas led Purdue in rushing with 34 yards. Corey Smith made a 48-yard reception early in the third quarter then fumbled it as Purdue was shut out for the first time this season after being blanked three times last year.

Once again, mistakes hurt. Purdue was assessed eight penalties for 85 yards and committed two fumbles.

Northwestern delivered a solid start-to-finish effort against Purdue after a 22-21 win at Penn State last week when Komolafe rushed for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter to win it. Braun is optimistic that Komolafe's injury isn't serious and that he'll be ready to play next week. The dynamic redshirt sophomore running back has helped filled a gap for Cam Porter, who's out for the season.

Purdue: Hosts Rutgers next Saturday.

Northwestern: Plays at Nebraska on Saturday.

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