Скачать или смотреть #16 Purdue 31, #13 Ohio State 27 | Oct. 28, 2000

LATE RALLY PUTS PURDUE JUST TWO WINS AWAY FROM ROSE BOWL

by Tom Kubat, Journal & Courier

It won't show up in the box score but credit Purdue defensive end Ike Moore with a huge assist on what will go down as one of the biggest plays in Boilermaker football history.

After Purdue quarterback Drew Brees threw his fourth interception of the day, which led to a go-ahead touchdown for Ohio State with just 2:16 on the clock, it looked like the Boilermakers' special season was about to come crashing down.

No Big Ten Conference title and no Rose Bowl trip. But that's when Moore went to work. He got in Brees' face and kept shouting, "If you break it, then fix it." He kept saying it over and over, until the disappointed Brees finally smiled. And until he got the message.

Two plays later, Brees fixed it. He saw Seth Morales run by the Ohio State secondary and the two combined on an incredible 64-yard touchdown pass that gave the Boilermakers a thrilling 31-27 victory over the Buckeyes.

The victory touched off a wild celebration under the lights in sold-out Ross-Ade Stadium. There was Purdue Pete running around while
clutching a single red rose. There was Boilermaker defensive coordinator Brock Spack running off the field mumbling, "I've seen everything now."

And there was a little 10-year-old girl named Audrey, sporting a black baseball cap with gold lettering that read "Drew's Little Sister,"
being carried off the field by her brother, the star quarterback.

"I ran up to give him a hug and he picked me up and said, 'Come with me.'" Audrey said.

She may be going all the way to Pasadena, Calif., with Drew.

If the 16th-ranked Boilermakers (7-2 overall, 5-1 Big Ten) can win Nov. 11 at Michigan State and defeat Indiana at home Nov. 18, they will be Rose Bowl-bound.

Before the showdown with the No. 12 Buckeyes (6-2, 3-2), Brees said this was the biggest game of his star-studded career. So afterward, naturally, he called it the biggest victory of his career.

"Sure it is, to date," Brees said. "Just because we've never had a chance to go to the Rose Bowl before."

Thanks to a miracle pass, that rose in Purdue Pete's hand is still blooming.