Saturday, September 7, 2019 12:00 PM (ET)

Sindelar slings for 5 TDs as Purdue handles Vanderbilt

Field Level Media
Sep 7, 2019

Purdue quarterback Elijah Sindelar threw for 509 yards and five touchdowns while running for another as the Boilermakers beat Vanderbilt 42-24 at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Ind., on Saturday afternoon.

Wide receiver Rondale Moore caught 13 passes for 220 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Brycen Hopkins caught two touchdowns passes.

The Boilermakers played ahead most of the day and made Vanderbilt one-dimensional by limiting running back Ke'Shawn Vaughn to 56 yards on 17 carries.

After Vanderbilt's mistake-filled first half, the Commodores picked up where they left off in the second half.

VU defensive lineman Rutger Reitmaier jumped offside to negate a third-down stop on Purdue's first second-half possession. Two plays later, Vandy cornerback Cam Watkins mistimed a Sindelar throw downfield, turning a potential interception into a 50-yard touchdown to wide receiver Jared Sparks for a 21-10 lead.

A targeting penalty on Vanderbilt defensive back Tae Daley set up Sindelar's 20-yard scoring throw to Hopkins two drives later.

Vandy drove to the Purdue 15 late in the third quarter. But on a fourth-and-1 play, defensive end George Karlaftis came unblocked and batted away quarterback Riley Neal's pass.

Neal hit wide receiver Cam Johnson with a 10-yard swing pass to cut the lead to 28-16 early in the fourth quarter. But Sindelar found Moore in double-coverage for a 34-yard catch-and-run touchdown on the next drive.

Moore added a 70-yard catch on Purdue's next drive, setting up Sindelar's 1-yard scoring run that completed the scoring and effectively iced the game with 6:05 left.

After a pair of three-and-outs by both teams to start the game, Vaughn opened the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run.

Purdue answered when Sindelar hit Hopkins over the middle for a 12-yard score on its next drive. The Boilermakers cashed in with 4:56 before halftime when Sindelar hit freshman tight end Payne Durham for a 2-yard touchdown.

The Commodores, who were penalized eight times for 75 yards in the first half, connected on a 48-yard field goal from Ryley Guay to pull within 14-10 with 53 seconds left in the first half.

--Field Level Media

Covers 25 Years Logo Established in 1995,
Covers is the world
leader in sports
betting information.
Covers is verified safe by: Evalon Logo GPWA Logo GDPR Logo GeoTrust Logo Evalon Logo