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Purdue and Wisconsin have met in the month of September just five times, with four of those contests occurring between 1973-80. That was during a period when the Big Ten thought it would improve the overall schedule by opening the season with a conference game. That notion has since gone by the wayside, with an exception or two. The last time the two schools met in the month of September was in 1980 when the Boilermakers escaped with a 12-6 victory. No touchdowns were scored, something that has only occurred once since in a Purdue game. (In 1987, Purdue beat Illinois 9-3 for Coach Fred Akers' first win as the Boilermaker head man). In the 1980 contest, Purdue moved the ball plenty as receiver Bart Burrell established a Big Ten record for receptions and receiving yardage with 13 catches for 200 yards. Quarterback Mark Herrmann, the other part of Purdue's famed Carmel Connection, completed 27-of-43 passes for 327 yards, but also threw three picks. Herrmann was playing with a bad thumb after missing the season opener the week before at Notre Dame in a nationally televised battle of two teams ranked in the top 11 in the country. Rick Anderson nailed the four field goals, including two over 40 yards to seal the deal for Purdue. "It's funny, we never felt seriously threatened in the game," said Burrell when asked about it early this week. "But maybe we should have considering how tough it is to win up there." Or tie. Two years earlier, the Boilermakers suffered through one of the most painful ties in their history. Leading 24-6 in the fourth quarter, the Badgers scored 18 unanswered points in the game's final 8:11 to knot the score and get out of Camp Randall with a 24-24 tie. Finally, winning in Madison played a key role in the Boilermakers' two Rose Bowl seasons. In 1966, it was a 23-0 win at Camp Randall that allowed Jack Mollenkopf's team to clinch its first trip to Pasadena with a 19-0 win at Minnesota the following week. In 2000, it took overtime, but Craig Terrill's block of a Kevin Stemke field goal attempt in overtime resulted in a 36-yard scoring return by Ashante Woodyard and a 30-24 win. Three years later, Purdue posted its most recent win over a ranked team on the road when Ben Jones nailed an 18yard field goal with three seconds left to give Purdue a 26-23 win. It's also the school's most recent win in Madison. — Alan Karpick It's All On The Best Purdue Sports Information On The Web •Real-time recruiting •Game stories, analysis and blogs •Premium message boards Sign up for a 7-day free trial today! •Video, audio, live stream events and more •Exclusive access to premium information Part of the Rivals.com network Note: GoldandBlack.com is a separate subscription than your subscription to Gold and Black Illustrated/Gold and Black Express. GoldanDBlack express • volume 24, express 4 • 11