Alstott keeps Purdue alive vs. Nittany Lion defense

By MICHAEL SIGNORA
Collegian Sports Writer

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The football sat alone amid 60,000 people, 22 players and a bevy of interested onlookers.

When John Krick draped his big, bruising body over the lonely pigskin, his actions were dictated by the bulked-up fullback sitting on the sidelines.

"I thought about picking it up and running with it," said the defensive lineman of his fourth-quarter fumble recovery.

"But we were at the Penn State 20. With Mike Alstott in our backfield, I felt pretty good about us getting it in."

Krick's reasoning proved prophetic, as the fullback notched 15 yards on two carries, setting up tailback Corey Rogers' four-yard touchdown scamper.

The short scoring march gave the Purdue Boilermakers the lead -- momentarily.

The Nittany Lions 26-23 victory spoiled the Boilermakers homecoming, as the less-than-sellout crowd of 60,445 left Ross-Ade Stadium in virtual silence.

"It's completely frustrating and I don't know what to do," Alstott said.

"We just don't seem to be lucky enough to get the breaks that other teams get," he said. "We'll keep plugging away and go back to work."

The attitude is understandable after his performance is considered. Purdue's fullback ran wild, accumulating 149 yards, a 6.2 average, one touchdown and three receptions for 30 yards.

Alstott continued to single-handedly rewrite the Purdue record book, surpassing Leroy Keyes as the school's all-time leading scorer.

He also became the first player in the century-plus history of Boilermaker football to accumulate 2,500 yards rushing and 1,000 receiving.

Penn State Coach Joe Paterno was impressed with the potential professional star, likening No. 40 to a former Purdue great from yesteryear.

"Mike Alstott is a great player," the coach said of the outstandingfullback.

"He reminds me of a kid that played here in the fifties -- Max Schmaling. He has great stamina and keeps on getting stronger and stronger and stronger. In the fourth quarter I was scared that Alstott would just take over."

He tried and almost succeeded. The fullback gained tough yardage throughout the afternoon, culminating a drive late in the second quarter with an 18-yard touchdown romp through the middle of the Lion defense.

The score gave Purdue the halftime lead they craved, entering the break with a 13-10 advantage over the Lions.

Linebacker Jim Nelson had the unenviable chore of stepping in front of the runaway train, making 10 tackles against the Boilermakers.

Frequently lugging the muscular backfield star to the ground, the Penn State defender had a keen appreciation of how difficult this task actually was to accomplish.

"He's a big guy," the redshirt sophomore said.

"You need help from your friends to bring him down sometimes. It's kind of frightening when you see him in the open field. He's a great player and I take my hat off to him."

Despite the glamour and glitz of yet another stellar afternoon, Alstott was in search of something else.

Looking toward the end of his already successful collegiate career, he wanted to experience the joy and excitement of a big-time win over a perennial powerhouse.

Though he received the praise and adulation of opponents and teammates alike, Alstott was unable to find the one thing he was desperately seeking -- victory.