WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Tony Hunt was the final Penn State player to leave the field Saturday.

As the senior running back ambled toward the locker room, behind the rest of his celebrating teammates, some fans screamed "Atta boy, Tony," while others reached out to give him high fives.

Hunt never cracked a smile. Not once.

"I smile sometimes, but I don't think I felt like it today," he said afterward, despite the fact he had more than 100 reasons why he could have been the man with the brightest smile.

Thanks to a much-improved offensive line, Hunt finished with 142 rushing yards on 31 carries, scoring the game's only touchdown, a 2-yard burst into the end zone that capped a drive during which Hunt ran eight times. As a team, the Nittany Lions racked up 240 total rushing yards. Hunt also caught two passes for 36 yards.

The performance was Penn State's best rushing effort in three weeks. The Lions rushed for just 26 total net yards in the previous two games, and the offensive line had come under heavy criticism. After the game, Hunt called the offensive line "excellent," a drastic change from what Joe Paterno called it last week -- lousy.

"We were just tired of hearing, 'Blah, blah, blah. Run game, offensive line this,' " Hunt said. "So, we went out this week, and it was probably the toughest and best week of practice we've had all season."

The enthusiasm from practice evidently carried over, as the offensive line opened holes for Hunt and provided quarterback Anthony Morelli with ample time to throw.

Even with defensive end Anthony Spencer, the Big Ten leader in sacks, anchoring the Purdue defensive line, Penn State's offensive line allowed only one sack.

"We're constantly trying to improve. We're not lousy like coach said last week," left tackle and co-captain Levi Brown said. "I think he just said that to motivate us."

Though windy conditions kept Penn State's passing attack grounded, the Lions' domination at the line of scrimmage allowed Penn State to control the game. They finished with a 35:22 time of possession and strung together a 17-play drive that lasted nearly seven minutes.

After the game, senior linebacker Paul Posluszny thanked the offense for keeping the defense rested.

"The first half our defense was probably on the field 15 plays, maybe," he said. "Anytime our offense can just chew up the clock like that and take up so much time of possession, keep us off the field, give us a rest, that's always good for us."

Junior running back Rodney Kinlaw (43 rushing yards), sophomore wide receiver Derrick Williams (31), senior fullback BranDon Snow (26) and junior fullback Matt Hahn (12) all helped power a balanced rushing attack that averaged 4.8 yards per carry.

But mostly it was Hunt that continually bowled over defenders, pushing his season rushing mark to 896 yards and eight touchdowns.

"It was a demonstration of what a physical back can bring to the field," Purdue head coach Joe Tiller said of Hunt, who passed Matt Suhey and Ki-Jana Carter to move into seventh place all-time on Penn State's rushing charts. "I made the comment today that when it is third-down-and 4, he'd get four yards and six inches; if it's fourth-down and-6 yards, he'll get six yards and six inches."

After the game, nobody could guess why Hunt wasn't smiling -- especially after he and the offensive line controlled the Boilermaker defense all afternoon.

"I don't know, man," Morelli said. "He's a serious football player. He takes everything he does seriously. That's just the way he comes to work every day."