1997

Builders Square Alamo Bowl | Tuesday, December 30, 1997
Purdue 33 – Oklahoma State 20

Attendance: 55,552
TV Rating: 3.9
Team Payout: $2,282,560 combined

Offensive MVP: Billy Dicken, QB, Purdue
Defensive MVP: Adrian Beasley, SS, Purdue
Sportsmanship Winner: Kevin Williams, DB, Oklahoma State

Head Coaches: Joe Tiller (Purdue), Bob Simmons (Oklahoma State)
Final Records: Purdue (9-3), Oklahoma State (8-4)

Game Recap

The fifth annual Builders Square Alamo Bowl had all the makings of a fight to the finish as No. 16 Purdue and No. 24 Oklahoma State shared many similarities.

Both teams had not played in a bowl game since the 1980s and were led by their conference’s 1997 Coach of the Year winners — Joe Tiller in the Big Ten and Bob Simmons in the Big 12.

In the end, the Boilermakers, by virtue of a 20-point third-quarter outburst, pulled away for a 33-20 victory over Oklahoma State in front of a predominantly orange-clad crowd of 55,552.

The two teams started slowly on offense, with Purdue leading 10-6 at halftime. But quarterback Billy Dicken, the game’s Offensive MVP, got the Boilermakers rolling in the third quarter. His 1-yard touchdown run extended the lead to 16-6 before Oklahoma State responded with a score of its own.

Dicken then connected on a 60-yard pass to Edwin Watson to set up a 16-yard touchdown reverse for a 23-13 lead. Later, Dicken found Chris Daniels for a 69-yard touchdown to seal the game. He finished the night with a then-Alamo Bowl record 325 passing yards.

Oklahoma State quarterback Tony Lindsay connected with future NFL standout R.W. McQuarters for a 17-yard touchdown in the final minute, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Purdue’s explosive third quarter.

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter
OSU: Sydnes 34-yd FG
PUR: Alford 18-yd pass from Dicken (Ryan kick)

2nd Quarter
OSU: Sydnes 22-yd FG
PUR: Ryan 42-yd FG

3rd Quarter
PUR: Dicken 1-yd run (kick failed)
OSU: Fobbs 21-yd run (Sydnes kick)
PUR: Sutherland 16-yd run (Ryan kick)
PUR: Daniels 69-yd pass from Dicken (Ryan kick)

4th Quarter
PUR: Ryan 37-yd FG
OSU: McQuarters 17-yd pass from Lindsay (Sydnes kick)

Final Score

Team	1Q	2Q	3Q	4Q	Total
Purdue	7	3	20	3	33
Oklahoma State	3	3	7	7	20

Team Stats

Category	Purdue	Oklahoma State
First Downs	20	24
Net Yards Rushing/Att.	129/28	162/37
Net Yards Passing	325	206
Comp-Att-Int	18-36-3	17-35-3
Total Offense (Plays)	64	72
Total Net Yards	454	368
Avg. Gain Per Play	7.1	5.1
Possession Time	25:35	34:25
Third-Down Conversions	6/11 (55%)	5/14 (36%)

Individual Stats

Rushing (Att-Yds)
PUR: Dicken 8-43; Watson 13-4; Sutherland 2-38; Haddad 3-9
OSU: Fobbs 11-82; Lindsay 12-61; Aikins 2-17; Simmons 10-11; Chaloupka 2-9

Passing (Comp-Att-Int, Yds)
PUR: Dicken 18-34-3, 325; Alford 0-1-0; Brees 0-1-0
OSU: Lindsay 9-18-2, 111; Chaloupka 8-17-1, 95

Receiving (Rec-Yds)
PUR: Watson 5-102; Alford 4-61; I. Jones 3-27; Blackman 2-33; Daniels 1-69; Tillman 1-13
OSU: McQuarters 4-43; G. Brown 4-52; Love 3-35; Steggs 2-30; Aikins 2-27; Fobbs 2-19