Purdue vs. Penn State Football: Winners and Losers from Nittany Lions' Win

Saturday afternoon, the Penn State Nittany Lions welcomed the Purdue Boilermakers into Happy Valley.

This Big Ten matchup was business as usual for Joe Paterno's bunch.

Slow, methodical, possession football.

Penn State came out on top 23-18. It's not always pretty but the Lions are finding ways to win.

Let's take a look at the winners and losers from this matchup.

Winner: Silas Redd

Silas Redd was at it again.

The dynamic sophomore running back continues to carry Penn State through the opening portion of conference play.

With average, at best, quarterback play the Nittany Lions have depended on Redd to drive the offense.

Redd ran the ball 28 times on Saturday, picking up 131 yards and a touchdown in the win.

Strong, steady performances have made Redd a consistent winner for Penn State.

Winner: Justin Brown

Penn State entered this matchup missing top target Derek Moye from an already-anemic passing attack.

Moye—the team leader in catches, receiving yards and touchdowns—will be forced to miss several weeks with a broken foot.

The Nittany Lions needed to find a receiver who could step in and make a big play.

Justin Brown proved to be that man. The junior wideout finished the afternoon with 86 yards on four receptions. Twenty-two of Brown's yards came on a huge 3rd-and-15 conversion.

Brown stepped up in a big way Saturday afternoon.

Winner: Nathan Stupar

Penn State's defensive winner of the day was State College native Nathan Stupar.

The senior linebacker came down with two interceptions, doubling his career total.

Stupar's first pick came in the final moments of the half and led to a Penn State field goal. His second came at another big moment.

With just over two-and-a-half minutes remaining in the game Purdue trailed by five points. They were pinned down at their own 2-yard line, but a touchdown drive could give them the win.

Four plays later, that dream ended as Stupar hauled in his second interception of the game. Following the turnover, the Nittany Lions were able to run the clock and salt away the victory.

Stupar delivered two game-changing defensive plays.

Winner: Chaz Powell

Following a Matt McGloin interception, Purdue was able to drive the ball and punch it in for a touchdown. That score narrowed Penn State's lead to two points.

The momentum had clearly shifted. A game that Penn State seemed to be in control of was in danger of slipping away.

Then Purdue kicked the ball off to Penn State senior Chaz Powell.  Powell fielded the ball and darted through the Purdue coverage for a 92-yard kickoff return.

In a matter of seconds, the Lions had snatched the momentum right back.

The offense stalled out, but Powell's big return gave the Nittany Lions the opportunity to tack on another field goal and a little extra cushion.

Winner: Anthony Fera

The second special team winner was Penn State's do-it-all kicker Anthony Fera.

Handling both the kicking and punting duties for the Nittany Lions, Fera had a great game in both departments.

He finished the day 3-3 on field-goal attempts, including a career-long 40-yarder.

In addition to putting points on the board, Fera helped the Penn State defense by keeping Purdue backed up.

Three of Fera's punts were placed inside of the 20-yard line, one of which buried the Boilermakers at the 2-yard line.

Fera's strong work in the kicking game made him one of the winners in Penn State's victory.

Loser: Matt McGloin

Matt McGloin got the majority of the playing time at quarterback for Penn State, but again, was unable to pull too far away from teammate Rob Bolden.

McGloin has not been starting for the Nittany Lions, but often gets more work throughout the game.

Against Purdue he went 8-for-17 for 145 yards and an interception.

The Penn State quarterbacks will continue to be firmly entrenched in the "loser" column until one of them carries the team to a win.

The Lions' success has been in spite of their quarterbacks' play. 

Loser: Rob Bolden

Rob Bolden, the other quarterback in Penn State's rotation, has been even more disappointing than McGloin.

Despite all of Bolden's athletic abilities, he often looks overmatched.

Bolden was officially the starter on Saturday, but gave way to McGloin and only attempted six passes. With neither quarterback establishing himself, look for the rotation to continue.

Bolden looks like he will be on the "loser" list for a while.

Loser: Penn State Run Defense

Purdue ran the ball with surprising success against what has been a strong Penn State defense.

The Boilermakers' two running backs, Bolden and Shavers, split the carries evenly and combined for 151 yards and a touchdown.

The Nittany Lions were not gashed, or embarrassed by Purdue's backs, but they did allow Bolden to average 7.5 yards per carry.

While a it was a minor blip on the radar, Purdue's success on the ground puts the Penn State run defense into the loser column.

Loser: Robert Marve

Former Miami Hurricane, Robert Marve, turned in a less-than-stellar performance against Tom Bradley's defense.

Marve saw very limited action, but was about as bad as can be during his time on the field.

Over the course of two series the Purdue quarterback went 2-for-5 gaining 20 yards and throwing one interception.

Purdue went with junior Caleb TerBush the rest of the time, though he didn't fare much better.

It was a sad day for any and all quarterbacks involved.

Loser: Carson Wiggs

Carson Wiggs is considered one of the best kickers in Purdue football history, but Saturday certainly wasn't his best effort.

There were a pair of moments on Saturday that the senior kicker would love to forget.

The Boilermakers had just scored on a 14-yard touchdown reception when Wiggs lined up to tie the game with the extra point. Somehow, Wiggs pushed the ball and clanked it off of the right upright.

It's shocking anytime an extra point isn't converted and Wiggs was obviously shaken.

Immediately after the botched point-after, Wiggs lined up and booted the kickoff out of bounds. Penn State capitalized on the field position and drove down for what would be the decisive touchdown.

On back-to-back plays, with no time running off the clock, Wiggs made two crucial errors. He earned himself a place as the final "loser" of this matchup.