MADISON -- Alec Ingold ran for two short scores, Joel Stave threw for 322 yards and Wisconsin's stifling defense held Purdue to a season-low 191 yards in a 24-7 victory on Saturday.
The Badgers (5-2, 2-1 Big Ten) overcame several penalties and other mistakes in the red zone to win on homecoming weekend at Camp Randall Stadium.
Wisconsin led just 10-7 late in the third quarter until two rushing touchdowns in an eight-minute span between the third and fourth quarters.
T.J. Edwards then forced the Boilermakers' Markell Jones to fumble at the Purdue 43. Safety Tanner McEvoy pounced on the ball to seal the win for the Badgers.
Edwards, one of two freshmen starting at inside linebacker for Wisconsin, finished with 16 tackles.
The only score for Purdue (1-6, 0-3) came on David Blough's 2-yard quarterback keeper in the second quarter.
Coming off a big, come-from-behind win on the road, the Badgers knew they had work to do on Saturday.
"All the Big Ten games are almost like playoff games, you know, at this point and how our record is now, we can't, we have to win out. We can't afford any hiccups anymore. That's one of the things that we have to keep stressing is the fact that we cant allow any...act like every game is a trophy game," said Wisconsin Badgers safety, Michael Caputo.