The bowl was a rematch of a game played on September 15 in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Purdue dominated the first half of the game, scoring 3 touchdowns in the first quarter to Central's 2 field goals, and by halftime they had assured a 21-point lead over the Chippewas.

The final score was 51–48, with Purdue kicker Chris Summers kicking a game-winning field goal as time expired.

Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter threw for 543 pass yards, setting a Motor City Bowl record and placing him fourth on the list of all-time bowl game performances.

The attendance of 60,624 broke the Motor City Bowl record, which had been set in 2006 by Central Michigan and Middle Tennessee (54,113[4]).