Coach Hope Not Connecting With In-State Prospects?

Michael Pointer of the Indy Star has probably earned himself a contract on his head from Morgan Burke by writing this article saying that Danny Hope has been unable to connect with in-state -- and specifically Indy-area -- recruits.

I'm not close enough follower of football recruiting to know how accurate any of this is, but it's hard to argue with the points that Pointer makes:

• Purdue has landed just seven of Indianapolis' three-star recruits, according to Rivals.com during Hope's tenure
• Purdue has brought in none of the 14 four-star players
• In the five classes prior to that, Purdue landed eight of the 17 three-stars and two of the five four-stars
• Defensive end Robert Maci (Cathedral) and linebacker Joe Gilliam (Southport) were the only Indianapolis area players listed on the two-deep depth chart entering preseason practice

Hope's comment on it all?

"If all of them good guys would have come to Purdue the first year I was here, we wouldn't have taken as many from Florida," said Hope, referring to the 2008 recruiting class in which Purdue missed out on some high-level Indianapolis targets.

I see. Hear that, Florida recruits?

To be fair, the story also features Ben Davis coach Mike Kirschner and Pike coach Derek Moyers commenting on how much they see and are in contact with Coach Hope and the recruiting staff of the football program, especially as compared to Joe Tiller, who Kirschner says he never spoke personally with.

It sounds like these guys are indeed hustling and are making the recruiting effort that we chided Tiller for not making in his later, more tired years. So what's going on?

It could be just a shift in the times. It could be bad luck. It could be coach Mark Hagen's defection from Purdue IU two years ago. Hagen was "the Boilermakers' primary recruiter in Indianapolis for nearly a decade." How big a deal is that? Hard to say. And it certainly didn't start this downward trend.

It's possible that the coaches, such as Landholm (who is largely responsible for the Indy area) and Hope, aren't having the impact on the recruits that they need to have. Or maybe it's the on-campus visits and seeing the second-smallest venue in the Big Ten not nearly filled to capacity, or seeing students nearly rioting when they "upset" a 6-6 team. Those things aren't lost on 4 star recruits, especially when they can do a nearly side-by-side comparison against another program with twice as many fans in the stands and more success on the field.

Whatever it is, it is just one more log on the metaphorical fire that is this season. The question now becomes, will it be a bonfire, with a joyful, partylike atmosphere? Or a dumpster fire, with messy results?

Monday Gumbo (Mikesky, McKinzie, Indy and More)

The Spring game is coming...I love it for a ton of reasons, but I hate it for others.  The summer doldrums of sports are kind of already here- J and I forced to talk about IndyCar and MLB...no Purdue sports to be found...and generally, news that comes out of West Laffy in the Spring or Summer has something to do with ACLs and isn't the type of thing we like talking about.

Spring practice has been good for the Boilers though, at least from an injury standpoint. Sure, guys are banged up a bit, but that happens...there doesn't seem to be a major injury in the pipe.  And for the first time in forever, Purdue has two healthy QBs to square off in the Black/Gold game who have both started in and played significant games while at Purdue.  Who they will be throwing to though, is a different story.

For the second-straight season, depth at WR is a question mark.  Sure, Gary Bush, Antavian Edison and OJ Ross have caught a decent amount of passes, but depth and consistency remains a concern.  I still am not positive of what to expect from Ross.  He's got great speed and overall athleticism, but he ran lazy routes at times and gave up on plays.  I've always like Gary Bush as a solid option and Edison can do everything...and in spite of his lack of size, he's been very durable.

After these three, a BS favorite, Tommie Thomas has seen a lot of snaps with the 1s in the Spring.  In case you don't remember, Thomas has ping-ponged back and fourth from offense do defense and now back to offense, but should be on the two-deep come the fall.  I think we'll see Thomas play a role similar to what Gravesande did last season...but Thomas is a different guy in that he's an emotional leader and his teammates rally around him a bit.  Gravesande tended to do his job a bit more quietly.

Shane Mikesky (87), the budding track star and RS Frosh-to-be has shown an ability to go up and get the jump ball in practice so far...but admits he needs to work on strength before he can be an every-down WR in the B1G.  He's built a bit like Jonathan Standeford...and has a similar deceptive speed about his with his long strides.  ChuckT, Charles Torwudzu (17), should also make a bit of noise as he tries to be a possession receiver for TerBush and Marve...His size and strength might help him find the field.

Raheem Mostert, arguably the most exciting player on the on the team, will also try to work his way into becoming a consistent WR...but I see him as a perfect back-up for Edison as he's able to come out of the backfield, play flanker or wideout.  Ishmael Aristide (22), who along with Rob Henry just missed becoming leader of the free Purdue world last week, is working toward becoming a WR after switching from defense.

The WR position is one I'll be watching more-closely than any other this coming Saturday as LBD and I enjoy our final taste of Purdue football until August/September.  Hopefully, the OLine can protect Marve and TerBush enough that we get to see a somewhat-normal offense.

McRoth

Brush with Local Talent
When I say McKinzie Roth, most of you would probably say, "Lawfirm?" And you might be correct.  But, Roth is actually a local spokeswoman who I've been a fan of for a few years...If you're in Indy, you might know her as the Andy Mohr Ford girl? No matter. I shared this story with my wife, and she was about as impressed as you guys are about to be.

I was at the gym last week and almost ran into her...while she wasn't wearing a catsuit, she was still pretty impressive in person...good for her and her boyfriend/husband.

IndyStar Bias Shows Itself (again)
If you read the IndyStar regularly...what's wrong with you? If not, you might not have seen this.

We all know that the Star has a white-hot, undying love for all things IU...but what you might not know is that they'll shill for IU even when the opportunity isn't really there.  To the Star's chagrin, Yogi Ferrell didn't win Indiana's Mr. Basketball, but, MSU super-talent Garry Harris did.

So the Star wrote a piece about Mr. Harris' accomplishment...and seemed to focused on the guy that finished second.  Click here to check it out.

Also in the article, Ronnie Johnson is mentioned as a member of this year's Indiana All-Star team...along with a bunch of other names that you'll see playing D-1 basketball next season. Iowa, Butler, IU, Michigan, Purdue and others all found a gem in this year's talented class from Indiana...But I really like the guys coming to God's country next year- Have I mentioned that?

IndyCar
Because I can, I will mention IndyCar.

The new chassis heads to another road course this weekend- this time it's Long Beach...Here's to a race like what we saw at Barber with plenty of passing and action at the front of the field.

The cars will be coming to Indy, this time to prepare for the greatest spectacle, the second week of May...with practice beginning on May 13.  Hopefully they'll be up above 220 at that point at the the 2.5 mile oval...but I'm not holding my breath.

I'm one of the people that was clamoring for a new chassis...so I'm not complaining.  But, the DW12 will look a lot better going faster than it does hovering around 215 as it did at last week's practice.

Bestestest Writer Ever

A good friend of mine pointed this out to me today- IU Star Resident Genius, Terry Hutchens, has been elected...FOR THE THIRD TIME IN FOUR YEARS, no less, as the Sportswriter of the Year for the state of Indiana. Wha-wha-what??

I have no idea who votes for this prestigious award, but I'm guessing a room full of monkeys along with Terry's Mom and Dad are very pleased with their choice.

Here's the problem with this situation. It's probably fair to say that the largest print media outlet in the state will have the best chance of notoriety...BUT, the Indy Star is a joke...an un-funny, poorly-written one at that.

They decreased the size of their paper a few years ago...and they'll tell you it was for good reason. Make no mistake, it comes down to a few things. First, printing big pictures in full-color is expensive. Smaller paper, smaller pictures, cheaper overhead. Second, as the Star has continued to shrink its coverage of Indy Car, so there's less to write about there...and this year, as the month of May became the two weeks of May at IMS, there's obviously less content. Along with minimal Indy Car racing coverage, the apples of the Star sports editor's eye, UND football and IU basketball, haven't given them much to write about either.

Times are tough in the newspaper business, no doubt about it. Guys like Hutchens getting annual awards probably doesn't instill confidence in the consumer. Maybe, just maybe, *gasp* awards like this might be part of the reason many of you have turned away from mainstream media and toward outlets like this humble web address?

Nah.


*FYI- I can no longer find the link of Hutchens predicting Hummel to be little-more than a role player...for some reason, The Star has burned the evidence. But, I haven't forgotten.

Indy Star Purdue Hoops Preview

Man, these guys look tough. Kramer is peering into your soul. Hummel has sneakers the size of a schooner. E'Twaun looks chiseled (did he do some pushups right before the shoot, like I would?).

The Indy Star puts forth a preview article, fortunately not written by Terry Hutchens.

Quarterback-Heavy Gumbo

There were so many things to talk about today, many related to QBs, that I thought I'd just dump it all into a gumbo post. So let's get started.

Own a Piece of History

Yes, that's right -- you can get the pictured Curtis Painter Colts jersey for the low, low price of just $200. It's rare that a young man has the chance to be a local hero (cough) for his college team and follow that up by staying local with the beloved pro team... and then get cut from the practice squad in August. Curtis clearly (and wisely) did not demand his familiar number 12 from Jim Sorgi.

Irish Don't Get The Montana They Really Want

It'll be fun to see how the UND loyalists spin this one. Legacy Nick Montana has decided not to attend Notre Dame despite his father having gone there (and his brother Nate being there), and instead will attend....wait for it... Washington. The same Huskies who went 0-12 last year. Wow. To choose a program in the kind of disarray that UW is in over the supposed up-and-coming and ready to pounce UND program is rather telling. Could Joe Cool have advised his son to stay away? Who knows? Maybe Nick was just worried about living up to the legend of Pickles Clausen.

So Much For Those "Turning Over A New Leaf" Headlines

Sadly, Ryan Leaf's life continues to plummet down the toilet. He's now wanted as a result of a grand jury's indictment on nine charges against him relating to prescription painkillers. I no longer want to make jokes about him, and really nobody should. He's a troubled man and it's just plain sad.

Compliance is the Word of the Day At IU

According to this story, compliance "comes first" at Indiana. Well, at least something comes in first at IU. From the story:

Fred Glass gathered the Indiana coaching staff before he was introduced as the school’s athletic director and told them his top priority: compliance.

It was a word one of the coaches just didn’t want to hear.

“A coach said, ‘You know what, we’re sick of hearing that. We’re sick of hearing compliance,’ ” Glass recalled being told during a visit to Fort Wayne last week. “ ‘We are a compliant place with a compliant culture, and we really don’t like hearing that.’ ”

Yes, I'm sure you indeed don't like hearing that, coach. Being reminded about compliance when your basketball program was sort of decimated by a non-compliant coach just two years ago must be a real drag.


JaJuan and Ostrich Continue USA Basketball Tryouts Against Our Advice

Yes, they're all "honored" and stuff to be trying out for the USA Basketball's World University Games team. The rest of us would rather they sit in a barcalounger for the summer.

Five of the 16 players initially invited to try out are from the Big Ten, more than any other conference.

Oh, but yeah, the Big Ten is weak, right Digger?

The Indy Star Has A Purdue Football Opinion?

According to the Indy Star, the Boilers have a "Tough football schedule." It says so right in the headline. However, I might argue that starting the season with three of four at home against Toledo, No. Illinois and Notre Dame (all winnable games, even for this season's expectations) means that a 3-1 start, while not necessarily likely, isn't exactly far-fetched. We'll keep an eye on the Star to see if they contribute anything noteworthy, or instead continue to just be an IU lapdog.

Have We Heard The Last of Justin Siller?

This is completely unfounded, but according to on-campus BS sources, Siller remains enrolled at Purdue and appears (appears) to have no plans to leave. He has not transferred and apparently is readying to take classes this fall. If this is accurate, what does it mean? Has Siller had enough of football? Is it only a matter of time before he transfers to a school that makes him an offer? Or is it possible that he'll lie low for another year and then knock on Coach Hope's door? If you have any insight, shoot us a note.

More Earthquake News

Boilerdowd heads back to work in his home office.

Sure, skewering the Indianapolis Star is kind of like beating up a retarded puppy, but it's still worth some fun on a Friday afternoon.

Reader Purdue Matt shared a link to a really handy -- and timely! -- story in the Indy Star today. Let's take a look together, shall we?

During an earthquake, the best thing to do is to get under something that is structurally sound, like a table or a doorway, urges Debbi Fletcher of the Marion County Department of Emergency Management.

Other options for structurally sound objects to get under include the roof of your house. Items to avoid that are non-structurally-sound include IU's hiring process and Terry Hutchens' writing skills.

Remember that earthquakes can have aftershocks, which can be has strong as the original earthquake. "These can go on for a long time" after the original earthquake occurred, so it's best to stay alert.

I like how "these can go on for a long time" is in quotes and kind attributed to nobody in this paragraph... kind of like it was put in quotes by a disbelieving writer:

"Yeah... 'these can go on for a long time.' Sure, sure they can. Whatever!"

"(People) need to be aware that this is something that can happen," she said.

The Star is hitting a home run here with kooky editing. Why is "(People)" in parenthesis? You do this when you're indicating that they said something else but meant people. Did she say, "Human beings need to be aware..."

Once everything clears up, check and make sure everyone in your home - including pets - is safe, she said. "Life safety is the most important thing."

Maybe to you. My bottle cap collection is the most important thing to me.

After you've checked on people and pets, walk your home, checking for any damage. If there are any cracks in walls or floors,

Or, you know, walls missing.

call a trusted contractor.

Don't call a shady muthaeffer.

Also, if there is damage to power or gas lines, contact the utility for help.

Honestly, do people need to be told this? Also, don't light a match to confirm gas leaks.

"Basic preparedness is the same for just about everything," she said, adding that it's a good idea to have a plan to get out of your home in case of roof collapse or gas leaks.

A plan to get out of my home. Goodness, why didn't I think of that? Having a plan to get out of my home would not only help in emergencies, but it would also come in handy every morning when I leave for work and constantly find myself walking into closets.

Fletcher suggested keeping a pair of shoes and a flashlight under the bed, just in case you need to leave your home in a hurry.

It also allows the guy your wife is nailing when you're not around to have a handy escape hatch.

During an earthquake, it is usually best to stay in your home. However, if there is severe structural damage, roof collapse or a gas leak, or anything that would threaten immediate safety, you should exit your home as quickly as possible.

I'm printing this one out. So when we're huddled under the bed, riding out an Earthquake, and the house begins to collapse around us while gas lines are exploding and the roof is coming down in large chunks, and my wife is insisting we stay where we are, I can say, "No! Look! I have the advice right here...next to my shoes and flashlight!"

This is the first earthquake Fletch has experienced since working for Emergency Management.

I like that it's suddenly all casual... "Fletch."

No word yet on Terry Hutchens' take on things, but I'm sure Tom Crean handled it in a very classy way and drove many miles to stand behind the Emergency Management team and let them know he was there not as the IU basketball coach, but as a friend. And if anybody needs a screen to show an emergency management presentation on, Tom is always willing to lend out his forehead.