South End of Ross-Ade: Morgan, It's All Figured Out

On Friday morning, as Morgan Burke reads BS with his coffee in hand ("World's Best A.D." mug, I'm assuming), we wanted to give him the solution for the South end zone at Ross-Ade that he most likely is hoping to find here on one of his favorite websites.

For those who don't remember, we posted a rendering of what the South end of the stadium could look like back in April of 2012:

As we said then, it's pretty awesome, thus it is ensured not to happen.

Well, the guy responsible for the concept is Purdue Alum Matthew Wille. Matt got in touch with us and has an updated version of his rendering, which we also wanted to share here.

Click to embiggen

Matt has added some obvious touches, such as the P at midfield and the RR crossing sign on the Purdue tunnel side (which actually says "Boiler Crossing," in reality, I think), but he also added All American names and numbers to the south brick wall, which I have to say, is yet another fantastic touch. Much like is done in Mackey, let's remind the guys who are there of the greats that came before them. Let's remind everyone who mocks Purdue football that, yes, there actually have been quite a few legendary guys who have come through....The Furnace. (Just trying it out.)

Morgan Burke did talk in 2007 about how the Mackey renovation would put Stage II of the Ross-Ade renovations on hold -- that being the second deck on the East side of the stadium -- and that Stage III (a second deck on the North end) might never happen. Well, I would again submit that this improvement to the South end of the stadium would be far more valuable to the look and feel of Ross-Ade than any extra half-filled mezzanine would be. Note that Matt has a train up on the brick facade -- if we assume this train is stationary, why not make each car a luxury box? You've now already upped the ticket value of the entire South end, while also giving the stadium a fantastic improved look.

Make it happen, Morgan.

As The Sandi Turns

For those interested in the results of yesterday's Matt Painter/Morgan Burke press conference discussing the Sandi Marcius situation Boilerdowd wrote about yesterday, H&R is all over it.

I have to say, I think Burke and Painter are doing more than is required of them here -- as b-dowd pointed out, if a somewhat immature young man is going to whine about his lot in life when he orchestrated his arrival at that lot, there's not a lot you can do about it. Painter and Burke already had done more than enough for Sandi, I think everyone agrees, and this is just further clarification.

From Matt Painter:

"Sandi voluntarily withdrew from our team," Painter said. "Now he wants us to pay for his school after the fact and that's just something that we haven't done. As a head coach, and this is something Morgan (Burke) talked to me about when he interviewed me: 'You're in charge of your roster.' Nobody can tell me who's on my roster and who is not on my roster, and Morgan's in charge of the grant-in-aid.

"I wish (Marcius) nothing but the best. I gave him a blanket release so that he can play anywhere else that he wants. We were committed to paying for his school this summer if he was with us, and we were committed to paying for his fifth year of school next year, which would have been grad school, if he was with us. We committed to Sandi from Day 1 and have paid for all of his schooling while he's been with us. Now he's decided to leave our program, and he's not with us and he voluntarily did that. No one told him he had to leave. We wanted him to stay. That was the decision that he made."

I love iron-fisted Matt Painter, I don't know about you. As I mentioned, visit H&R for more quotes, including Matt Painter's explanation on how this differs considerably from John Hart's situation. Again, I find myself thinking he has no obligation to lay this all out -- but if it winds up painting Purdue in a more positive light, that's fine by me. Full details, truth and clarity are never a bad thing.

More On Danny Hope

Danny kept talking to WLFI and they broke it into a two-part miniseries, like Lonesome Dove. Part two is available on their site.

Among the wonderful nuggets included:

"My players were like my sons."

Coach Hope talked about the "football family" and how he went to the bowl game because he wanted to see his guys play... and that if it had been his son, he'd be there, so since the players were like his sons, he showed up. I know it's nice for football coaches to be the senior figure that perhaps some kids don't have in life, but this just comes across as a big too far to me. Perhaps one more indicator that he was too close to his players to be a disciplinarian or to hold them accountable.

Hope said he "allowed myself to become the scapegoat" for anything that happened with the program.

IMAGINE THAT! The head coach being responsible for any and all aspects of the program. Meager (by comparison) as his $1M salary might have been, he was the head man and thus all aspects of the program are ultimately his responsibility. It seems ludicrous that I even wrote that sentence.

Danny thinks he'd still be in the black and gold had the fans only shown up more. (Oh and another win would have sealed the deal.)

Hope said that he felt that if attendance had remained in the high 50,000s or more, or if he would have won one or two more games, he'd still be there. I guess that's possible, but is he honestly not making the connection between his stewardship and the plummeting attendance and dearth of wins?

Following up on Hope's somewhat petty, vague and completely Hope-like interview with WLFI, the talented Mike Carmin demonstrated how I think many of us gleaned he felt about Hope all along in a very good column you can read here.

Carmin pulls no punches, calling out the odd inconsistencies and lack of details in some of Hope's most overt claims (such as how poorly he claimed Burke handled his firing). Carmin also detailed a meeting Burke had with the coaching staff after the Penn State game back in early November:

During an interview in January with Burke, I asked when Hope was informed of the decision. He told Hope the Sunday following the victory over Indiana, but met with the entire coaching staff after the loss to Penn State in early November.

“I sat with them after Penn State – all of them,” Burke said. “I said, ‘Guys, we’re driving off a cliff. You’ve all been around these games long enough. We’ve got to do the best we can to finish this thing off on a positive note.’

“You can read into that but I wasn’t threatening. I don’t like surprises and I don’t want people to be surprised. I looked around the room and said, ‘You all know where we are, don’t you? The fan base has given up on us and the best thing we can do is try and give these kids the last three games.’ ”

I hadn't heard that before and I find it very interesting, when you consider how Hope reacted at the very end. It sounds like even beyond the fact that it should have been unsurprising to Hope given his results on the field, that Burke essentially told them the end was near earlier in the month.

A few of you have said that @HopefulDanny on Twitter should be adding to this -- but frankly, how could he? This nonsense that the real Danny Hope is spewing forth is hard to top in terms of silliness.

And as an aside, why isn't Mike Cleff -- the Sports Director at WLFI -- not pushing Hope for clarity on his weird answers about Burke, responsibility, etc.? Why didn't he ask about the meeting that Burke had with the coaching staff in early November after the PSU game?

Danny Hope Speaks; Unclear if Anyone is Listening

Mike Cleff of WLFI in Lafayette got a one-on-one sit-down with the former don of Purdue football, Danny Hope. Part 1 aired last night and is available at WLFI's website. Part 2 airs tonight. I hope there isn't a cliffhanger ending... like Cleff asks him about what mustache comb he uses and then we fade to black, with Danny giving his crooked grin.

In the three-minute segment we're allowed to see (out of a purported hourlong interview -- I've asked WLFI if the complete hour will be available somewhere), Hope continues his rambling, sort of entertaining in the drunken uncle sort of way, about Purdue football and how unfairly he was treated.

Hope calls Morgan Burke out in the interview and says he should have "been a little more accountable." Not that I ever like to side with Morgan Burkce, but no, Danny, as head coach, you're actually the one accountable. The buck stops with you, as they say. For Morgan Burke, taking accountability means making the difficult decision to fire a man and to pay him his buyout. Let's not undervalue the fact that that is a big decision. (I did like the "behind the whistle" and "behind the necktie" analogies from the ever-quotable Hope. He kind of took the "behind the wheel" metaphor and applied his usual wire whisk.)

Hope also notes that the players wanted him to be there. That's all well and good, but they wanted him there because he let them run the asylum and get away with not even knowing their assignments on the field at times -- something that was apparent even to non-football experts like me. He and the coaching staff he champions were, quite simply, not at Big Ten level and were not getting the job done. This was made apparent  numerous times over the course of Coach Hope's time at the helm (or behind the whistle, if you will), as we have documented here at BS. Losing to lesser opponents, not rising to the occasion when it was absolutely critical, getting positively walloped by good teams.... all of these are signs of poor preparation and/or coaches who are just in over their heads.

Going back to Hope's comments, I love this one:

"We hoped we had done enough. But I knew it was close. We had a tough stretch there and didn't come through at a critical time of the season and, obviously, had lost the support of our administration, athletic administration, and fan base."

You knew you'd lost basically all support possible... and yet it was still "close"? Nope, it wasn't.

The amazing thing about this is that if Hope actually believes what he is saying here, then he still doesn't understand that it was basically a done deal after the Michigan and Wisconsin embarrassments. And even if you cling to some kind of delusion that it wasn't over then (like if you're, oh, I don't know...Kelly Kitchell), then the bed-wetting at Minnesota where a truly bad Gophers team relentlessly pummeled and listless and disinterested Boiler squad (one we wrote may have actually been the low point) was for sure the end for Hope.

This interview truly means nothing, which is probably why nobody else was scrambling to get this "scoop." Danny Hope is old news and he's really got no feathers in his cap (despite what he surely thinks) that will make many of us look back at his tenure with any sort of fond remembrance. His time in charge was a low-budget experiment by Morgan Burke -- Burke has essentially admitted as much -- that did not work out. He took a program that had clawed its way to respectability after many years of awfulness and in four years presided over them becoming a punchline again.

That's as succinct as I can put it.

A Few Unsolicited Ideas for the Athletic Department

I've never been a person who likes to complain without giving solutions to a problem.  So here are a few ideas that Mr. Burke and Co. could implement that might invigorate the fan base and create some revenue in the process:

Alumni Paint Crew
Outside of the PC, Mackey is a dead zone to a large extent.  BUT, not all alums want to sit on their hands during games.

Charge $30 more for the basketball season ticket in two upper arena sections.  In these sections, everyone gets a t-shirt similar to the real student sections, and more importantly, people won't get in trouble for standing in this area; it'll actually be encouraged. this won't give the Athletic Department much more revenue, but it might motivate younger alums to be more involved.

JPC 2.0
Giving a couple hundred dollars each year is not something everyone wants to or can do. But, giving $25-$50 is a bit of a no-brainer.

Give it a clever name, actually market the idea, give a sticker for your car and offer special buy one/get drink deals at certain games for members that no one else gets.

Keep the Purdue Kids Club...promote it more
Love this idea...LBD is a member...he loves it too; it's very well done.  Hats off to everyone that's involved.

Make it fun
Have a stage set up away from Slayter that has a band (not a marching band) playing before and after games in Cary Quad, or some place else near by.  Allow this to work with traditions that already exist not against them so old people don't get angry at the new-fangled music.

Near the same area, have a place where kids can have their picture taken with a cutout of J Money or Coach Hazell, try on real equipment and participate in contests that win them promotional products donated by Wendy's, Puccinis, McDonalds, etc.

Stop Eating Your Own
Sites like this are free advertising to the loyal, core fans.  Instead of kicking us in the teeth, work with us to help promote upcoming events that you want people to know about via Twitter, FB, email.

Use What You've Got
Every college has a corps of built-in labor near by; students.  Create an Athletic Department internship office that gives an hour of credit and a resume builder that can help make this stuff a reality. Utilize RHIT, Sophomore business students or *gasp* LA majors like communications to help get the word out and make things happen.

__________________________________

I'm no marketing guy...but I am a consumer.  Often it seems like the business of Purdue athletics is handled like any other business...but it's not any other business.  Alums, fans and students want to feel connected; don't just want to be consumers or clients, but family.  They especially don't want to feel like adversaries, but I think many of us have felt that way in the last few years.

This summer's alumni game last summer was an event in which the athletic department seemingly got "it"...sure it was blazing hot, but it was fun and had some specialness to it.

We'll all be more apt to part with our money if we feel like we're part of something bigger.

My Take on Today's Ticket News

In case you're not on the e-mail list...and haven't wanted to, or had the chance to read other Purdue outlets, Burke and the athletic department have decided to add a mandatory donation to all of the good seats in Ross-Ade Stadium.

Burke noted on GBI that he's heard loud and clear that he's been too cheap...and now says it's time to pony up so Purdue can compete.

I'm glad that he got the message...but it took nearly losing Matt Painter after underpaying he and his staff, and paying bargain basement salaries for the entire football staff before he understood...but I kinda think he still doesn't quite get it; nor does the athletic department.

I can only speak from my own perspective- Not only am I cheap by nature, but also my money is tight.  Having two young kids and running not one, but two businesses which are struggling, affects all of my opinions and financial decisions.

I sat in section 119 from 2000 until 2008.  My son (LBD) was two, when my wife and I, along with much of our family, decided to stop buying season football tickets.  The next year, I spent my money on basketball tickets and a few football tickets for me and my family.  That's continued until recently, when I've had multiple people offer me tickets to various games; which my family and I have appreciated a ton.

So an additional fee per seat in between the 30 yard lines really doesn't affect a person like me directly...but I still don't like the thinking...and think the timing is poor.

The Boiler fans that I know best have had a similar change in their spending during the last few years.  I think almost everyone has been affected by the economy and has been forced to re-assess how they spend their entertainment dollar.  For me and those closest to me, spending a ton of money for a day in which I left the stadium disgruntled was a waste...a waste of time and money.  But I kept going at a more-regular rate than many of those around me. In fact, I've actually found out that it's been difficult to give tickets away...let alone ask someone to buy some with me.

I think I'd be classified as dead-center middle class American, financially.  I feel blessed to live in the neighborhood that I do and to do what I do for a living...but money is perpetually tighter for me than I'd like it to be.  When Painter's contract was re-negotiated, I responded by giving money to the JPC and buying two 1/3 season tickets (while splitting them with two friends).  The cost of Painter's salary was worthwhile because we knew what we were getting and felt and still feel that he belongs at Purdue...and the staff around him needs to be the guys he wants/needs courtside.

Painter had just come off of one of the most-consistent five year stretches in the history of Purdue basketball...those teams averaged 25 wins/season and were generally near the top of the conference.  Painter earned the raise.

As much as I like Darrell Hazell as a hire along with his assistant coaches, this situation is not the same.  Purdue's season ticket woes will be solved by winning...plain and simple.  When Tiller won with regularity, beat good teams and was competing game-in, game-out, Purdue fans responded by buying tickets and showing up on campus.  When Purdue's football team was getting hammered by the upper third of the conference (except aOSU, for some reason) and wetting itself versus good non-con opponents, Purdue fans reacted in kind as well.

Purdue fans, for better or worse, are pragmatic and logical...and I'd bet that many right now are thinking, "I'm rooting for these guys to succeed, hoping for it...but want to see proof."

I'll speak personally again for a moment.

In 2000, I had just moved back from the East coast.  Right away, it was priority for me to get season tickets...so my brother and I each bought them and had one rotating seat for a guest.  The next year, the rotating seat went away as we got a block of four seats.  The year after that, we had a block of six seats and the year after that, our family had eight seats together.  In 2008, I stopped getting season tickets as did my brother and his wife...in 2010, none of my family had full-season tickets.

Sure, coming back for two or three games a season isn't a killer financially for two tickets...but it stings for three or four; And doing that while dragging small kids and a wife as Purdue gets beaten up isn't much of a fun day...and isn't a gratifying way for me to spend the money.  So LBD and I get to a few games generally, my wife and daughter will go to one additionally and one of my pals is kind enough to get me tickets to a few more. I thank God I get to go to these games without having to calculate if I wasted too much on a Saturday.

But if I was spending $375, $500 or more per ticket for a season, I'd probably be pausing right now...even if a third of the cost was tax deductible.

I know I'm going to catch hell for this post...I've read the message boards and twitter, and many Purdue fans are piling on other Purdue fans for having a similar opinion, but I am what I am.  If you want to call me a fair weather fan because I don't think it makes a ton of sense to ask the biggest, most consistent supporters of the program to foot the bill for Burke's wasted four year experiment with Hope, fine.  If you want to compare Purdue's newly-installed fee with other schools like aOSU, UM, Nebraska, PSU and Wisconsin, OK...I still don't think the comparison makes much sense.

Burke, who is a smart guy by the way (no, I'm not being sarcastic), thinks this is the right way to go...I hope he's right. If he's wrong, he'll fade into retirement and let his successor pick up the pieces of losing long-time season ticket holders or deal with the drop in revenue of many downgrading their seats. If he's right and people are OK with this fee AND Hazell wins quickly, he'll look like a genius and Purdue historians will judge him very well.

The thing I don't get about the math is this: A big chunk of the ever-rising BTN TV revenue has obviously been going to renovations to Mackey and Painter's overall staff raise.  But, Burke assured fans that there was a war chest that had been raised to help pay for Hope's exit and Hazell's entry...it sure doesn't feel like that war chest was anything more than scraping the last few dollars out of the Athletic Department's savings...and hoping that this additional fee will be broadly accepted.  Sure, Purdue's revenue stream from football has been shrinking yearly; we've been talking about this for two years.  But, the university at large takes one of, if not the highest percentage, of TV revenues from the athletic department in the conference...and still expects the athletic department to compete-  So perhaps the blame for this decision lands squarely on the Board of Trustees for distributing a disproportionate amount of athletic revenue out of the that department.

Everyone's feeling the pinch in this economy...and if you don't believe in trickle down economics, talk for a few minutes to someone who owns or manages a restaurant near Ross-Ade; I did quite a bit this fall. Purdue's awful showings versus Michigan and Wisconsin led to an empty Ross-Ade stadium and little traffic to commerce around the stadium in subsequent games.  A demoralized fanbase bought fewer Ricardo Allen jerseys and fewer Duane Purvis burgers before and after the games...so if Hazell's rebuilding process isn't quick and promising, the athletic department's gamble could affect every business near the stadium adversely...yet again.

I think Hazell's the right guy for the job...and unlike J, I think he'll win after a season or so of changing the low-accountability and lower expectation culture within the program right now (J expects big things this fall, for the record).

As I often say here, I hope I'm wrong- I hope Burke's decision turns out to be very good...I hope J's prediction of 8 wins in 2013 is right on, or even a little low...and I hope me, my friends and family are all but forced to get a big block of season tickets once again in the very near future because the product on the field is undeniably-good.

Monday Football Gumbo

Sunday afternoon and evening lit up the Purdue football Twitterverse as a lot was happening.

First, Butch Jones came to West Lafayette via the Purdue trustees' private plane along with his wife.  Whatever they did/talked about took around four hours...Then he went back to Cincy without any announcement.

Not Purdue's plane.

During his visit on campus, it was revealed that Purdue would be playing in the Heart of Dallas Bowl...but at that point, our Boilers didn't know who they'd be playing.  A bit later, it was revealed that they'd square off versus their bowl opponent from 1997, Oklahoma State.  And just as Purdue is involved in coaching opening news, so is Okie State...but on the other side of the rumor mill.

The Cowboys' coach is linked to talks for both the Arkansas and Tennessee jobs...and, of course, he won't confirm or deny any of these suspicions.  So as Purdue's team looks to follow an interim coach into battle on January first, Oklahoma State might not be following their 8th-year coach...but an interim of their own, should Tennessee or Arkansas get their way.

But, with T. Boone Pickens and his large bags of cash on the side of OK St., who knows what will happen.  What we do know is both programs are in separate states of limbo at this point. If you have any questions about the situation, don't ask Pickens, he's an old man...whereas Gundy...he's a (younger) man...he's forty (five).

Oklahoma State is 7-5, and unlike Purdue, had no glaringly-bad losses during the season.  In fact, all of their losses came to bowl teams and they were competitive in most of those.  Unlike Purdue, they had two wins versus bowl teams, but those two teams (Iowa State and Texas Tech) weren't world beaters. In a ten-team Big 12, they're fourth.  In a 12-team Big 10, Purdue is eighth-best in the conference...and the RPI has the Big 12 as a slightly-tougher conference.  But, Oklahoma State is a top-five offense in many categories...and Purdue's defense has struggled for much of the year...so that doesn't seem like it's great news for our boys.

We'll talk more about this in the coming weeks.  In fact, we've got 30 days to really think about this one and chew on it as the game will be played on January 1.

Before then, Purdue will surely have a new coach...but as of now, we don't know who it'll be.

Burke, Marve and the rest of the team talked about their upcoming bowl game at the late afternoon presser...but Burke refused to answer questions about the coaching situation.  Since Jones was brought on campus, I was hoping we'd hear an announcement this afternoon...but since then, we've all learned that he'll be going to Boulder to talk to the University of Colorado about their opening.  From everything I've heard, Colorado, like Purdue, is very serious about finding the right coach and is ready to give Jones' a sizable raise to move out West.  But, according to Colorado's Rivals site, Colorado's search isn't as far along as Purdue's seems to be.

Jones and his wife met in college in Michigan, and Jones has never worked further West than he currently does...but, he definitely will soon; hopefully it'll be a bit more to the near-West.  It seems we'll know either way early this week.

My thought is that a half million dollars is a lot of money, and it sounds like Colorado will offer Jones that much more than Purdue.  That's kinda tough to turn down, regardless of where you come from and where you've been.  My gut feeling isn't good about this right now...and really, isn't very good about the hiring process at this point.  The guy I wanted to see at Purdue took a job at NC State for about $700,000 less than Burke seems to be willing to pay the next guy, and it seems he never really got past the initial phase of this search by the Athletic Department.

NC State's hiring of Doeren over Sonny Dykes shook everything up a bit...Dykes is now rumored to be talking to Cal who is also talking to DeRuyter...who is said to be in the running for the Purdue job along with Dykes. DeRuyter is also said to be a candidate for the Colorado job if Jones doesn't take it first.

Until we see and hear a press conference formally introducing the next coach, it's going to be a pretty tense time.  Regardless of when that conference comes, here's to it being the right fit.

Saying the Right Things So Far

We've been tough on Morgan Burke here before and I'm sure we will be tough on him again. However, we also want to give credit where it's due (which we do our best to do) and so I'd like to say here that, so far, Burke is doing and saying the right things.

There are rumors -- seemingly credible ones -- that Burke and company essentially made the decision after the embarrassment vs Wisconsin. Which makes sense in retrospect, because if you haven't already noticed, if Purdue wins that game -- and does nothing else differently this season, blowouts and all -- the Boilermakers are in the Big Ten title game. My point is that this is a plus for Burke on the credibility scale. He's not good at firing people -- doesn't like to do it -- so this shows he realizes what's at stake.

During the press conference, Burke also talked directly and succinctly. He was done with his comments in a mere 7 or 8 minutes and then took questions. He acknowledged the lack of improvement was a factor, the alienation of season ticketholders was a big issues and so forth. These are things worth noting, as in the past we've been critical of him and the athletic department in general of seemingly failing to see the reality of the situation, regardless of whether it was the listing football program or the clumsily-handled Matt Painter situation.

Burke gave credit to the players for their ability to stick to it and win these final three games -- again, something we agree with and give him credit for. That wasn't the result of excellent coaching. It was the result of continued mediocre coaching, bad opponents and, most importantly, the will of the players, especially the seniors. Good for Burke for crediting them.

As an aside, I liked Burke saying that "by tomorrow" coaching candidates will be all over the internet. Someone in the press pool informed him, "They already are." 

I also liked his acknowledgement that they'll need to pay someone. He said clearly that they're aware of what Big Ten coaches get paid and they are prepared to take that on. He didn't give a specific number they're going to pay a head coach, but it's been documented that there is money being raised among JPCers to reportedly fund both a buyout and a first year salary. These are signs of the coaching search being taken very seriously, and I like it. Burke also didn't seem his often-prickly self in response to the questions. Carmin (I think) asked him how he would sell Purdue to a potential coaching candidate and Burke clearly gave it some thought and then talked about Purdue's brand and why Purdue is a good destination. He ticked off points about the incoming President, the brand of football, the trustees, and others and pointed out that they all like to win. That's important. It's also key to me that, as b-dowd pointed out, having "Purdue ties" isn't that critical. He said he thinks "ties to Purdue are tie-breakers; they're not pre-requisites." That, too, makes me feel good. As I said, saying a lot of the right things. 

Another aspect that I really like and that also supports the notion that Burke realizes fully how significant this hire is, is his search committee advisers. Ryan Grigson, Rick Smith and Bill Polian are guys who know football, plain and simple. And Smith, working in Texas, is closer physically to a hotbed of college football coaching, recruits, etc., so his take on what should be considered is interesting to me. There are some who think this committee is window dressing, but regardless of how much advising they're actually doing, it's a good move in practice and optically. Purdue is taking this seriously.

Morgan Burke told us that Pasadena is the goal, which is to say BCS bowl games are the goal. I think it's fair to say that's the kind of thing many of us have wanted to hear for a while. It contradicts statements such as 6-6 being "extremely successful" and referring to yourselves as "bowl champions" following an uninspiring win over a MAC team in a nothing bowl game. We've longed for someone to say this isn't acceptable (besides us low character fans) and, so far, Burke is saying that. He did everything but come out and admit that they tried their patented cheapo approach and it just didn't work.

So far, Morgan Burke is saying the right things. Let's hope it continues, as this hire could be the one that cements his legacy at Purdue.

Raw Footage of Morgan Burke Press Conference

For those who didn't see it and can't get enough Morgan Burke in a sweatervest, below after the jump you'll find the raw footage of the press conference from last night announcing Danny Hope's dismissal from the Purdue football program.

Burke Makes it Official: Hope Out

Burke addressing the media Sunday evening

One of the worst-kept secrets in Purdue's athletic department was officially aired this evening as Morgan Burke addressed Danny Hope's firing after four years as a head coach that followed a transitional year under Tiller.

Hope was 22-27 at the helm...and in spite of leading Purdue to a second-straight bowl after another 6-6 season, it seemed like the right time to change direction.

Hope was not at the press conference, but Higgins was there as he has been named the interim coach for the bowl game.  Nord will be Higgins' advisor during bowl prep.  Higgins said he's playing the role of about three or four coaches during the next few weeks.

Perhaps Hope wasn't at the conference because of the way he had handled the press in the last day/weeks? Perhaps not...Burke didn't address it.

Burke touched on a few points:

-He started the conference by saying he accepted some of the responsibility for the current state of the program...but doesn't feel bad for having to change direction at this point.

-He gave credit to the players for being able to recover from the five game slide and win the final three games of the B1G schedule.

-Hope isn't going to coach in the bowl game because he believes that move puts too much pressure on the exiting coach and his family.

-Purdue has lost 1/3 of its season ticket holders.  He said this isn't the sole decider, but was emblematic of the lack of enthusiasm within the fan base.

-Said the move was needed to hold on to ticket holders who have stayed on during this stretch and to get some ex-season ticket holders back into the fold.

-His goal for the program is for Purdue to be a perennial top-25 program and to get back to Pasadena in the near future.

-He said he doesn't have a "quick trigger" when it comes to hires.

Agreed- that might be the reason Sumlin is not at his alma mater right now...and his slow movements on decisions nearly pushed Painter to Missouri.  Let's hope his methodology doesn't lead to losing the right candidate.

-Burke is using Ryan Grigson, Rick Smith and Bill Polian as consultants for the hiring process. Grigson is the current GM for the Colts, and is a Purdue alum...Smith is also a Purdue alum and is GM of the Texans. Polian is the former President of the Colts...and has no connection with Purdue.

-He said the candidate does not need to have Purdue ties, but a Purdue tie might be a tie breaker, of sorts.

-Burke addressed that Purdue fans value Purdue being the Cradle of Quarterbacks...and wants to have a coach that will help bring back an offense that continues that heritage...said the current team had not embodied this philosophy and direction.

-He said he'd prefer a coach with head coaching experience.

-He didn't give a timeframe for when the hire would be made.

Notes:
GBI reported earlier tonight that Dave Doeren (NIU HC), Sonny Dykes (LaTech HC), Butch Jones (Cincy HC), Mark Helfrich (Oregon OC) and Tim DeRuyter (Fresno State HC) have all been contacted by Purdue.

We like this list.

Burke reiterated that he hasn't made a decision and isn't close to doing so...I'm not positive that he isn't a bit further along in the process than he's letting on as we have heard that this search began over a month ago...and Dave Doeren's comments a few weeks ago make me believe he's the guy.

As we learn more, we'll pass it on and let you know our thoughts.

Addendum:
So far two verbal commitments for Purdue's class of 2013 have backed out and are looking elsewhere...I believe this number will go up.  But, as we've always thought, none of these guys are guaranteed to make it to campus until they've signed their LOIs...that doesn't come until after the new year.

Those Who Don't Learn from the Past Are Destined to Repeat It

The win in Iowa was fun for a lotta reasons...Purdue broke a 20 year drought in Iowa City, the offense played like a different unit at times, the Special Teams came through in the clutch for the first time this season and finally, Purdue won its first B1G game in 6 tries while breaking a five-game losing streak...and most of the reason the Boilers have a game in the left column is because the Senior class carried their teammates; well-played, gentlemen.

All that said, the damage on this season seems to be done.  I've heard from a few sources that the wheels are already in motion for Purdue to find a successor for Danny Hope.  Shellackings at the hands of good and not-so-good teams have led many fans to stay home on Saturdays...and the lack of enthusiasm in the fanbase is crushing the bottom line of the Athletic Department.  If the rumors of a transition away from Hope and his staff are true, ticket sales probably have everything to do with it.

Morgan Burke has hired two head football coaches during his tenure at Purdue...and the most-recent was supposed to be a smooth transition from the winningest coach in the history of the program to a hand-picked successor that would take Purdue back to being one of the best teams in the conference.

But let's be real honest about Burke's first hire before we move on to the second- Burke lucked out with Joe Tiller.  Burke's first choice was Bob Davie, but UND stepped in before Purdue could pull the trigger.  Davie's traditional style of play didn't work with well even with UND's soft schedule and deep talent pool.  But, Cowboy Joe's basketball on grass was the perfect antidote for Purdue's 13 year bowl drought.  Until nearly a decade into his time at Purdue, much of the B1G couldn't catch up with Purdue's pass-happy offense that put pressure on defenses to stop 4 or 5 receivers nearly every down, and put pressure on the opposition's offense to try to keep up.

Cowboy Joe was brilliant at keeping players positive and changed the outlook of the program.  Right away his Boilers seemed to believe that the improbable would happen and they could win games that they had no business winning. Early on, he said there was no reason that his program should strive for anything less than championships...and within just a few seasons, Purdue was in contention for the Big Ten title regularly.  Tiller had changed the culture of Purdue football.

As he did, his pay began to reflect that his program was one of the best in the league...and many programs tried to copy the offense he had learned out West.  And get this, as Purdue beat the best, Purdue fans changed.  They began planning their vacations around the bowl season, traveling to road games and filling Ross-Ade. The ticket sales fueled a renovation of the stadium that made one of the dogs of the conference into a stadium that had a big time feel...and Morgan Burke thought there might be more in store.  Burke eyed Purdue reaching ticket sale marks they had never seen...and talked about expanding Ross-Ade...but we all know now, that never happened.

Tiller got older and Cowboy Joe was replaced by Fisherman Joe.  Tiller was sick of the difficult recruiting battles and sick of disciplining the guys on the team.  Arrests went up, overall discipline went down and the program stopped believing that it belonged among the elite.  I knew things had changed with Chaney and Tiller both began saying that all Purdue needed to do was win by one point...and the next season, Tiller openly admonished fans who wanted to see more out of the program, as he famously warned them to "manage their expectations."

As Tiller's outlook changed, he became looser-lipped with his tact in the media. Tiller was once a master of the room during press conferences, but he became increasingly-annoyed by the grind of jumping through their hoops and trying to please a fanbase that wanted more innovation from a guy who had turned a conference on its ear.

But as it happens for many, as Tiller turned 60, he didn't want to focus on details as much on the job, and the product suffered from it.  The culture that he had changed began to fade back into its old ways. Jan. 1 bowls were replaced with cold weather bowls...then those were replaced by no post-season play at all.  The program that Tiller re-built had slipped back into habits of old.

From 1956-2012, Purdue has had nine head football coaches.  Three of them won more games than they lost- Mollenkopf, Young, and Tiller.  That's it...that's the list.  Jim Young is the only coach to win 10 games...and Mollenkopf and Tiller each took Purdue to one Rose Bowl...Purdue's record in the Grand Daddy of them all, is of course, 1-1.  The point of this quick look back over our shoulder is to remind us that Purdue's football culture, especially in the modern era of football (let's call that from the early 1980s forward), is generally an unsuccessful one.

Purdue's favorite coaching son is currently coaching at Texas A&M.  And while he learned the college game in God's Country, and cut his teeth as a coach for some mediocre and fair programs, he really learned how to run a program from a traditional power: Oklahoma.

Traditional powers have some inherent advantages over programs like Purdue.

Before I go any further, make no mistake that I'm not making excuses for why Purdue doesn't succeed with regularity, but I'm trying to offer a solution that will allow my alma mater to do so.

Traditional powerhouse programs have coaching trees with deep roots.  If they want to rectify a problem, they can often look within their own ranks...I don't think Purdue can say that.  Even if Purdue wants to go back a few decades for advice and help on a change of direction, there just aren't many options that have the resume that garners respect.

This might be why Purdue is in the shape it is right now.  From what we understand, Tiller and a committee of ex-players and coaches helped Burke decide on Hope as the coach of the program in 2009.  But Purdue's philosophy wasn't the only hinderance, obviously...the boss was a factor as well.

We've talked about what we think of Burke's philosophy for his athletic department ad nauseam...so we're not going to rehash that here.  Burke answers to the President of the university and the board of trustees.  This cabal has never made championships their number one priority.  I'd wager a guess that championships are actually pretty far down on their list.  But Purdue is what it is because of these pillars...and like the columns of the Parthenon, these aren't budging either.  So as fans, alums and boosters, we all have to strive to change the culture within these parameters.

I had the chance to speak to a parent of an ex-Purdue football player...and he presented a solution that might change the trajectory of the football program: the next coach needs a mentor.

This idea works well in business and the sports world alike...but Danny Hope and most Purdue coaches before him haven't had anything like this while trying to build their program.  Who can Hope go to as things get out of control? Burke hasn't given him the budget to hire assistant coaches with a ton of experience, and, outside of Joe Tiller, there aren't many coaches within the Purdue family that could/would present ideas and critiques...The next guy, whether it's Doeren, Kingsbury, Dykes, Helfrich, Sumlin (one can dream) or someone else, should be given the tools to succeed...and one of the most cost-effective ways of finding success might be a Director of Football Operations.

(That's right Mr. Burke, I said cost-effective...listen up, won't you?)

This Director could be a CEO-type of guy. He wouldn't need to recruit, he wouldn't need to be on the sidelines on game day...heck, he wouldn't even have to be on campus most days. I'd see this guy having an office that was occupied a few days/month...and he'd also have great seats for each game in a comfy glass-walled box.  His responsibilities would be simple, but significant: offer guidance and expertise based on a wealth of knowledge that few could counter and fewer can match.  Purdue couldn't afford to pay him what a head coach would make, but would help lessen his load by flying him in and out of West Lafayette with one of the university's planes.

The ideal candidate would either be out of football in retirement or would be out of football due to unusual circumstances...but still wanted to be involved in the sport.  Here are a few that might fit the bill:


Jim Tressel
I wouldn't want him running the program, but I do believe his attention to detail and understanding of the game would help about any head football coach.  Mentioning his name to recruits surely wouldn't hurt either. Plus, we know he's willing to take lower-paying jobs as he was a paid consultant for the Indianapolis Colts in 2011...Midwestern guy.

Bill Cowher
Cowher has a job in broadcasting that pays him well...he could keep that job and take this one as well. He understands organization and is a winner.

Tony Dungy
A guy of high character who is also a tremendous motivator.  He has heavy connections to Indianapolis, another form of income as a broadcaster and is humble, but extremely successful.

Bobby Bowden
He's intentionally stayed away from FSU as to not overshadow Jimbo Fisher...he's the winningest coach of all time and he's still a knowledgeable football guy.

Dick Vermeil
Knows how to change mentalities for teams...ridiculously-deep resume...retired, well-respected, lives in the Midwest.

Phil Fulmer
Currently an analyst, but has expressed interest in getting back into football.

Jon Gruden
He's a perpetual top candidate for every job that comes up...but very few entities, pro or college, are willing to match his hefty MNF salary.  By taking the position with Purdue, he could still be a broadcaster, but would be able to get directly back into football...which he's said he hasn't ruled out.


Joe Tiller
Not nearly as successful as many on the list, but a tremendous judge of talent and, as we eluded to above, he's the winningest Purdue football coach ever.  If nothing else, he understands the job.

Purdue's Athletic Department Crossroads Awaits

Morgan Burke apologists often talk about the upgrade in facilities and the solid hires that he's made during his time as our alma mater's athletic director...and he deserves credit for these decisions.  But his legacy is in grave danger as the end of his career draws closer.

To quote Bill Shakespeare: "The evil that men do lives after them, but the good is oft interred with their bones."

Methinks this quote applies right now as Purdue's place in the college sports world, in the conference and in this state is simply not good...and Burke is probably well-aware of it.

Football is the cash cow for Purdue and most college athletic departments...but for Purdue, the golden calf has become a rickety wooden bovine in vegas gold spray paint.

Ticket sales are substantially down, in fact, RA hasn't sold out in three seasons. Our Boilers haven't beaten UND in six contests...and a once-awful IU program is closing in fast on Purdue. In fact, IU is two games ahead of Purdue in the division and is now selling more tickets/game than Purdue...something that seemed to be nearly-impossible just a few seasons ago.

Burke has talked about retirement a few times in the last decade. But as a guy in his 60s who has been on the job for 20 years, he probably won't be able to man the post much longer.  His fiscal responsibility and acumen was something that many ADs in the nation envied as Purdue's athletic department was in the black in nearly every year while he was on the job...but, his department's financial success was dependent upon interest in the football program by alums and fans alike.

Burke is in grave danger of handing off an athletic department in need of a complete rebuild if he doesn't act quickly...regardless of if he retires this year, or in the next few.  But perhaps, the damage is already done.

If Purdue's athletic department is in need of an overhaul when Burke's predecessor takes over, that might not be the end of the world;  It's time for change.

Athletic departments are not normal business...but Purdue's has been run like one.  Part of that is good, part is not.  Burke's time in the steel industry was successful, and I've never heard anyone say anything to the contrary.  But there's a big difference in the steel industry and college athletics...the bottom line isn't the sole focus in sport, as a competitor like Burke should know.

Guys like Purdue's AD, who competed at a high level, hate to lose. Their career success often reflects that.  But selling raw materials and selling tickets aren't the same thing.  But, Purdue's products have become as fun to purchase as an I beam.  The good news for Purdue is that many alums feel an emotional attachment to the athletic department, regardless of the results...but that group is shrinking.

Many of Purdue's teams don't seem to strive for championships but are OK with being in the upper half.  If you spend time on Purduesports.com, you'll see that theme, time and again; That's unacceptable. At the same time, the marketing is smalltime and ideas out of the department have become stale. Purdue's athletic department isn't too crazy about ravenous and raucous masses hungry for the next victory as long as the contract seats are sold (they don't need to be full, it seems).

We've heard Purdue's head coaches bemoan limitations while we all watch Northwestern's football team win at a high rate. We've had to listen to the Nancy Crosses of the department blame the fans for nearly losing one of our own while the athletic department seems to care little...until the uproar is all but deafening. And now, we're watching IU's AD building a football program from nothing and, at the same time, resurrecting a crippled basketball program back into one of the nation's elite. As IU rallies, many around Purdue seem to accept the fact that we're just Purdue.

Bullshit.

We Purdue fans have a chip on our collective shoulder.  We're fighters, and we love our alma mater and want her to win each and every time she competes...and our athletic department doesn't reflect that.  That needs to change, and if Burke can't lead the program to change, he should step aside and make room for someone who is ready to make gameday fun again. Someone ready to get out in front of a pep rally and get people psyched about the future...and someone who believes Purdue will compete and win against the elite programs of the conference, but also the nation.

This idea isn't executed easily...it'll take raising money, raising interest, being extremely creative, being tireless and dynamic and not being hampered by the constraints of the way things are.  None of these traits sound like the leader of Purdue's athletic department to me.  I'm not saying Burke wasn't ever any of these things...but he surely isn't now, nor has he been for years.

Burke and company made a bad decision nearly five years ago when they hired Danny Hope. He seems like a nice guy who's in way over his head...and week-in, week-out, we're now being reminded this.  I don't think he was hired because the athletic department thought he was the best man for the job, the best possible candidate for the money or even that he would eventually lead Purdue to championships.  But, he was hired because he was good-enough and, more importantly, his price was right.  Turns out, Burke was penny wise, and pound foolish.

His cheap decision making, that paid off well for the basketball program, has now set the program back decades.  The cost of hiring economically instead of based on previous success is around 20,000 empty seats each home game and a fanbase that cares less and less about football with each passing week.  My concern now, as Hope's dismissal seems to be just weeks away, is the same committee and CEO that made the last decision will make a similar decision again.  If that happens, it's unavoidable that Burke's legacy and successes will be completely tarnished by two bad decisions.

If Burke is not willing to change his perspective and thinking prior to this next hire, it will surely be a catastrophic failure for which his successor, and the greater university, will pay dearly.

The Second BS Coach List

I love J's list of coaching candidates- experienced guys who have had success...and most have dealt with cultures like Purdue's in which resources are tough to come by and the fan base is less-than-ravenous.  I think most of those guys are still on the upswing as well...and the time would be now to snatch up nearly every name on that list. But we're not even sure Burke is interested in changing directions at the end of the season...we merely think an investigation needs to begin.

So since we're already Morgan Burke's homepage (good morning, by the way, sir), we thought we'd give him a few more suggestions to help his search along...if it's going to occur.

Here are a few things we know about Purdue's athletic department- Burke has made running the program in the black an absolute priority.  So, Purdue will probably go, once again, on the cheaper end of the spectrum.  As J and I both said in a sidebar conversation, $1,000,000 is a ton of money to schmoes like he and I...But, in the world of BCS football, it's a pittance.  Then again, it's a huge sum of money to pay someone whose teams get shellacked by good, not great teams, time and again.

One of the issues that I have with J's list is that multiple high-dollar buyouts would be involved in the equation totaling around $2 million.  That's not gonna fly for Burke; I'm pretty sure of that.  Hope's buyout at the end of this season will be $500,000...next year, it'd be $400,000...and so on. So it seems to me, if Burke makes the unprecedented (by his standards) move of canning his head football coach, he's not going to want to spend more dough on a buyout for the guy he hires.  As a result, I've come up with a list of coaches that have sub-7-figure buyouts, if none at all...yet they'd still be good candidates, in my opinion.

One more issue that must be solved for Purdue to be competitive is the same issue that Painter fought for a year ago- assistant coach's salaries.  Top programs will pay their assistant coaches $3 million-plus...That's not going to happen at Purdue.  But, Burke can't realistically believe that a staff that gets paid one-third of the salary of its competitors will be any competition at all.  Plus, if he expects ticket sales to get back to where they need to be, he's going to need to have a team on the field that is more than just a punching bag for the top-4 or 5 teams of the conference.

__________________________

Away we go...

First we'll start with the most-affordable options...assistant coaches at other programs:

The one Purdue connection we've got on our list is that of Tennessee's offensive coordinator, Jim Chaney.

While at Purdue, his offenses were in the top-10 in the nation 6 times; you don't luck into that.  He knows this place and the culture and would know what he's getting into.  Burke could probably get him for around what Hope is making now.

He's 50 years old, has a resume that includes time in the NFL and, while coaching high-scoring offenses, has the ability to adapt.  Currently, his offense runs the ball a lot...while at Purdue, as we all know, the Boilers were extremely pass-happy.

Another offensive coordinator is only two degrees removed from Purdue...but never played in West Lafayette or coached in God's country. Texas A&M's offensive coordinator, Kliff Kingsbury ha such a  good offensive mind that former Boiler, Kevin Sumlin gladly hands his offense over to Kingsbury.  He was OC of the year while at Houston and many magazines call him a rising star in the coaching ranks.

He's not the most experienced coach as he's only been doing it for three years...before that he was a journeyman pro QB who played in a few different leagues.  Since I still wish Sumlin was at the helm and that ship has sailed, hiring Kingsbury might scratch that itch.  Plus, since I thought Sumlin was the guy, it'd make sense for me to say I back up his choice for OC.

That said, I believe hiring him would be akin to hiring Fitzgerald at NU (without the obvious alma mater tie-in); he'd need a season or two to figure out his system...but his offenses would be fun to watch...and Burke would love his pricetag.

The next two candidates are pretty attractive to me for a number of reasons.

Here are a few current HCs that I believe would be affordable-enough for Burke to pull away from their current jobs.  Plus, they're D-1A coaches and have shown me reason to believe they would do well at West Laffy.

WKU's HC Willie Taggart inherited a lousy situation. His team had just been brought up from D-1AA two seasons prior to his hiring...and the previous season, they didn't win a game.  Understandably, the first year was tough; just two wins.  But, last season, they went 7-5...7-1 in conference.  And this season, they're 5-1...with the lone loss coming at the hands of Alabama.

I'd be lying to you if I told you his race didn't matter to me- I've wanted to see a qualified, capable black coach at Purdue in one of the two revenue generators for a few years...Cuonzo Martin (before Painter was hired), Kevin Sumlin (before Hope was hired) and others in both sports. I think it'd be good for the program and good for the school.

Taggart currently gets paid less than Jim Chaney...and his buyout looks to be similar to that of Hope (actually a bit over a half million).

My favorite candidate on my list is probably Dave Doeren from NIU.   While I love exciting offense, I've been craving a Purdue football team with great, hard-nosed defense for nearly a decade.

Honestly, we haven't seen but two or three good defenses as Purdue fans in last 30 years...that stinks.

NIU's current HC has been successful at every level...his first HC job was for D-1AA Montana.  While there, he was 28-3, and won a national title. Next, he was Wisconsin's DC from '06-'10...and since taking over for Jerry Kill at NIU, he's gone 17-4 in the last season and one-half. It's tough to be defensive-minded in the MAC, but Doeren is; at least a bit.  Like Taggart, he's young and has big upside. Unlike everybody else, I can't find a reason why I wouldn't want him to be coaching at Purdue...and I don't think Burke can either.

Purdue's thrifty AD could double his current salary...and still have around $150,000 left over to reach Hope's current pay.  His buyout is $750,000 if hired away from NIU during this off-season.

__________________________

Just for fun, I went back and looked at the guys I wanted to see as candidates for the job when Hope was hired.  In hindsight, most were, like J's list- pie-in-the-sky, simply because Burke wouldn't be willing to pay most of these guys what the market demands...nor would he want to deal with their hefty buyouts.

But one of the I liked 5 years ago is still available...I still like him and he's done nothing but win since the last time he made our illustrious list.

Northern Iowa's Mark Farley is consistently successful.  His teams make noise nearly every season in the D-IAA tournament, coming in second a few years ago.  Plus, he's had only one losing season during his 12 seasons at the post. He's had six double-digit winning seasons...and his overall record is 100-44 (69.4%).  He's not yet 50 years old, so that's another positive...but I'm not sure I want Burke to look to the lower division for candidates this time (not that my opinion matters).

For comparison's sake, Hope never won over nine games as a D-1AA coach and won 61.4% of his games, only making the post-season once.

___________________________

Keep in mind, we don't think Hope would be, nor should be fired if he were to lead our Boilers to seven wins prior to December.  But we're both extremely-unconfident in the possibility of that happening.  Now, another 6-6 season will leave Purdue and Burke in a foul-smelling quagmire- lousy ticket sales and a fanbase that's growing more apathetic with each season, and a team that simply doesn't win important games; that's college football purgatory.  If this season is sub-.500, I'm almost-positive we'll see Burke fire him as he would have only a $500,000 buyout as the reason to not do it.

The last two posts were actually quite cathartic as they remind us that there are very good and affordable options out there right now, if the situation arises.  But, we held back one name from both lists as we think he might be the best candidate for Purdue. Actually, if the final three were the guy we're going to talk about (our collective favorite), Dave Doeren (my favorite) and Kyle Flood (J's favorite, I believe), Purdue couldn't help itself but winning in the very near future...and not just versus MAC and lower tier in-conference foes.

You'll have to stay tuned to find out just who completes our list.
(And thanks, as always, for reading the site, Morgan!)

Don't Blame Caleb

We're consistent if nothing else.

We've never thought TerBush was the answer at QB...and we can't stand to see Purdue's student athletes bad-mouthed by Purdue fans.  Are we contradicting ourselves? We don't think so...We're observing what we see.

Danny Hope has told the Boiler faithful multiple times this season that TerBush earned the #1 QB spot in practice.  Granted, none of us see what he, Nord and company see...he doesn't allow that.  But, as a guy who's gotten nervous in front of a crowd while playing sports, I can tell you that practice performance doesn't equal gametime...but as a guy who has also coached, I appreciate players that work hard in practice.

What we all do see is that 19 struggles with pressure and tends to make decisions slowly in the games.  He played pretty poorly Saturday...and the problems he normally has, he displayed versus a determined UM defense.  But before you get internet brave and start calling a 6'5" 20-something year old names via Twitter, think about this- that loss wasn't his fault.

The loss was a team product.  Poor preparation led to poor execution...Poor execution led to poor situations...Poor situations led to very few adjustments, sadly.  Purdue was beaten in every aspect of the game yesterday.

But back to the TerBush discussion-  I don't blame the kid for they type of player he is.  He wasn't a highly-touted recruit...he came from a pretty small school...and he predominantly ran the option as he led his squad to a state championship his Senior season.  He's got an unusual passing motion that hasn't improved a ton since he arrived on campus and has never been described as having a cannon of an arm.  He's effective-enough when running the ball, and OK at making checks at the line of scrimmage.  He is what he is.  I can't blame him for not being Drew Brees...or Kyle Orton...or Billy Dicken...or even John Reeves (when he played QB).

Based on what Hope and company said in recent weeks, they believed that Purdue's newly-revamped defense only needed a game manager- A guy to do exactly as they asked him and exactly as they expected him to do...and the running game and defense would bring home the victory.

We all know now that formula isn't going to fly versus good teams.

The offensive line struggled to create space and struggled to keep a clean pocket for any of the QBs that played.  And the defense couldn't stop anything yesterday.  Each time they really needed to get off the field, they'd allow a yard or 50 more than UM needed for the first down.

While there's enough blame to go around, the buck stops at the top...right? Not TerBush, not even the coordinators who called the plays and formations...but the guy that hired them, right?

Well, we have less of a problem with Purdue fans pointing their collective vitriol at a guy that gets paid than doing so at the amateurs...you know that if you visited here for a while.

But, perhaps our collective blame and ire should go higher still...to a guy who isn't just the most-recent mustached face of the football program, but the guy who has been the face of the entire athletic program for 20 years, and the one who controls the purse strings.  He's made some great decisions, no doubt about that. We've given him credit for successes like the hiring of Matt Painter and the Mackey renovation, when it's been deserved.  But when you think about it, what we've seen from Coach Hope isn't much different from what we've seen from Caleb TerBush...and like TerBush, Hope is who he is.

Perhaps Hope is learning how to run a B1G program on the job...but the game plan and lack of adjustments v. UM didn't seem to show much progress.  The thrashings that have been handed out to Hope-coached squads in the last few years, by the league's leaders, and even upper-middle foes, seem to exhibit a trend.

Many Purdue faithful are calling for Hope to be fired.  But before you call for that, look at a few givens that exist.

Burke looked for an inexpensive option when he hired Hope, and he got it.  He continued by making Hope's coaching staff one of the lowest-paid in the conference.  Even when Hope replaced key parts of the staff following his new contract signing in early '12, he still wasn't given much of a budget increase.  And while I was impressed with Tibesar's defense versus MAC and DI-AA opponents, I've been thoroughly unimpressed in the last three halves of football.

Maybe we will see a vastly-improved effort and an air-tight scheme next week...maybe Wisconsin's style of play will create better match-ups for Purdue and produce a more-competitive game.  I don't know the future; even the near future.

What I do know is the last few years...and more recently, this last week, has been pretty lousy for the program.  As a result, tickets will not be flying off the shelves for next week's contest...just like they haven't been selling in the past few seasons.  That loss of revenue and its subsequent effect to the athletic department's bottom line, is something that Burke understands quite well.  And while he ignores negative feedback from fans on websites like this, he will not ignore the gaping hole in his budget created by poor ticket sales much longer.

If things don't change quickly, as in this week, the program and ticket sales for the rest of this season will probably be eerily-similar to the last few seasons.  As a result Purdue's AD will be looking to hold someone accountable for this situation at the season's end.  His search shouldn't last long as he won't need to look outside his office for the culpable party.

Morgan Burke Wants You Home By Curfew

"You silly fans don't understand the nuances like I do!"

Morgan Burke gave a few nuggets on his thoughts regarding lights at Ross-Ade Stadium to the J&C recently and the gist is, as always, that you dumb fans just don't get it. You can read the H&R take on this here, but we'll add a few thoughts, too.

First, Morgan says that he lobbied for the Michigan game to be an afternoon game and not a night game "so it wouldn’t be late for our people to get home." Seriously, he said that. You need to be snug in your beddy-byes in time to watch the prime time games being played at other college football venues around the country. Where, one assumes, the fans all bring sleeping bags and go to sleep in their seats right when the game ends. Wouldn't want them trying to find their way home at 10:30 PM on a Saturday night!

Then Morgan says that one of the reasons not to have lights is because he and Purdue don't control the start times of football games.

But wait, I thought Burke "lobbied" for the Michigan game to be in the afternoon and not at night? So he sometimes, kind of... does have some control or at least input into the times of games. Either that or he is making up that he had some influence on the Michigan start time to make it seem like he's more of a big shot than he really is.

As always, though, my favorite part of any Purdue communique from the Athletic Department is the snide, backhanded remark about Purdue fans.

“I know there’s a vocal group who feel that’s the right thing to do but they don’t have any logic other than it would be nice to have a night game. It’s a double edge sword. I’m glad we got the Michigan game.”

Wait, what? Is Morgan Burke so detached that he really doesn't understand the benefits of having games in prime time? The visibility of those games alone is worth a tremendous amount. Many more eyes are seeing Purdue commercials, Purdue's campus and Purdue athletics. But seriously, I'm not going to enumerate the reasons why having games in prime time could be a good thing. They should be obvious. It's 2012.

I also don't understand how having games in prime time is "a double edge sword." He has stuck to this line of reasoning for quite some time but never fully explains it -- only that we don't understand because we haven't  "[stood] back, as do I, and look[ed] at it from every possible angle." Right. Like landscaping or a new paint color. Stand back and look at it, people!

Well, I have looked at it. For years. And I'm a moderately intelligent human being, and I think lights would be a good idea. But what do I know?

Oh, also... "I'm glad we got the Michigan game"? Uh... what? It was on the schedule. What did Purdue "get"?

As for the lights, the fact that the estimated cost is only $1.5-$2.0 million to install actually seems reasonable to me, especially given how much is spent on arena renovations and coaches salaries. And speaking of arena renovations, we didn't technically need the Mackey renovations, either, did we?

I mean, wasn't the "logic" there just people who thought it would be nice to have better seats?

What's a Couple Million In Lost Ticket Revenue Between Friends?

Morgan Burke, rocking the "short sleeves with tie" look. Nice.

Mike Carmin over at the J&C has a very interesting article up regarding the freefalling ticket revenue for Purdue football. It's essentially an interview with Burke about the issue and I encourage you to go read it, but I'll also pull out a few choice cuts for you here.

During the 2008 football season, Purdue's football program generated $12.5 million in ticket revenue.The next season, the figure dipped to $11.5 million. In 2010, ticket revenue fell to $10.2 million.

That's $2.3 million in lost ticket revenue in just two years and it's expected that it will have fallen again when 2011 is officially accounted for. So let's say, conservatively, that it's another $700,000 down for 2011 just to play with nice round numbers. That puts Purdue in a $3 million hole (or loss, whatever you want to call it) in three years. Which, and I'm no math major, works out to {checks math} yes, a million dollars per year. Yowsa.

There are roughly 14,000 fewer season ticket holders compared to 2007, when the count was 42,880. Purdue sold 28,914 season tickets for the 2011 season.

So in a four year span, season tickets have declined in numbers by about 33%. Obviously, we all know this is alarming, but let me ask you this: What if we see another 33% decline over the next four years? That's a little over 9,000 more seats not filled (and, really, is it hard to imagine another 9,000 empties given the way people are flocking away in droves?), bringing season ticket totals down to the sub-20,000 range.

I don't know about you, but that sounds almost impossible, doesn't it? And yet, so possible, given the current trajectory.

Burke veers into comments about the coaching situation as well, and it's hard to know if he was asked specifically about it or if he is just very aware of the noise outside his office:

Burke said the responsibility for attendance and ticket revenue is "on me" but added "if everybody thinks you make one personnel change ... how many different coaches have been at Notre Dame and Indiana since I've been here? It's staggering. 

I'm not sure anyone has suggested Purdue needs to make "one" personnel change. I think some want the whole coaching staff gone. I think others have said, hey, maybe Danny Hope can work out, but not with this staff. I will tell you this, however: how many coaches ND and IU have had in the past 20 years is probably the least relevant part of this equation.

"The head coach is like the quarterback -- they may get too much credit when things are going good but too much blame when things go bad. But they're the captain of the ship and ultimately I'm the captain of the ship too and I have to take responsibility."

I could not love this quote more, because it sounds like something Hopeful Danny on Twitter would say. Mixing up metaphors and figures of speech is one of my personal favorite things to take note of. So we have two captains here? Who outranks who? Wouldn't Burke be the....admiral? I'm so confused.

Asked if the steady downturn in football ticket revenue is hurting the overall athletic department, Burke said: "It's not yet but you can't go on very much longer. 

Wow, that doesn't sound good...right? Wait. I'm so confused. 

"The way we budget, we try to build reserves. Our business is much more cyclical than people think. That's one of the reasons you live within your means."

Ah, yes, live within your means. Like underpaying your basketball coach no matter how good he is, to the point where he nearly leaves. That sort of living within your means? Gotcha.

This next nugget is telling in some ways:

While football ticket revenue is down, the athletic department -- which receives no funding from the university and is expected to show a net income of $9.85 million following the 2011-12 academic year -- probably will remain in sound financial shape because of other revenue sources. 

Net income, by its definition, is basically profit. It's interesting that the term "profit" is not used here. That could be Carmin's choice of words or it could come from the University in one way or another. But the point is, the athletic department is going to be positive by almost $10 million after this school year is over. So when you find yourself wondering why Burke isn't taking a flame-thrower to the coaching offices, that's a big, big part of it.

Burke also expresses surprise in the story that more fans didn't come to the Purdue-Iowa game. (Hey, we were there! We did our part, Morgan!) And for those who think Burke may be a little out of touch, he commented that he expected to see 50,000-52,000 in the house for that game, which wound up having just over 40,000 in attendance.

I think an athletic department, in order to be realistic and make the logical decisions so many fans want, needs to first have someone at the helm who is fully in touch with reality. I'm not going so far as to say Burke is not in touch with reality, but I can only hear so many comments like this until I begin to think he's just a guy riding out his time to retirement.

And finally, Purdue has sold 3,900 tickets for the Little Caesars Bowl. Western Michigan has sold 4,500. The interest, quite simply, is not there. I don't know if it's Coach Hope or the players or Morgan Burke or the fans. Maybe it's some combination -- in life, it usually is. But I know things aren't in good shape and this article doesn't make me feel much better.

Hard not to like: Danny Hope

From the time Danny Hope was hired, we at BS have said that he is a difficult guy to dislike.   I wasn't a huge fan of the hire by Burke- I thought then, and still think that Purdue should have pursued a coach with a bit of a higher profile and a better record of success prior to Hope's hiring by my our Alma Mater.

Our boilers stand at 3-3 at the halfway point of Hope's third season as the head coach.  If you visit here often, you've heard us express our thoughts that we believe that this team's record should be better than it is.  We think that there are some talented guys on this team, talented-enough to have at least one more win if not two...but things are what they are. Purdue continues to struggle with stupid penalties at key times, seems to have breakdowns when they're in the most need of crisp play and the offense seems to still be struggling to find an identity.  On top of that, there are gaping holes in the line-up that can be attributed to poor player development or recruiting misses. Many, if not all of this team's problems can be credited to the coaching staff.

But, there are some things that are very positive that are due to coaching.  This team almost always looks motivated to play.  They hustle and don't seem to give up on plays too often.  And there seems to be very good chemistry among the players...as they legitimately like each other.  Plus, Hope has conscientiously built a team that is faster on both sides of the ball than the teams that Tiller put together.

The reason this team is what it is, both the good and bad, comes from the top. The players are fun-loving because the man behind the mustache is as well.  These guys are excitable and emotional because the head coach encourages it. He understands that football is a game of emotion...but at times this season, the players and coaches alike have looked confused and unsure of what should be done next.

In this era of football, it's really tough to watch your favorite squad go one, two, three, four...seasons without going to a bowl game.  That's probably why attendance has been dropping steadily during Hope's time at Purdue.  In fact, it looks like the Homecoming Game could be the lowest-attended of its kind in nearly 20 years unless there is an unexpected run on tickets in the next 24-36 hours...and while I hate seeing it, it's understandable that many have shifted the way they spend their money the last few years.

Mackey Ticket Update

The Mackey reallocation process is now complete, as per the University.

Morgan Burke spoke about the news:

"First and foremost, I want to thank our loyal John Purdue Club members for bearing with us during the last two months," athletics director Morgan Burke said. "My pledge to you in April was that we would be ready and willing to assist, and I hope everyone who went through the process found the tools manageable and our staff accommodating. At the same time, we recognize there is disappointment by some individuals who had to move out of seats they held for many years."

"Of course," he did not add, "as I also reminded you in the spring, if more of you cheap jerks gave us your money there wouldn't be a risk of Matt Painter leaving. Take your new seats and like 'em."

On a more useful note, remaining upper level tickets will go on sale to the general public tomorrow and you can get them by calling the ticket office or ordering them online. The price is $394 for a season ticket, plus $100 labeled as a "Legacy Fund donation." Yeah, so about $500 clams gets you a season ticket. Still seems like a good deal to me.

Also, some of those high-roller courtside seats remain available to JPC members at the "All-American" level and above. Not sure how many readers we have in that category, but if we do, have at 'em and don't worry about any waste -- we'll be glad to take any games you can't use off your hands.