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.

Danny Makes The Call

Starting v. UND

Throughout camp, Hope called TerBush the starter for the first game because neither he, nor Marve, had changed position in camp due to the lack of full contact in practice. The inference seemed to be that last year's starter would be the starter because game situations were different...Fair point- they are.

That said, he and his assistants listed the depth chart as an "or" decision...meaning either could start depending on what happened in practice.

So, when TerBush, one of the team captains, was suspended for reasons that most still don't know, Marve was given the keys to the offense last Saturday.  If you're on this site, you've probably already seen the stats that Marve produced...if you don't know, look them up- they were pretty damned good. During his opportunity to prove himself, he played 70% of the snaps v. EKU (with Henry taking the other 30%).

Atop of the extremely-tight depth chart situation, Hope and Nord have both said Marve has a potential to be an NFL quarterback...and they've never uttered those words about TerBush. And while we both know that a great college QB is not necessarily great in the NFL...the games are different.  BUT, saying someone is an NFL talent is typically a compliment.

With all that said, Hope has named TerBush the starter for Saturday.

“It may be that it’s best for us to go into South Bend and make sure we manage the offense really well and that we don’t create any negative plays. If that means Caleb TerBush starts and Marve finishes, so be it. If that means Marve starts and TerBush finishes, so be it“ 

Based on that quote, one would think Marve creates too many negative plays.  Also, Hope and company seem to believe that the defense can win the game in South Bend with an offense that isn't aggressive, but merely just manages the clock and field position, I guess.

On Saturday, Purdue will play an ND squad that just beat the tar out of Navy...based on what I saw Saturday from them, management of the game might not be quite enough.

Versus UND, both TerBush and Marve are 0-1; Marve started the game in SB, TerBush in God's country. So, I guess, since TerBush has never lost in South Bend, Hope thinks he gives Purdue a better chance of winning there (or maybe not losing)...I guess we could say he's undefeated there.  Pretty fuzzy logic, it seems.

There are a couple of things that really confuse me about this whole situation.

Obviously, Hope and Nord's compliments to Marve, yet refusal to start him are odd.  But not that big of a deal.  We're fans of Marve and his style of play...we think his ability to escape the pass rush, move the pocket and still keep his eyes downfield give the offense a chance to do things a TerBush-led offense cannot. Plus, he has a bigger arm than TerBush.  Granted, Marve makes poor decisions from time-to-time...but so did TerBush last season- He gave up costly sacks time and again due to his cautious demeanor, but that doesn't seem to bother Nord and Hope because he doesn't freewheel as much.

The question of the reason for the one-game suspension is also lingering with us.  Hope has allowed players to get arrested and not miss action...so when a guy is suspended for the home opener, my antennae are up as I try to figure out what egregious error he made.

Could TerBush have worn an IU sweatshirt to a film session? Maybe #19 poked fun at Hope's mustache? Perhaps Purdue's starting QB talked badly about Carson Wiggs?  Whatever he did, Hope didn't take it too lightly.  But now, it's been forgotten as TerBush apologized to the team and the coaches for whatever-the-hell-it-was.

Here are facts we do know- TerBush lost a year with the team due to academic ineligibility. That was the year that Marve went down to an ACL and Henry was forced into the starting role...and when Henry's finger was crushed, Robinson played and then started (burning a redshirt). Does Hope think that was important?

He made a mistake, and strived to make it right- got his grades up, got back on the team and all was well.  He started last year after Marve's knee held him back in camp and Henry tore an ACL of his own. He was made a captain by the coaches and the team this season...and officially became a leader of the team.  Then, prior to the first game he did something to get suspended all while engaged in an intense battle to keep his starting QB role. To me, that doesn't sound like a leader...but I only know the parts of the story that Hope and co. allow me to know.

But, I'm not the only one who's making a call based on the info that's in front of me.  And in the wake of what I saw from Marve last week, I have an extremely-difficult time in backing up Hope in this decision.  If nothing else, my expectations for TerBush are now higher...and at the same time, the scrutiny upon the coach from an already-skeptical fanbase will become more pointed if TerBush doesn't deliver mistake-free football.

Marve, TerBush and Henry have all publicly said the right things during the last few seasons- good for them; that has to be hard.  Hope continues to say all three will play, not only Saturday, but throughout the season...because the quarterbacks are 300% better than just one! But, I'd think decisions like this will make it even harder to continuously hold the team line for the three-headed monster of #19, #9 and #15.  I honestly hope they can continue to do so. On top of that, I also hope that TerBush leads Purdue to victory in South Bend...for his coach's sake, he'd better.

Another Look at Nike's (not Purdue's) New Train

If you break down the old motion train, from a visual standpoint, there's room for revision. The perspective doesn't line up well, and there are some issues in the mark that make it kind of tough to love.  But, I've always, at least, liked it.

I've worked on the licensing side of the business with Purdue...and understand a bit of what Nike's problem with the old train was. It's not a balanced shape, so it's tough to center on hats and shirts and its sharp tail makes it hard to fit onto sleeves and things of that nature. So, I get why Nike would want a revised logo.  I also understand that if the athletic department has to pay $0 for a revised logo, they'll probably jump at that.

But, the new train that Nike is forcing upon Purdue fans leaves a lot to be desired. It's designed kind of lazy in that it's not only balanced, but completely symmetrical (the smoke specifically).  But, much worse, the smoke seems to form a very veiny phallic shape...which is nothing but negative, from my perspective...and if it's not a joke being played on Purdue, it's laziness, once again, that let it by.

I'm a person that hates criticism without a solution being offered...so simply, here is my quick solution- Change the smoke and add the motion P to the front, and I think Nike might have a winner.  As of this morning, in the BTN poll, over 80% of the fans who looked at the new mark disapproved of it...
Here's my solution:

Thoughts?

Quick Take On Recent Football Stupidity

It's now official, Beckford has been rightfully suspended for the bowl game...and in his wake, Gerald Gooden and Will Lucas thought it'd be a good time for them to introduce themselves to the police.

On Monday night after accruing a bunch of parking tickets, Lucas and Gooden removed the boot from Gooden's (I believe) and took back the property.  The problem is, once a vehicle is booted, I believe the police regard that car as theirs until the fines are paid...but if you get that far, usually the tickets and fees are a few hundred bucks.

After taking their car back, the two were arrested for theft.  Sweet.

Gooden (2) & Lucas (45)

If you're keeping count, Purdue has two starters already suspended and another with a blown ACL.  So now, Gooden, Lucas and Hope await Purdue's ruling on the matter (it was university police, not West Lafayette).  My thought is pretty simple- these guys deserve to be suspended for the bowl game.

If they are, either by Purdue or by Hope, Gooden will have played his last game at Purdue and the team will lose its second LB this week.

Perhaps the three seasons in which the team didn't go to a bowl game kept Purdue's players from getting themselves into trouble. In both Beckford's and the Gooden/Lucas cases, the players probably would have been at home had they not been forced to stay on campus. In a roundabout way, they're getting what they want, right? Many players complained about the bowl draw via Twitter...so I'd give these guys their wish and send them home.

There's a pretty good debate raging on GBI and Twitter about the most-recent arrests and how egregious they are. Some are calling the guys thugs; I don't agree with that assessment...but they're definitely two guys who made some silly decisions (not paying parking tickets) followed by a really stupid one (taking the car back without paying the fines).  Like Mom always said, you can pay now or pay later, but you're going to pay.  As is the case in most crimes, this one would/could only end with the police getting involved as the proof is extremely simple to gather.

The second part of this issue that tweaks me a bit is if a normal student were to do this, what trouble would he be in? I don't think he'd get off by merely paying the parking tickets and boot fine; so these guys should be no different.

I think most of the Purdue football players are pretty decent people...I've met enough of them to make my own opinion about it. Purdue's football program struggled all season to get the fans behind them...and incidents like what we've seen in the last week don't help an already beleaguered program's image.  Hope shouldn't wait for the university's ruling, in my opinion, to react to this one...his waiting two days on the Beckford situation was probably too much.

Western Michigan's offense feasted (at times) during the regular season on weak defenses.  I really thought they'd struggle to put up a big number versus Purdue.  Now, since three starting defenders are potentially out, we might have seen the tipping point that I joked about yesterday.


Out for Little Caesar's Bowl
Beckford (LB)- DWI
Ross (WR)- Academics

Bolden- ACL injury

Awaiting Decision
Gooden (DE)- theft
Lucas (LB)- theft