Ain't No Party Like A Pinstripe Party

Delany shows off his bland-ball.

The Big Ten agreed to a deal to be an (evidently willing) participant in a December bowl game in New York, as Jim Delany was on hand at Yankee Stadium yesterday. Delaney even spent some time in the booth with Michael Kay and Al Leiter, making sure to mention Urban Meyer, Mark Dantonio, Kirk Ferentz, "the coach at Wisconsin," and how great the league is.

Delany then threw three scoreless innings in relief of Andy Pettitte, who is actually nine years Delany's senior.

The Big Ten's partnership with the Pinstripe Bowl will run from 2014 through 2021, so you still have the '13 game to enjoy a titanic matchup of also-rans from the Big 12 and Big East. The Big Ten will officially replace the Big 12 in that pairing, but it also sounds like the Big East (now "American Athletic Conference") isn't long for the bowl game necessarily, either. According to Delaney's cryptic comments on-air last night, it sounds like that is still being negotiated. Whatever, nobody cares.

I actually attended the Rutgers-Iowa State Pinstripe Bowl in 2011. Yeah, I don't know why, either.

Yay, bowl games!

Heart of Dallas Bowl Predicto -- Poke the Cowboys!

Cowpokes!

Admit it -- you missed the BS Predicto. The sarcasm, the handsomeness, the information. It's all part of a delicious stew of yumminess that you only get to savor one more time before the Darrell Hazell Era is officially upon us.

What does the interim/lame-duck coaching staff have in store for tomorrow's Heart of Dallas Bowl tilt against the well-rounded, Cowboys of Okie State? Will they come out stiff? Or bouncing all over the place?

That's very hard to say. Hell, it was hard to say when there was a.....normal-duck coaching staff in place.

However, we're firm in our confidence that we have the ability to predict the fun for you. So read on...and get some skin in the game.

zlionsfan sez:

Many years ago, in the days when we took stone textbooks to class and built fires in our dorm caves to keep warm, Purdue football meant disappointment and sadness, and actually watching Purdue in a bowl game was something we had only heard about from our ancestors.

Then this new coach came to town, and he showed us that Purdue could, in fact, beat middle-of-the-pack teams on a regular basis ... and do so often enough to get to a bowl game. In that season, fifteen years ago, Purdue met another program that thought it was experiencing a similar renaissance: Oklahoma State. The Cowboys had endured six(!) miserable seasons under Pat Jones and then two more under Bob Simmons before finally cracking the .500 mark and getting into the Alamo Bowl to face the Boilers.

The 33-20 win marked a turning point for both programs, though not in the same direction. We know Tiller's story: in contrast, Oklahoma State would not break .500 again under Simmons, and they would win just one bowl game in four years under Les Miles (yes, that Les Miles).

But just as Purdue's fortunes changed as Tiller left, so too did Oklahoma State's after Miles. Under Mike Gundy (you know, "I'm 40!"), the Cowboys are making their seventh consecutive bowl appearance. Fortunately for the Boilers, this isn't the same team that was a touchdown away from a perfect season, the one that knocked off Andrew Luck's Stanford team in the Fiesta Bowl.

Unfortunately, they're still a class above Purdue. All five of Oklahoma State's losses came against bowl-bound teams, and two of those five won their bowl games (the other three have yet to play). The Cowboys feature an offense that gets a first down or a touchdown on seven of every nine drives, 11th-best in the country. (The median offense - Northwestern's - does so six times in nine. Purdue's rate is .588, 109th of 124 I-A teams.) They score almost 45 points a game, fourth best in the nation. It'll be a tough test for a team that's allowed 35 or more points in half its games this year.

To be fair, this would be a challenge for any team undergoing a coaching change ... but Hope was never able to get a consistent defensive effort from this team, so it isn't as though keeping him around would have made any difference (and it would likely have cost Purdue any chance at Hazell). Instead, it'll be Patrick Higgins taking one for the team - he'll become the first Purdue coach in 105 years to end his tenure without a win. (Those were dark days indeed: Purdue posted consecutive 0-5 records in 1906 and 1907, both times including a loss to Wabash. Yes, that Wabash.)  

Oklahoma State 44
Purdue 21

J sez:

Who was the best team the Boilers beat this year? That sloppy, thuggish Marshall squad? The reeling Hawkeyes? Could you actually make an argument that their best win was over....IU? I think you might-could.

Eastern Kentucky actually had the best record of any team that Purdue beat this season at 8-3, but they're not even FBS-level. No, folks, Purdue didn't beat a single, bowl-eligible opponent in their 6-6 season that Danny Hope termed "extremely successful" after the Bucket game. And there's yet another example of where the mindset has been within the walls of Purdue football.

We've made no secret of the fact that we're thrilled with the Darrell Hazell hire and truly excited for Purdue football for the first time in a while. (And not just in the Danny Hope "excited" sense.) But for now, there's one more game under the old regime...sort of.

Patrick Higgins has done an admirable job keeping the guys focused and, truth be told, he has been a big improvement over Gary Nord as OC, winning the final three games while using Robert Marve almost exclusively. Higgins should get a look at some head coaching positions, I think, and it appears that even the state-run Purdue athletics media agrees and is trying to pump him up to potential suitors. A UTEP blog was also clumsily trying to say earlier this month that he might/maybe/possibly will come back to the Miners as OC/WR coach, which seems like an odd move, but hey, who knows? Regardless, we appreciate that Coach Higgins has tried to keep the guys focused and is clearly trying to send off the seniors on a high note. The guy deserves a good job somewhere. 

Sadly, I don't think that tomorrow is going to go very well for the good guys. Even if Gary Nord is (hopefully) not even granted a credential to get into the building, the remnants of the Hope/Nord era remain on this team. They don't seem to focus all that well, they don't seem to grasp the tasks at hand and they tend to play up/down to their competition far too often. This will lead to near-misses against ND and OSU, but also far-too-close games against Marshall and Illinois. We've read some deeply concerned quotes from some of the players in recent days that look as though they were written as bulletin-board material by a blog looking to troll a team. As I said, a serious lack of comprehension of what's going on around them.

This was a bad, 3-6 football team that cobbled together suspect victories over truly bad Iowa and Illinois teams and then had a fun day at home against the hapless Hoosiers. When they played good teams, they were embarrassingly overmatched. Oklahoma State is a good team, make no mistake about that. Their 7-5 record belies the fact that they can score in bunches, have terrific athletes and are well-coached by a man over 40.

I think that Robert Marve will put on his superman pajamas one more time and his heart will keep the Boilers in the game. If you like scoring, this one will have scoring. The Boilermakers just won't have quite enough to keep up with the pokes.

Pokes 48
Boilermakers 35

Not a man, nor is
she 40.

Boilerdowd sez:

I've read everything that's out there about our transitional Boilers...Shorter, more-intense practices, team-building and a ton of positivity...that's all good.  No one (besides Kingsley Ike) who practiced with the Boilers for much of the season has missed bowl prep...another positive.  Sean Robinson has healed faster than many thought he would and has been upgraded to positive- the defense will need all hands on deck...so that's another positive. Even Ralph Bolden looks good to go; a super-positive for me as he's one of my favorite Boilers on the roster.

Gary Nord is still on the mend, Danny Hope has moved out of God's Country...the coaching staff is abridged but focused. Marve is as healthy as a guy with one working ACL can be.  The stable of running backs is hungry, the receivers are dialed in to play an opponent that's much better than any of the teams our Boilers beat this season.

Is this team capable of playing with or beating good teams? Hells yes! They showed that v. aOSU and UND.  Is this team capable of getting dismantled by high powered offense? No diggety, no doubt.

Okie State's 7-5 is deceptive- they beat some very good teams...and still have one of the best coaches in America, in spite of rumors that circled around Coach Gundy just a month ago.

Reading what the players have said both in Purdue outlets and other papers, it seems the players are very confident...that was never good news under Coach Hope.  And in spite of Hope's exit, the remnants of his program remain, and old habits die hard.

Here's to Robert Marve going out on top and proving me very wrong.  I think the Cowboys just have too much firepower for the defense to stop and for the offense to keep up with.

OK St. 52
Purdue 33

Two Tickets to Paradise (Or the Heart of Dallas Bowl)

Reader and friend of the program Ed has two tickets available for the Jan 1 heavyweight slugfest between the Boilers and Cowboys in the Cotton Bowl.

From Ed:

Some things have changed scheduling wise on my end and I am not going to be able to use my Heart of Dallas bowl tickets.  If you guys have a trivia winner back up or someone else in the Dallas area that you know can use the tickets, let me know.  They are in Sec 24 (50 yd line) in row 37 and are in the Purdue section.  I will overnight the tickets via Fed Ex if you can get me an address quickly.  Of course, the tickets are free of charge.  I know some OSU guys at work that might be able to use them but really prefer they go to a Purdue fan.  

So what do you say, Boiler fans? Can you help Ed out and make sure these tickets don't wind up in the hands of an Okie State Cowboys fan? These are better than the general admission tickets we were giving away last week.

Riddle me this... first correct answer in the comments wins the tickets...

Who was Danny Hope's first Big Ten victory against?

BS Trivia Contest Day 3: Win Tickets to Heart of Dallas Bowl

[UPDATE: We have multiple winners, plus some other alternates who knew the answer is Ryan Russell. Thanks for playing!]

We've reached Day 3 of the epic Boiled Sports bowl game ticket giveaway.

You know, when Coach Hazell has Purdue in a BCS bowl game, it'll be even more fun to give away tickets.

What a great Christmas present it would be to hand over a pair of tickets to see your Boilermakers play in the historic Cotton Bowl. Be one of the first two people to email the correct answer to today's question to BoiledSports@gmail.com and you'll win a pair of tickets.

View the question, after the click-through.

Trivia Day 1 Answer

The answer for Day 1 was crowd favorite Billy Dicken. (He makes terrific cider, by the way.)

In the 1997 Alamo Bowl, Billy led the Boilers to a win over Oklahoma State 33-20 in San Antonio, throwing for 325 yards and completing a 9-3 season in Joe Tiller's first year at the helm.

Here's to more first-year success like this.

And thanks to reader Derrick on reminding us what Billy is up to these days, as he is the OC/QBs coach at Illinois Wesleyan. 

Congrats to our winners and thanks for the huge response. Enjoy the remaining chances to win.

BS Trivia Contest Day 2: Win Tickets to Heart of Dallas Bowl

[UPDATE: Winners came in fast and furious... and so to give me less emailing to do, you can stop sending your answers now. We have two winners and an alternate winner in case one of them backs out. Next chance to win tomorrow at noon, eastern.

Oh, and the answer is eight years. 1997-2004.]

It's Day 2 of the great Boiled Sports ticket giveaway.

*tumbleweed*

Hey, that's not the joke you think it is! It's just meant to symbolize north Texas!

Anyway, it's Day 2. After the click-through, you'll see today's question.

Once again, the first two correct answers emailed to BoiledSports@gmail.com win a pair of tickets each to the Heart of Dallas Bowl on January 1 in the Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Tejas.

BS Triva Contest Day 1: Win Tickets to Heart of Dallas Bowl

I love you, BS Ticket Oak.

[Editor's Note: This was supposed to post at noon, but Blogger is dumb. Our apologies. That is all.]

Today is Day 1 of our monumental gigantic modest giveaway of tickets to see your Boilermakers play in the Heart of Dallas bowl on New Year's Day.

We kid, but a Jan 1 bowl game is actually a fun experience as you're one of only a few programs left playing at that point -- no matter how you got there, you're there.

We wish we could also fly you guys to Dallas for the game, but since we're not totally loaded (or we're just not willing to share our riches), we'll give you free tickets instead.

As noted earlier in the week, the first two correct answers emailed to Boiled Sports at BoiledSports@gmail.com will win a pair of tickets each. (Since I don't trust the class to follow instructions, I'm actually turning off comments for this post -- an unprecedented move that maybe we'll make more often. Heh.)

After the click-through, you'll see today's question. 

Where to Be Merry with Purdue Fans in Dallas [UPDATED]

As always, we defer to the locals to further inform this, but we wanted to get some info out there regarding where to gather with fellow Boilermakers while in Dallas for the Heart of Dallas Bowl and, potentially, for New Year's Eve.

Remember, folks, the Heart of Dallas Bowl kicks off at 11 AM, local time, so getting to Dallas that morning seems dicey at best. This is, of course, also an opportunity for all you generous lads to open your doors to any 20-something college ladies who are looking for a place to crash. You know, in the spirit of Hailing Purdue.

To begin with, the official Purdue alumni bar in the Dallas area is BlackFinn American Saloon, located in Addison, about 18 miles from the Cotton Bowl and a little bit north of downtown. The problem with BlackFinn, of course, is that it's also an Oklahoma State alumni bar. (Though the official bowl site is listing two other bars as Ok St. bars -- do we trust people in Big 12 country? I, for one, do not.) I mention it, though, because it's a good option for maybe the night before and potentially for during the game, as long as you don't mind being outnumbered.

More to most of your liking, though, is the bar that has agreed to host Breakfast Club on New Year's Day, Dick's Last Resort. No word on whether or not they're closing at all from the night before. Dallas being what it is, though, if you decide to party on New Year's Eve and your bar of choice does close, there is no shortage of strip clubs you can pass a few hours in before heading over to Dick's Last Resort for the first breakfast club of 2013.

The Dallas Dick's is located just five miles from the Cotton Bowl and as per Travis' post, is "conveniently located near the West End DART railway station, which connects to both the Union Station at the Hyatt Regency Hotel and the Fair Park Station at the Cotton Bowl along the Green Line so that everyone can easily and safely make it to the game on time for kickoff."

Further details on Breakfast Club at Dick's are a follows:

Where: Dick's Last Resort 2211 North Lamar Street Dallas, TX 75202 (214) 747-0001

When: 7:30am - 9:30am; they will stay open for the game so those w/o tickets can stay and watch

What: $10 breakfast buffet (breakfast tacos, eggs, potatoes, sausage etc), $4 Bloody Mary's & screw drivers, $3 domestic pints. So come pig out! You're sure to come up aces!

Important: Please RSVP to the DFW Alumni Club email by Friday, December 28th, so that a head count can be passed onto to the people at Dick's Last Resort.(There is no commitment to buy -- but if you even might go, send in your RSVP.)

Breakfast club... where there's nothing to be blue about.

[UPDATE]

From regular reader ATL Boiler, the following will be happening at the team hotel:

Boilermaker Happy Hour - 12/31
4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

LOCATION: TEN Sports Grill, 1302 Main Street, Dallas, TX (OWNED BY A LOCAL BOILERMAKER)
OVERVIEW: Join other Boilermaker Alumni for a late afternoon, New Year’s Eve warm-up. Cash bar, appetizers provided.
ADMISSION: Open to all Boilermakers and friends

New Year’s Eve Celebration
7:00 p.m. to Midnight

LOCATION: Purdue Team Hotel — Hyatt Regency Hotel (300 Reunion Boulevard, Dallas, TX)
OVERVIEW: Join fellow Boilermakers and friends for Black & Gold camaraderie and New Year’s Eve cheer. Light appetizers will be available starting at 7:00 p.m. Cash bar.
ADMISSION: Open to all Boilermakers and friends

Let BS Provide You a Ticket to the Heart of Dallas Bowl

On January 1, our Boilers will take part in the Heart of Dallas Bowl versus the Oklahoma State Grown Men Who Are Over 40 in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas.

The kind folks at the Heart of Dallas Bowl have made some general admission tickets available to us and so we're going to give those away this week. How are we going to give them away? Well, by judging your sad story of need and how you can't afford exorbitant (not really) bowl game tickets. No, not really... actually, we're thinking of making it fun and putting together a few trivia questions and then giving the tickets away to the correct answers.

So here's the deal. Starting Wednesday at 12 Noon (Eastern), a post will appear here with a Purdue-related trivia question in it. The first two correct answers emailed to BS (not in the comments) will be awarded with a pair of tickets each.

Yes, you'd still have to get there yourself. But I know there are a fair number of Texan Boilermakers and I also know the Boilermaker Special is bring driven down to the Lone Star State, so hitching a ride on the cowcatcher shouldn't be a problem.

Tune in Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at 12 noon each day to get a chance at a pair of tickets to the Heart of Dallas Bowl.

If after Friday's contest we still have tickets remaining, we'll put up the BS bat signal and let you know.

Analyzing Coach Hazell's Decision to Coach Kent St in Bowl Game

As you likely know, we're quite excited about the Darrell Hazell hire here at BS. Of course, it wouldn't be BS if we weren't being honest and giving you our full perspective. To that end, I wanted to make a couple quick comments here regarding Coach Hazell's decision to continue to coach Kent State during bowl season.

Ordinarily, coaches sever ties immediately with their previous employer once they accept a new coaching gig. Many say they'd like to coach their former team but also understand that those programs need to move forward with decisions and cut ties to make things clear to everyone remaining at the program as to who is in charge. Coach Hazell is running some of the Golden Flashes bowl practices and will, as of now, be coaching them in the GoDaddy.com bowl on January 6. (Which, you know, wouldn't it have been nice if they were in one of the earlier bowls? Like, say, this coming weekend?)

He's also out on the recruiting trail for Purdue and intends to be present at the Boilers' Jan 1 Heart of Dallas Bowl appearance versus the Cowboys of Oklahoma State. I like this for a lot of reasons, mainly because he'll be evaluating not only the players on the field but the remaining Purdue coaching staff. As b-dowd noted last week, there are some guys on the staff who deserve some consideration so this is a good thing.

Going back to Coach Hazell pulling double duty, I will admit that my first thoughts were that it isn't a good idea. I don't like the idea of him splitting time. He's Purdue's coach now, and while that might sound selfish, Purdue is reportedly paying him $2M/year so I think that's adequate compensation to expect his full, undivided attention. I do think it says a lot about the man that he really wants to finish what he started this season at Kent State, but let's be honest -- it's the GoDaddy.com Bowl, not a BCS bowl game. I'd understand the latter a bit more, actually, because it would mean so much to the program. But a meaningless bowl like the GoDaddy? I don't see it.

I also know that there is an argument that his players -- especially the seniors -- deserve to have him there, and that is somewhat true. However, he's already jumped ship, regardless of how nicely he did it. I don't think he screwed over those players and everything we've heard indicates they don't think he did, either. So what more does he owe them?

All that said, I do find it interesting that he'll be coaching and it's something that will make me tune in and see how the Flashes do. If they have a memorable night on the eve of the national title game, then that really should mean good things for Purdue in terms of press -- hey, this is the guy the Boilermakers got.

Looks good in Black and Gold

The final thought that concerns me is simply borne out of being a Purdue fan and always expecting the worst. I know he's signed at Purdue (at least, he damn well better be), but you never want a guy to have the chance to go back to his old, comfortable situation and decide he just can't leave those boys and that next year could be even better, etc. My cynical mind says, "What if he's really comfortable there and they somehow offer him a raise?" I know they can't pay him $2M, so it really should be moot -- but if you're a Purdue fan, you understand my slight uneasiness. No, I don't think he's going anywhere -- it's just that until he's 100% in black and gold, there's a nervousness I can't shake. Again, this is simply being a Boilermaker fan and not wanting bad things to happen to our program.

I'm definitely curious in others' opinions and so please weigh in here and in the poll at the right. What do you think about Coach Hazell coaching his Golden Flashes one more time while already under contract at Purdue?

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.

Next Stop: Houston?

I was wrong. I thought the Boilers would finish 3-9, or at best 4-8 after Burke let it slip that Hope would be let go after the Indiana game and the seniors responded by crushing IU for him. (Of course, they did that anyway ...) Instead, they're likely to end up 6-7 after finishing their season outside Big Ten country.

Throwing at or away from Ricardo Allen? You decide.

In a normal year, it wouldn't technically be outside the area: it would be in Ford Field against a MAC school that could hold its own against the Boilers. The good news is that the Kent State-Northern Illinois winner won't be taking apart Purdue's defense; the bad news is that it could be West Virginia doing the work.

Thanks to NCAA action against two otherwise bowl-eligible teams, and to Purdue and Michigan State realizing that you do need to win six games to go, the Big Ten will be sending seven teams to fill eight slots. (Sorry, Mr. Ilitch.) Of course the Big Ten has the rules for filling the spots hidden, so courtesy of Adam Rittenberg, here they are (note that the order in the link is from 2011):

• Conference champion to the BCS, in the Rose Bowl unless they're one of the top two teams (ha!);
• At-large teams to the BCS if they have won at least nine games and are in the top 14 (possible, but unlikely, with Nebraska 14th; a loss to Wisconsin would knock them out);
• Capital One and Outback Bowls can "drop down" no more than one win and one loss when selecting a team – if there is a 9-3 team available, they can take an 8-4 team but not a 7-5 or an 8-5 team;
• Conference runner-up can't drop lower than fourth selection after BCS teams.

First, let's dispense with the bowls we know Purdue won't be going to:

Rose: Nebraska. Please please please do not send a five-loss team to a BCS bowl. Yes, the Badgers have three OT losses and two three-point losses in regulation, but they have zero quality wins and an offense that makes their basketball offense look exciting. Nebraska will get the season sweep and return to the Rose for the first time since the 2001 season. (Should Nebraska fumble this away, Wisconsin goes here, Nebraska to the Capital One, and Michigan and Northwestern move down one spot each.)

Capital One: Michigan. The best remaining record is Northwestern's 9-3. The old Tangerine Bowl will look at Michigan's fan base and Northwestern's fan base and give David Brandon a call. (A win over Ohio State might have propelled Michigan into the top 14; they won't even be in the top 25 now.) That locks Northwestern into ..

Outback: Northwestern. The second appearance in four years for Pat Fitzgerald's crew. Given who's near the top of the SEC East, it'll likely be a tough matchup for a school that hasn't won a bowl since the 1948 season.

The remaining teams will have 7 or 6 wins, so Purdue could theoretically go anywhere in here. However, that's unlikely.

Gator: Wisconsin. The Badgers laid an egg at the end of the season, but still locked up the division thanks to Purdue's horrible conference start. They still travel well, haven't been to the Gator Bowl ever, and could only drop one more spot anyway. The Gator isn't taking a 6-6 team when it can take a 7-6 team.

BWW: Michigan State. Distraught to learn that the Hawkeyes would not be available this year, the Insight Bowl changed its name to the BWW Bowl. The Spartans have a handful of close losses (five by a total of 13 points) and just whacked Minnesota in Minneapolis; they'll be next to go.

Meineke: Purdue. There, I said it. Meineke and Heart of Dallas will arm-wrestle, with the winner getting first pick. Both bowls will intentionally try to lose. ESPN will cut them off in frustration and sort the teams alphabetically, except they'll do it backwards because that's how things go in Bristol.

If you squint, you can almost see old gold and black in one of the end zones.

Heart of Dallas: Minnesota. Sorry, that's what happens when you're lowest on the list: you get no choice.

Who will the Boilers draw in the Texas Bowl? It's hard to say, with the Big Notquite12 having one more week of games remaining, but it's entirely possible that West Virginia, after destroying Kansas, will be the sixth choice out of the conference. (Oklahoma's OT win over Oklahoma State keeps them alive for an at-large bid, so if they beat TCU, they could knock every remaining team up one spot.)

The other teams in the vicinity are Texas Tech, TCU, and Baylor – you know, the team that beat Kansas State. Should Purdue fall to the Heart of Dallas Bowl, they'll get the eighth-choice team from the Big 12: add Iowa State to the mix, as a Baylor loss to Oklahoma State would leave the Bears 6-6 with the Cyclones.

No matter who the Boilers draw, it'll be a tough matchup, especially for the defense. The guys forced some key turnovers today, but they gave up a lot of points as well ... and that's the kind of play that fits perfectly into the hands of the high-scoring Big 12.

I think it would be cool for Purdue to give Danny Hope a going-away present. Purdue has met disappointed teams from the Big 12 before and come away with wins: those Alamo Bowl appearances were the last time Purdue won bowl games in back-to-back seasons. Ironically, Oklahoma State, the first of Purdue's victims, could end up meeting them again ... and losses to rival Oklahoma and to Baylor would likely leave them just as disappointed as they were 15 years ago.

The Non-Winner Mentality

In the wake of our commentaries over the weekend, we've received some very nice feedback from many of you, who seem to feel we're publishing what your heart and mind have been feeling for quite some time. While we're selfish bastards who do this for our own entertainment and catharsis, it is always a nice ancillary perk to know we've hit the mark with so many of you.

Naturally, there were some who disagreed with our takes, but it's interesting how few actually took umbrage with it. We put forth some pretty forceful opinions and by and large, the responses were "right on, handsome devils."

Believe me, it gives us no pleasure to acknowledge how futile the direction of the football program is. But it was something that we felt needed to be addressed.

I've been thinking about it more in the past couple of days and I think I know what part of the problem is. It's a mindset issue that exists among the fanbase and, most likely, also among the athletic department and coaching staff. I'm sure nobody would admit it, but I certainly will.

I don't want to call it a loser's mentality, because that sounds a little too harsh. Maybe it goes back to that word I kept landing on over the weekend -- mediocrity. Once mediocrity becomes acceptable, you're toast. If excellence is the goal and you fall short, you might still have something to be proud of. If mediocrity is your goal and you fall short, you're sadly raising a pizza bowl trophy over your head in front of a 60% full, cold-weather venue on a Tuesday in late December.

The issue here is that so many people associated with Purdue athletics look at things from the "Look, it's setting up for us!" perspective. How many times have we heard that the division is there for the taking this year? How many times have we heard people talk about Purdue "sneaking" into the Big Ten championship game? Why can't the Big Ten title game be the goal no matter what kind of foes are on the schedule? That's the goal for good teams in all conferences: Win. Be better than everyone else. Work harder until you are.

It is not "Win some games, maybe surprise a couple teams, write off the hard ones, and hope to back into a nice finish to the season."

Yet, at Purdue, isn't that what we're all cheering for? That Purdue can somehow beat a good program like Michigan or Wisconsin, avoid anyone being hurt at Ohio State (Hey! We'll sacrifice our pride, though!), and then hope to cling on to a 4-4 or 5-3 conference record to squeak into the Big Ten title game? Is that really what we should be cheering for? To get lucky?

This is a problem that has seeped its way into many programs. You get used to your place in the order of things. You accept that you'll never be a powerhouse. You put out of your mind the idea of competing in ways we haven't seen in decades.

I, for one, reject that out of hand. Sure, it would take some serious re-evaluating of what's important in West Lafayette. It would take a complete and utter mindset change. And along with those things, it would most likely mean a change of mentality from the very top on down.

Well, President Daniels takes office in January. And while there are some people who naively think that he's going to cut funding and budgets because of his deficit hawk ways as Governor, the fact is that you have an aggressive, success-minded leader coming in who knows the value of a dollar. Mitch Daniels the Purdue University President will be a different man than Mitch Daniels the Governor of a state with an $800 million deficit when he took over.

Let's hope he starts by evaluating everything and deciding how to make Purdue stronger in every way.

The Only Thing That Could Make This Bowl Any Better Would Be If Our Team Couldn't Close The Deal!

You know what would be cool, random fan of the other team I am buddies with? If this bowl game was really close but our team couldn't close the deal and thus we got to see shi-ty, college-rules overtime!

High five!

It turns out that Buffalo Wild Wings will be sponsoring a bowl game out in the Arizona desert, formerly known as the Insight Bowl. And since it typically features a Big Ten team, there's chance that we will be subjected to our favorite program being in a bowl game brought to you by an outfit that thinks this is how being a fan of competitive sports works.

We've bitched about this before -- both boilerdowd and I loathe BWW's commercials, because they appear to be written by our mothers.....that is: "Sports -- yay!"

We will often text each other randomly during games and just say, "You know what would make this game even better? A janitor controlling sprinklers."

Well, it turns out we have a kindred spirit in the form of MGoBlog's Brian Cook:

I hope other people are driven as insane by the idea people would go to a sports bar and cheer for a tie, or that someone could be watching the Detroit Randoms try a last-ditch Hail Mary down a touchdown and say "the only thing that could make this better is… OVERTIME" instead of "the only thing that could make this better is winning 68-0 and being at a place where the food comes on, you know, plates." I hate the fake BWW people so, so much. 

 Thank you, Brian.

Purdue Football: The Wrong Kind of Optimism

Now it's time for the Panda to weigh in on the upcoming football season...


Purdue football has had a tough few years. After finally breaking the bowl drought, the Boilermakers got a big 5 dollar hot and ready pizza for winning the Little Caesars Bowl. Although not very impressive, it's a start.

The big news so far has to be the lack of injuries (knock on wood). The past few seasons the Boilermakers have been having some serious issues with losing key players due to injuries, this year it might just be limited to the Where Else? Bar. I know I won't be sad to see that place disappear soon, and I doubt Morgan Burke sheds a tear either. Barlow on the other hand might just find his wallet.

It seems as though everyone is being extremely optimistic [Not everyone.:-) --J] about Purdue's chances this season in the Big Ten, but I just can't fully see it. Sure I see that Ohio State is ineligible for the upcoming post season and Penn State is in shambles, but that still leaves Wisconsin to look for.

Wisconsin will reload as usual, and the only thing going in our favor is that we don't have to play up there this season.  Either way though, Purdue is going to face criticism even if they do win the division, due to the lack of competition.  Not something I'm very optimistic about.  As a diehard fan my entire life, I want to beat the best, and beating the best means winning when your opponents are full strength, not at the state Ohio State, Penn State, or Illinois is in right now.  Now luckily we will be able to face Indiana at full strength, but that's not saying much.

The optimism for this season seems to really rub me the wrong way.  In one way I'm glad to see it, but on the other hand it's hard to accept that the only reason we are in the running for a division title is based upon others' expectations or faults. To me optimism should be about the promise we have in this team this season.

Watching Kawann Short have a terrific senior season should be something to be optimistic about, or seeing what Hope can do with a healthy roster that will hopefully not face any injuries.

With Rob Henry being back in playing shape it should be interesting how this season turns out.  One thing I'm surely not optimistic about is our chance in a BCS game.  That might just get ugly.  Although Purdue might be able to turn the corner and get back to something of that caliber again, the Boilermakers are a few years away from that.

As for this season all we can really hope for is to improve on last season's performance, and build on the bowl victory, even if it was the pizza bowl.

(Not a Little Caesars Pizza)

Morgan Burke's Take On 7-Win Bowl Eligibility and a Note On Aspiring Female Football Fans

In an article posted by the Journal & Courier, Morgan Burke was quoted as supporting the likely move to seven wins for bowl eligibility, which Big Ten Commish Jim Delaney recently talked about as coming sooner or later.

I, for one, am actually with Burke on this one. A season is difficult to describe as "good" when your record is the very definition of mediocrity (6-6). A 7-5 record shows you decisively won more than you lost and that with a bowl win, you're an 8-win team. I think -- and this is unscientific -- the average college football fan would say an 8-win season is pretty good.

Not surprisingly, Coach Hope prefers to stick with the 6-win marker, mainly because -- I imagine -- Danny doesn't measure how good his team is in wins, but in heart. Or something. (Maybe I've just been reading Hopeful Danny's Twitter feed too much.)

Obviously the idea of what the fans prefer can be debated, but I actually appreciate Burke's honesty in stating that a 6-6 team going to a crappy bowl (be it Purdue or anyone else) leads to only marginally-interested fans, unsold tickets and cost to the University. It should feel like a reward and as much as we appreciate the guys who wear the old gold and black and represent us all, they should definitely have to earn that reward.

I did like this quote from Burke and, before you accuse me of reading into something too much, understand that I'm doing it more tongue-and-cheek because it amuses me:

“Having a 7-5 record in football isn’t easy, even with the way we schedule non-conference games.”

Potential translation: Even though we have some cupcakes that should be easy wins, you've seen how hard that can be for us.

Burke also acknowledges how the bar is moving from 6-6 as a measure of success to 7-5, which correlates directly to his remarks before last season that he expected a bowl out of the 2011 team. Coach Hope's squad delivered, just barely. If they hit the 7 win marker this year, I think Morgan Burke should just say the measure of success for 2013 is 12-0.

* * * * * *

Also in the article linked was an interesting tidbit about an upcoming event called "Huddle in Heels," which is a "clinic ...designed for women who want to gain basic football knowledge and who want to learn more about the Purdue football. Gentlemen also are welcome to attend."

I like "learn more about the Purdue football." Kind of like how my grandmother might have said it. I also love that gentlemen are welcome to attend. At first you might think, like hell! I know my football! But think of it this way... you'll be among women who are interested in learning more about football. Isn't that sort of.... hot?

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

A Review of Ford Field, Home of the Little Caesars Bowl

For those going -- or considering going -- to the Purdue-Western Michigan bowl game in Detroit, the Stadium Journey has been there and has a detailed rundown on what you need to know.

It turns out it's a nice place to watch a game and you might not even be shot. Cool!

Enjoy.

Boilers/Hope Get What They Deserve: Trip to Detroit (and B1G Bowl notes)

Last night when Purdue was given the news that they'd be making the short trip to Detroit to play Western Michigan, many players weren't celebrating, but instead were complaining about the draw.  Hours, if not minutes later, the tune changed...and this morning that continued.

Hope and some of the Seniors weighed in on GBI saying they were grateful for getting the invite...and honestly, they all should be.  Two teams eligible for bowls, Ball State (6-6) and Western Kentucky (7-5), didn't receive bowl bids...but everyone who was eligible to go from the B1G got an invite.  That's right TEN of the 12 teams in the conference are going bowling.  That's the most ever invited from one conference.  But is it something to brag about when four of those teams are .500? I think not.

The Scale: IU

"The Scale" is an easily-digested, overly-simplified post-game synopsis from Boiled Sports.