Coach Hope Not Connecting With In-State Prospects?

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

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

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

Hope's comment on it all?

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

I see. Hear that, Florida recruits?

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

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

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

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

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

Hope Playing Poker with Lightning's Digit

Earlier in the week, we took umbrage as Adam Rittenberg, or one of his interns called out Purdue for not making the quarterbacks available to the media via their Twitter feed. Honestly, we weren't angry with that sentiment, but the idea that Purdue should genuflect at the altar of EsPN and other media outlets all in the name of coverage for lil' tiny Purdue.

Before we dive into that, let me make something clear. As Purdue fans and alums, we absolutely have the right to be pissed when a member of the media condescends about our alma mater. Furthermore, don't we as people have the right be angry about whatever we want? As long as our anger doesn't manifest itself in a way that hurts anyone, how is it their business to tell us how to react to anything, especially something that is "ours"? Regardless of their opinion of what happened earlier in the week, I really don't care. I've lived much of my life with a chip on my shoulder, and I likes it that way.

But the root of the disagreement comes from Danny Hope's choice of not having a quarterback available at the Tuesday presser. I'm not a big fan of the way he controls info...but if it helps him prepare for an opponent in an effective manner, I think that's OK.

The latest from Hope and Co. is that Henry might be able to go, but the trainers and Henry are trying to keep the wound from becoming infected as that would only prolong the recovery. Who knows, other than Rob and the team, what's really going on. But, since there are no NFL-like rules in place, I think it's good for the Coach to play this close to the vest. This game is critical for both teams, so you take every possible advantage at hand.

As many of you have noted, Henry's throwing hand had little to do with the defense's poor play...and I'd surmise that if the defense plays anything like it did versus Ohio State or Toledo in the first half, the offense becomes all but a moot point. Will Lucas was one of the only bright points versus the Bucks. And while he's on the two-deeps, he might be on the field more than some of the starters due to the way he was finishing plays and getting to the ball.

Linebacker and Safety play must be leagues better this week in order for Purdue to expect victory...heck, so must the front four and corner play. You have to go back two decades as a Purdue fan to recall a half of football like what we saw in Columbus for our Boilers. Just as Toledo served as a wake-up call, hopefully the last contest will do the same...it simply must.

I'm not positive if a week is enough to make Sean Robinson comfortable as a starting quarterback or if a laceration to a throwing hand can heal in a matter of 6 days...but Hope, Nord and Landholm must find a way to bring a large amount of improvement and consistency into Purdue's play in order to gameplan in the coming weeks for their opponents. Regardless of the reason for poor play- whether it be injury, youth, lack of depth or poor execution, I think everyone agrees that if a bowl is still a goal, Purdue still has a ton of work left to do.

Thursday Gumbo

If you listened to the Handsome Hour or are a dork like I am, these stats are redundant. If not, there's some tell-tale stuff in the numbers at this point in the season.

First off, I've had a problem with Purdue's defensive play and more poignantly, the defensive coordinator, Landholm. One thing that didn't help my opinion of him was an interview that GBI had this week with the first year Purdue DC. When asked if he regretted the base defense versus UND in their final drive, he said he'd do it the same if in that position again. That's not at all what I want to hear after watching Purdue's defense playing in a trench coat for UND's final drive...this philosophy of keeping guys in front of you, especially with an injured quarterback, makes no sense. But, turns out, my opinion isn't the only thing showing that the coach might not be doing such a great job...the numbers corroborate my theory.

Purdue is 97th in scoring defense and 108th in total defense. The pass defense that was supposed to be tough, and was in the top-3 last season is 9th in the Big Ten. Granted, most BT teams have been playing some pillow-soft cream puffs thus far, but NIU and Toledo aren't Florida and OK.

On the positive side of the stat line, Werner is 10th in the nation in TFL & tied for 30th in sacks. The only other Boiler in the top-100 in a category is Torri Williams (along with Werner once again) who is a top-100 tackler.

On the offensive side of the ball, things look pretty respectable...part of that is because the running start this unit received v. Toledo, but they've been able to put up points and yards, if inconsistently, all season.

The offense is 32nd in total offense, and 36th in scoring offense. Of course you know about Ralph Bolden who started the first two games like an absolute mother, but gotten unhinged the past few games...but is still the 7th-leading rusher in the nation. Keith Smith is 14th in rec/gm & 29th in rec. yds/gm. Valentin is #1 in the Big Ten in total yards/gm due to the fact that he plays punt returner, kickoff returner and receivers...and is pretty good at all three.

I think comparing/contrasting the two sides of the ball might want to give pause to those who have been urging Coach Hope to play someone else at QB...I'm one of those people, by the way. But, as I've said before, you can't replace an entire defense, you can easily replace a quarterback...even for a possession or two. And if the defense isn't going to stop anybody, plain and simply-put, the offense simply must be high-octane.

Mr. Smith (cont.)
Keith Smith has nearly done it all for Nord's offense this season. And like Notre Dame's Tate, he's lined up at multiple positions in order to get him the ball. What's noteworthy to me is how Smith simply doesn't fit the mold of the multi-dimensional player in this era. Most of them are blazingly-fast a la Reggie Bush at SC...but Smith is a hybrid of sorts. Not a scat back or water bug, he's kind of a fullback/H-back but seems to be nearly impossible to stop if given the rock in the right situation. He's one of Purdue's only receivers that runs precise routes, he holds his blocks well, can shed defenders and can even throw a laser of a ball...pretty awesome to watch this guy come into his own.

Post-Concussion Love
We all know Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow are very fond of eachother...and after Saturday's game in which Tebow left in an ambulance, Coach Meyer was nearly in tears as he gave his report. It's understandable...Tebow's probably been a great guy to coach and they've been moderately successful together, I guess. But, does anyone else think it's odd that Urban Meyer took the post-concussion test with Tim Tebow yesterday? Maybe it's just me.