And the hits just keep on coming...

First off, thanks to our pal, Travis over at Off The Tracks for bringing this to our attention.

Purdue's head coach continues his hypocritical talk this week in the Lafayette J & C. For years, Creampuff Joe has been telling us how he doesn't read the internet, doesn't pay attention to any of that, and that all people in the blogosphere and on message boards are "Knuckleheads" who "need to get a life."

Now, he suddenly seems to read, if not take note of us, but only because of our lack of IQ.

You know, Coach Tiller considers himself a bit of a savant, when it comes to psychology...he was a psych major, by the way. He understands the inner workings of the human mind...he knows what makes athletes, and on a greater scale, people tick.

Clearly then, he understands that the best way to rally the fanbase (mostly alums, mind you), is to question their intelligence. Honestly, I'm surprised that people like me, with my low IQ could even understand Joe's big words and bigger concepts that he's been peddling during his tenure at my alma mater.

Joe, since I'm sure you have BS as your homepage on your Tandy 2000, but your damned dial-up connection doesn't let you view all of the rich graphic content of our humble site, I won't include any pictures in this post. Instead, I will keep this simple- You need to spend more time game-planning and motivating the young men who came to Purdue to play under you and less time questioning the IQ of the people who buy tickets and give money to your athletic department...It's just good business at this point. Your legacy is hanging by threads as thin and course as the hairs on your upper lip- Go out and win some games and let everything else fall where it may...And if you really want to really WOW us, how about working in a victory or two over a team with a winning record. That'd be great.

Our fearless leader closes the article by saying the buck starts and ends with one guy- he's right.

Just as Cowboy Joe was once a great leader and motivator of men, he's now made sure that his players understand that they just aren't going to beat every team they play...and gosh darnit, that's OK. And I'll be damned if the team doesn't reflect the very attitude of their coach.

Joe's Genius

Yesterday, Tiller was asked why Justin Siller didn't play v. aOSU. He responded, "It just didn't fit what we were doing."

Well, here's what they were doing:
26 Rush
70 Yds.
2.7 yds/carry

Last year, we heard how important a second back was in a rotation...This year, we've seen a steady diet of draws and isos that don't utilize Sheets' speed ad nauseum with Sheets only getting brief breathers.

So now, Kory Sheets, who couldn't carry the ball more than 15-20 times/game doesn't need help at RB...and Joe honestly telling me that Siller, who according to Tiller himself will be an all-time great at Purdue, couldn't get 2.7 yds/carry last Saturday? Who am I to question...

Don't get me started about Halliburton and Dierking- both seem to be able to tackle awfully well during their downs on Special Teams, yet, during all of the shuffling and problems at LB, not a thought was given to moving Frank to LB? He played the position in high school...now, he's languishing as the third or fourth option at RB...and at FB, he's not being used in favor of a defensive lineman (by the way, Tiller called both he and crank the best FBs during his career at Purdue during the '07 camp), who probably should have been a FB the whole time, since that was his natural position out of high school.

Some More Tiller-isms
On one hand, you have Joe Tiller who seems to be loyal-to-a-fault to his Senior quarterback...the same QB that's led the Purdue offense to less than a touchdown a game. Tiller has always favored giving guys that have earned playing time that which they deserve.

Well, coming into this season, one of Purdue's receivers had sat on the bench behind a 4-year starter and quietly done his job whenever asked to do so. He returned kicks, played special teams and played receiver when Bryant came out of the game. Furthermore, he did a great job capitalizing on the limited playing time as he had three touchdowns in limited action in '07.

This year in camp, Desmond Tardy, the player mentioned above had been placed as the number two slot receiver behind Keith Smith...Smith's size and athleticism, according to Tiller, earned him the #1 spot coming into '08...Where was Tiller's loyalty then?

OK, OK, maybe Smith was just a better player and Tiller's eagle eye for talent saw that Tardy just wouldn't be that productive. Well, after 6 games, Tardy leads the team in yds/gm and receiving touchdowns...and Tardy is the starter.

Tardy not only deserves to be starting according to the numbers, but also, according to Tiller's inconsistent Seniority system which comes and goes as Joe sees fit. There never should have been any doubt where Tardy should be.

Thanks for nothing, Mildcats.

I was kind of excited that a ranked Northwestern team would be hosting Purdue next week in Evanston. I thought, perhaps the 17-game streak versus ranked teams could end versus the over-rated Cats...Sadly, Northwestern predictably lost as soon as they faced a team with any nads...and proved what J said a few weeks ago- NU was the worst 5-0 Big Ten team ever...That's saying a lot; Purdue has been 5-0 quite a few times with teams that were simply hapless.

The good news is that Minnesota might be ranked since they have a bye week...they'll come into Ross-Ade 6-1 and will be favored as Purdue hosts them for homecoming. If (*read as "when") the losing streak continues v. Minnesota, Purdue's last chance to play a ranked opponent will come against MSU in East Lansing.

Let's all be real honest- All of Purdue's final six games are very winnable...Too bad only three will be victories for our Boilers...UNLESS SOMETHING CHANGES! Currently, our offense is a blend of horribly sad and hilarious. For those of you who love stats, dig this one- Purdue's offense scores an average of 4.5 points/game! Frickin' Great!

Here's how bad our Boilers currently are (the good news is it's a team effort):

-11th in scoring offense
-8th in pass offense
-11th in pass efficiency
-11th in rushing offense
-11th in red zone offense
-9th in time of possession
-11th in total offense
-11th in kickoff returns
-11th in punt returns
-11th in punting
-10th in field goals made
-11th in PAT kicking
-9th in turnover margin

Kudos to Wiggs...He hit a 53-yarder and nearly hit a 52-yarder...Sadly, this is what our offense has become. At least he looks angry at the ball when he kicks it.

Well-played, Tar Heels
UNC did as they were supposed to and beat a mediocre UND team on Saturday...Much like the other small, private school near Lake Michigan above, this Irish program is nothing more than a squad that can only beat lousy teams...Good news for the Manatee and co- They play a whole bunch of them this season! The question now is, will UND be ranked before they play at Chestnut Hill? Let's hope so.

Circling the Drain
I love to say, "I told you so, IU fan."

The Hoosiers join Maine and Fla. Int'l as the third team to allow 40-plus points by the vaunted Hawkeye offense. Way to go, Lynch! Clearly, the plan he followed at BSU of tearing down a program is well underway in Bloomington.

It's actually NOT how you finish...

Chris Summers, Brandon Whittington, Curtis Painter, Dorien Bryant, Kyle Orton, Ben Jones, Berin Lacevic, Montrell Lowe, Kyle Smith, Brandon Kirsch, Brandon Hance, Kelly Butler, Travis Dorsch, Antwaun Rogers and even Drew Brees.
What do all of these players have in common?
First, they're all Purdue football players who were pretty solid, at least in most cases, during their careers. Furthermore, about half of them were stars in the black and gold. Another, more painful commonality is they all made costly mistakes late in a close game, during the Tiller era, that could have cemented a victory...and our Boilers lost a heartbreaker shortly after. I think it's important for individuals to take responsibility for their actions...in life as well as in sport. But, it's hard to lay blame when the same things happen repetitively with a wide array of players on all sides of the ball in a number of painful, sour-tasting, putrid-smelling ways.
I used to think it was Jim Chaney's fault when Purdue got conservative on offense when our Boilers were in the lead...Then, Coach Legg showed some really predicable tendencies...yesterday, we saw Coach Z painting a very familiar offensive picture during the second and third quarters- Three and out; draw left, option right, dropped pass. As the coaching gets tighter, the players get tighter, the fans get tighter, the energy in the stadium drastically changes...and before you know it, a lead has shrunk, then disappeared and finally has been replaced with a narrow margin that ends in defeat of my alma mater's football team.

I compared yesterday's game v. Oregon to a job interview in which you really aren't qualified...Like Purdue yesterday, there's nothing to lose...much to gain. And our Boilers played just that way...for about 18 minutes...then things changed. According to a radio program I was listening to while driving south on 65, the Purdue offense had 9 offensive possessions in a row in which they moved the ball 30-or-less yards...I would estimate many of those drives were 15 yards or-less and at least four of them were 3-and-outs.

I honestly don't give a damn who tells me different...This is a systematic, philisophical, and even psychological problem that will be cured, one way or another at the end of this season. And while I didn't want it to end this way, an old wound was torn open yesterday and a salenic-lemon tonic was shot into the contusion that reminded me of way too many games I've watched during the last 11 years.

College Football, I still love you.

Sure, you hurt me this weekend, but girl, you're so special to me. I know, I know, late Saturday night I didn't want to talk to you, but I can't stop thinking about you.

This time of year some of my friends tell me, "Boilerdowd, you should come out with me and my friend MLB Playoffs..." But everytime I'm about to spend the night in another's arms, your whisper draws me back in.

The passion of a second-string quarterback, a bunch of REAL student athletes and a first-year coach beating the best team in the land makes me yearn for you.















Sometimes, especially after my weekend trips to West Lafayette, I think things are never going to change...you know, like our relationship is stuck in a rut. But then, a perennial middle-of-the-pack team reminds me that anything can change if the right parts are in place.



















Your intricacies draw me in...the way you wear your hair or the fact that South Florida and Boston College are both in the top-10 cause me to lose my focus during the work day. Sure, parts of your personality make me angry...


























But, what makes you special helps me look past your flaws and deeper into your soul.


I like the fact that Indianapolis is the home to the World-Champ, 5-0 Colts...But know that my heart belongs to you, College Football.