Addressing the Injury Issue

A lot of readers here have asked the question, "Why does Purdue have such an unusual amount of injuries this season?" I think we've all asked that, or a similar question, in the past few weeks. I asked my college roommate* about his theory of why we're seeing the rash of injuries this season.

His insight was good- he pretty much said he'd look at coaching, not strength and conditioning as blame for the type of injuries Purdue has been having. Flexibility (or lack thereof), overworking and fatigue might be the culprits when looking at the knee injuries, in particular. He expounded by saying, much of the time, a coaching staff leans heavily on grad assistants to make sure players are working on flexibility drills and exercises...and some grad assistants are very good at what they do, and some aren't.

But, there might be some hard data that pushes back at the idea that Purdue's football team is as injury prone as it seems to be. This site, covers.com, breaks down college football's injury reports and posts their findings. In this context Purdue looks amazingly-average on the injury front.

To me, the main issue Hope and Co. might still be fighting is depth. Skilled position players in particular have fallen at a higher rate than the rest of the team...and at this point, it's pretty difficult to have a true Frosh or another under-experienced player pick up where an all-Big Ten guy left off (for example).

A few seasons ago, Iowa lost their top-3 running backs...and had to deal with the hand they had. This is football. Every play is brutal...every play has a high-potential to see a season-ending, or team trajectory-changing injury. It hurts that Bolden and K. Smith (specifically) are out. But it could be worse...it can always be worse. Look at teams like "Tha U", Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and others. All seem to be worse off than Purdue at this point...some are much worse-off. So, just as the coaching staff has to, we should probably focus on who is available, not what might have been, had everyone stayed perfectly healthy.

As we know in the wake of the last few seasons in basketball, coulda, shoulda, woulda-beens are worth nothing. At least we're not dealing with the garbage that USC, UNC and others are witnessing right now...that's avoidable, painful and flat-out embarrassing.

* After graduating from Purdue, he earned a masters in exercise physiology and a masters in sports management/administration [I believe]...sidebar: it sounds like he's a smart guy, he's really not...he's just a dumb guy like me with a lot more debt...but I digress.

A Somber Recap of the Win

The threat of rain was large in God's country, but it held off with the exception of some spitting showers in the second half, so Hope was able to approach the game with his intended gameplan...but that didn't matter. This one was filled with surprises...and most weren't the type that you like to see as a fan.

Purdue escaped South Bend with no injuries of note...but versus the smaller Western Illinois Leathernecks, Purdue left the game battered, bloodied and bruised. The most-costly and noteworthy injury was that of All BT WR, Keith Smith. While there's no official press release of the extent to his right knee, the video, look of the play in person and reaction from officials and the WIU bench makes you think that Smith's season is over. Obviously, that is a season-changer. While Purdue offense has yet to get into rhythm, Smith was most-assuredly going to profit from the system once things solidified. Now, the sure-handed, solid route running Senior will probably not be a part of whatever happens from here out. Keep in mind, there's still no official injury report...but whatever comes of this, it's not good.

Brandon Taylor, Gerald Gooden, Albert Evans and Robert Marve were all also injured in the game in varying degrees...none as serious as Smith's it seems...but Taylor's forced him out of the game as did Gooden's and Evan's.

Hope said the game wasn't about the final score during his post-game interviews and the coaches needed to see what the young guys could do...and while I think that's important, I think it to be much more important to get the ones and twos to the point where they look like finely-tuned units. In my opinion neither does...and much of that can be blamed on coaching.

The offensive play-calling is still vanilla. Dink-and-dunk passes seem to be the norm for Nord thus far this season. Only one deep ball was thrown today by Marve...and it was incomplete. And the three-and-out possession was much more commonplace for the Boilers than their DI-AA opponent. That's very disheartening. Atop of that, the linebackers seemed to be out of position for much of the day as the zone Purdue was running was leaving gaping holes for dump passes to TEs and running backs. Purdue's defense against interior runs has been solid for both games, but on sweeps and pitches, the linebackers and ends tend to be in poor position to make tackles more than not.

On a day that saw another very-respectable D-I program (VaTech) fall to a lower-division team...and another mediocre D-I program (Minny) lost to an FCS team, I guess it's good that Purdue left Ross Ade 1-1. But, this wasn't that great of an opponent that Purdue played today, and our Boilers simply couldn't separate themselves. GBI was worried all week that Purdue might have a let down (after a loss, I thought that'd be difficult) and judging by what I saw, I'd say that's true. But, that in itself is a coaching problem. Simply because the fanbase is bored by the opponent (which we here at BS all were coming in), doesn't mean the players should be. And honestly, Purdue looked lethargic, uninspired and unemotional for much of the contest today. That's the hardest thing to swallow for me.

I am not saying the sky is falling. I am definitely saying there's a ton to work on in the next two games before the BT season begins- but it's not all on the players. I expect to see more out of the coaches in the coming weeks. If things don't improve from the coaches and players alike, this season might be very long.

Positives

Ryan Kerrigan led the team in tackles and TFLs. Plus, he forced yet another fumble, had a sack and was involved on nearly every play in one form or another...all while being held, double-teamed and triple-teamed. He's a monster. He hits hard, is very quick, doesn't take plays off and I think can get even better. With all of the great DEs we've seen in the last 15 years at Purdue, I think he could be the best...that says a ton. Along with Kerrigan, Kitchens, Gaston and Short also played very well at times...and the young guys' consistency should improve as they get more comfortable. Short already is looking vastly improved from last season.

Josh Johnson was very active, was second on the team in tackles and gave us a ton of reason to believe (for the second-straight week) that the DBs will be fine as the season progresses.

Dan Dierking finished every run very well, ran patiently and was reliable, yet again. Sure, this wasn't the most-athletic defense, but he had over 100 yards and averaged an eye-popping 7.3/carry...without a really long run (33 was the longest). His backfield mates also played well. Particularly, ATM, who only ran the ball 5 times, but definitely took advantage of his opportunities and finished with 81 yds rushing. One of the plays might have been what J was referring to on the Handsome Hour a week ago as ATM was able to have the wherewithall to keep going after rolling over a would-be tackler and galloping to a 40 yard touchdown. I'm still hoping the offensive line will be able to create more space in the middle, especially against teams that are undersized...but I might be dreaming at this point.

In my mind, Marve didn't take a step forward today. You can still see he has tools and his athleticism buys him time when there simply isn't any protection...but I want to see him progress which I'm positive he's capable of. That said, I believe the play calling left something to be desired. Henry played pretty well as Marve was trying to shake off the effects of a shot to the shoulder. In fact, he seems to have lost the odd throwing motion that bothered me so much in the spring. But, he missed OJ Ross on a slant route that most-definitely would have ended with Ross in the endzone had the pass not been thrown at 4's feet.

And speaking of Ross, he looked great on a kick return and showed some of the speed & quickness we had heard about on offense...can't wait to see more of him. And, like it or not, he'll be playing a lot more due to K. Smith's injury and C. Smith being a bit dinged up as well...honestly though, I think it's imperative to have his speed on the field if nothing else it'll keep DBs honest.

The kickoff coverage was much better than it was versus UND and the team was gang tackling all day on special teams coverage. Dierking and Johnson both played well on special teams coverage units.

Reason for Hope?

Joey Elliott ended last season strong and had over 3,000 yards, and 22 TDs once the dust had settled. But, his first three games left a ton to be desired...especially as his TD/INT ratio was not good.

Toledo 17/28 220 yds 3TD/3INT

NIU 20/31 188 0/0

Oregon 24/41 266 1/2

The rest of the season, he averaged 261 yds/gm, 2TD/1INT and completed over 60% of his passes.

I think Marve is naturally more talented than Elliott...so hopefully he can get more comfortable and the coaches can put he and the rest of the offense in a better position as the season progresses. But as I said before, there is a ton of room for improvement.

Looking Ahead

The cupcake jaunt continues as our Boilers play Ball State (who is coming off of a loss to Liberty), then Toledo, who ranks 100 or higher in almost every major statistical category...both teams, like Purdue are 1-1.

Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon Wisely Invites Only One Lineman From Purdue

The Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon will be held in Chicago on August 4 and will feature Robert Marve, Keith Smith and Ryan Kerrigan, along with Coach Hope. (I never get tired of this picture.)

Whenever you're hosting a lunch and inviting football players, it's a good idea to invite quarterbacks and receivers, since they usually don't eat as much as linemen.

It's unclear who from IU will be allowed to attend as officials from the Big Ten are worried about sandwiches at the luncheon being fumbled at a critical juncture and Coach Lynch throwing his chewing gum across the table in disgust.

Blue Ribbon All-Big Ten Features Two Boilers

Keith Smith and Ryan Kerrigan are featured as all-BT preseason selections, as per Blue Ribbon.

This is a nice honor for Smith, who became a monster last year and hopefully can handle the load of being the known commodity that he now is.

As for Kerrigan, this is an unsurprising honor for the senior who will continue to face double and triple teams this year.

Also mentioned was Robert Marve, expected to be "Newcomer of the Year" in the Big Ten. While these kinds of preseason awards mean little, Marve is getting noticed more and more and I only hope this doesn't affect him negatively. Marve has been a highly-touted prospect his whole life and sort of crashed and burned at Miami, especially off the field. I'm one of the people who believes his head is probably on a little straighter now....or maybe I'm just hoping.

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.