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Big Ten Preview: Purdue

August 5, 2009 at 10:00 am | College Football
By: StevieY19

For the next few weeks leading up to the college football season, we’ll be previewing every Big Ten team, starting with my prediction to finish last, to my predicted champ. This way if I don’t get to Ohio State before the season starts, you’ll have a good grasp on all the teams whose analysis isn’t “highest payroll, most talent, probably champs.” Coming in at 10th: Purdue.

First year coach Danny Hope will have big shoes to fill with Joe Tiller retiring after a 12-year run with the Boilermakers that saw them go to 10 bowl games, including one Rose Bowl. Hope was on the staff last year, coming from Eastern Kentucky with the understanding that he would inherit the job when Tiller left to do diabeetus commercials full time.

Hope coached at Purdue during the school’s most successful period in football, the Drew Brees era. The quarterback position is nowhere near what it was during the times of mole face and neck beard though. With Curtis Painter’s graduation, long time backup Joey Elliot will get the starting nod after a pair of incidents cast contenders aside. First, Justin Siller was kicked off the team for the year for academic failure, then Robert Marve–a transfer from Miami (that Miami)–tore his ACL.

Elliot suffered a major injury last year and needs to stay healthy this season in a major way. At running back, the Boilers lose Kory Sheets, but get Jaycen Taylor back from injury. Taylor should be the starter and will run behind an offensive line that returns four starters. Good news!

The bad news is that the quarterback, wide receiver, and linebacker positions are major questions with unproven players or players that have proven to be no good. Hope brought in his defensive coordinator Donn Landholm from Eastern Kentucky after the former DC left to coach at Illinois State. We’ll see how he handles Big Ten offenses.

Hope is an apt name for the Boilermaker coach, because after a 13-19 Big Ten record in Tiller’s last four years, Danny will bring a fresh face, a renewed energy, and the same old mustasche to the table. Purdue will be tested early when they travel to Oregon for a night game in the second week of the season. They could get off to a fast start in the Big Ten, but a brutal stretch will keep the Boilers in the bottom of the league again this year.