Week 8 of Purdue Football 2008 | Boiler Jim's Blog

When I was a kid, it was beat into my head to put everything back the way I found it. My parents taught me the mantra and I relearned the same lesson in the Boy Scouts. Don't leave a trace. Leave everything the way it was. Head coach Joe Tiller's Toledo roots must've taught him the same lesson, too. With a record of 2-5 so far this year, the Boilermakers look to finish the season with the same record they had the year before Tiller appeared on the sidelines, 3-8.

Who is wondering more about whether or not they've hit the bottom, ardent Purdue football fans or traders in the U.S. stock market?

It's been a tough year so far and it's not likely to get good enough for a post-season appearance in even a garden spot like Detroit's Ford Field. Joe Tiller can still see a lot of good in the team. He argues despite the 2-5 record, the Saragin power rankings, that strange mathematical calculation of football team talent and strength, reveals Purdue has faced the third strongest schedule in college football. Statistics aside, this year's team is missing a lot of important pieces. A patchwork offensive line and the absence of a true linebacker squad is the difference between a 2-5 and 5-2 record.

Looking at the final score or even the game on television, you might be left with burning eyes or a nauseous stomach. The 48-26 defeat is enough to make anyone wince. It's not a pretty statistic especially since it's the only one that matters. But what about the statistics that don't matter? Statistics like total yards gained, completed passes, and comparing what the opposition did against other teams on their schedule? While these statistics don't necessarily determine who goes to bowl games, they do measure capability and the likelihood of good performance in games to come. Purdue combined for 466 total yards. Kory Sheets ran for 168 yards demonstrating not only his ability to make the big plays but the effectiveness of an offensive line to create openings. What really hurt Purdue were turnovers. There were five on the Purdue side of the line and those led to Northwestern scoring 24 points. Let's just assume those turnovers don't happen, then subtract 24 points from Northwestern and all of a sudden, the score is Purdue 26, Northwestern 24. Of course those series could either mean more points for Purdue or giving Northwestern the ball with deeper field position. Lots of "what-if's" but eliminating mistakes would've meant a different game and possible outcome altogether. After the game, several players and even Tiller said it seemed like players were moving in slow motion.

Kory Sheets said some things to reporters that I'm sure he wished he didn't say once he saw them in print. Tiller cautions people not to listen too closely to a spirited back like Sheets. Tiller says he's a winner and a competitor but his mouth will engage before his brain. We've all had Kory Sheets moments in life.

Back in Ross Ade this weekend for homecoming, Purdue hosts the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Fans should immediately be worried because Minnesota is enjoying a solid season and is ranked 25^th in the polls this week. For those remaining optimists, Minnesota hasn't won in Ross-Ade Stadium since Oct. 6, 1990. If there is any mental block against beating a ranked team or winning in a specific location, both teams have to deal with it this week.

Fans will have to keep an eye out for Golden Gophers' wide receiver Eric Decker who is Minnesota's big offensive threat. Decker is currently leading the Big Ten in receiving yards per game (111.7) and receptions per game (8.43). With 59 receptions and 782 receiving yards through seven games, Decker is on pace to surpass Minnesota records for both single-season receptions and single-season receiving yards. For his to be successful requires an equally skilled quarterback. Adam Weber has thrown 209 of the Gophers' 210 passes this season. So far he has passed for 1,612 yards and 9 TDs through seven games. If the offense has any weakness, it's running the ball. Freshman running back DeLeon Eskridge has had the honors. Eskridge averages 4 yards a carry and shouldn't be the threat of a Buckeye Chris Wells or Wildcat Tyrell Sutton. Too much emphasis on pass defense can surprise Purdue. One thing Purdue doesn't want to do is turnover the ball. Minnesota leads the entire nation in turnover margin.

Purdue's success on Saturday again rests largely in the hands of the offense. Last week Purdue lost backup quarterback Joey Elliot for the season due to a shoulder separation. Justin Siller, who many saw in a few surprise plays earlier in the year moved up to the back up position. He took his first snaps behind center for the first time in several weeks during this week's practices. The quarterback duties rest firmly with Curtis Painter for the remainder of the year unless of course he gets injured. Painter's biggest problem is accuracy. Tiller continues to admit that much and explains Painter comes to the line with some pre-decisional thinking about where he's going to throw. For instance, according to Tiller, it's natural for him to look to his favorite target, Greg Orton, first. Painter sometimes fails to see better targets such as Kory Sheets. In the red zone last week against Northwestern, Painter missed an easy opportunity to score by throwing to a covered Greg Orton rather than an open Kory Sheets. Realizing his mistake, he chose to look and throw to Kory Sheets on the next play but this time Sheets was covered. Tiller told reporters Painter needs to hold the ball longer and make more accurate decisions. Unfortunately there's not much more you can say to a fifth year senior quarterback that he doesn't already know. Playing your last play in your mind when you come to the line means the defense is already one play ahead of you.

This week, let's hope Purdue somehow acts a little more predictable and professional than Bill Murray was with his Gopher problems in the movie "Caddyshack". Let's hope the team focuses on playing mistake-free, well executed plays. Tiller says he's going to be ready with some "trick" plays if the situation arises. For now, the real trick seems to be for both the Boilermaker offense and defense to execute without error.

"Boiler Up" Purdue fans! It's Fantasy Fest in Key West FL so let's body paint those Gophers!