FWIW....

[indianphil]

Think about it a moment and list the 5 biggest changes that must be made to turn football around in the next three years...three years because that is about what in my mind is actually possible:

1) Quit taking skim from the athletic department
2) Let the coach run his program without interference
3) Double the recruiting budget
4) Realistic and effective community engagement/media exposure
5) Recruit Indiana

These are just some ideas that seem to pop out. From a facilities stand point we arent bad actually and I like the beer garden thing. Clean it up and make it permanent. Nice little plus to the JPC and we sure as well dont need the seats nor will we ever. Unfortunately I dont drink anymore, but if memory serves me well today...alcohol and Purdue Football go well together.

Have at it guys!

 

[FirstDownB]

1-5: New coach

 

[buygreekbonds]

In our glory years we got a heck of a lot of kids from Chicagoland. That steady flow has now dwindled to a trickle.

 

[pboiler18]

Think about it a moment and list the 5 biggest changes that must be made to turn football around in the next three years...three years because that is about what in my mind is actually possible:

1) Quit taking skim from the athletic department
2) Let the coach run his program without interference
3) Double the recruiting budget
4) Realistic and effective community engagement/media exposure
5) Recruit Indiana

These are just some ideas that seem to pop out. From a facilities stand point we arent bad actually and I like the beer garden thing. Clean it up and make it permanent. Nice little plus to the JPC and we sure as well dont need the seats nor will we ever. Unfortunately I dont drink anymore, but if memory serves me well today...alcohol and Purdue Football go well together.

Have at it guys!

Facilities are on the right track with the new Player Center. I really think the asthetics of RA could be better. That should be the next phase of investment. I think the beer garden area should be moved to the North End Zone. Seats should be taken out there, and a 2nd deck added to the visitors side. On the south side, we should put some premium type seating and more permanent type seating too. Basically, keep the capacity the same but change the look and feel of the stadium.

 

[SIBoiler2]

1-5: Hire a coach that is CAPABLE of running a program without interference!!!

 

[nat100]

Facilities are on the right track with the new Player Center. I really think the asthetics of RA could be better. That should be the next phase of investment. I think the beer garden area should be moved to the North End Zone. Seats should be taken out there, and a 2nd deck added to the visitors side. On the south side, we should put some premium type seating and more permanent type seating too. Basically, keep the capacity the same but change the look and feel of the stadium.

Agree in theory, although i dont think you should put premium seating in the endzone. if you are adding the deck (which i wouldnt) that is where you should put it IMO.

 

[BoilerBulldog]

Think about it a moment and list the 5 biggest changes that must be made to turn football around in the next three years...three years because that is about what in my mind is actually possible:

1) Quit taking skim from the athletic department
2) Let the coach run his program without interference
3) Double the recruiting budget
4) Realistic and effective community engagement/media exposure
5) Recruit Indiana

These are just some ideas that seem to pop out. From a facilities stand point we arent bad actually and I like the beer garden thing. Clean it up and make it permanent. Nice little plus to the JPC and we sure as well dont need the seats nor will we ever. Unfortunately I dont drink anymore, but if memory serves me well today...alcohol and Purdue Football go well together.

Have at it guys!

#1 is really a negligible issue now. It has no bearing on our FB program.
#2 isn't an issue either.

3-5 are all fine and dandy but it all comes down to hiring the right guy. MB2's tenure at Purdue will likely be defined by it.

 

[ck3boilers]

Just curious about #5: Recruiting Indiana? Besides a slew of top tier players this state is NOT a hotbed and never has been. People keep saying we need to recruit Indiana better but there isn't an abundance of football talent in this state. I agree they need to be able to land some of the top level guys that come out of Indiana but beyond that it's not a loaded state like some others. Indiana high school football is in the bottom 20 when it comes to talent level.

 

[nat100]

Just curious about #5: Recruiting Indiana? Besides a slew of top tier players this state is NOT a hotbed and never has been. People keep saying we need to recruit Indiana better but there isn't an abundance of football talent in this state. I agree they need to be able to land some of the top level guys that come out of Indiana but beyond that it's not a loaded state like some others. Indiana high school football is in the bottom 20 when it comes to talent level.

I agree. We need to recruit the Midwest better, but focusing on Indiana is a fools errand

 

[JohnnyDoeBoiler]

I think the easiest to change in the ones you listed is your point on effective community engagement. I have first hand knowledge of the promotions department and needless to say it wasn't all that positive. I don't want this to get spun that the people there aren't good people, because they are...however, they are responsible for the marketing and promotions portions that many have a huge issue with. This may, inherently, not be their own fault as there is one person responsible for all athletic teams. In reality, there needs to be a dedicated individual for football, a dedicated individual for men's basketball, one for women's basketball/volleyball, and then another individual for all other varsity sports. This would allow those individuals more time to concentrate, research, study, and figure out what aspects work the best for each sport. Let's be honest...the stupid 211 session was a disaster and taking away the Slayter Hill Concert from the AAMB was a horrid decision. More promotion can take place in the spring for spring football and the spring game...there is no reason only 3k attend the spring game when other programs are having 50-80k show up.

On your other points, I think you can clearly draw a comparison to the increased recruiting budget and the resurgence of the men's bball program. That, I think, is necessity #1. If that means you hire the coaching a personal driver to take them to Indy, Chicago, St. Louis, Cinncy, Fort Wayne, etc....then you do it. If the next head coach wants multiple individuals to pour over recruiting tape, game tape, etc...then you give it to him. No expense should be sparred here to get the program's raw ability back to a level that allows for consistency in wins and competition.

I understand recruiting Indiana, but as another poster brought up...Chicago needs to become a high priority once again. I know there are kids here in Indiana that are successful players, but the intense focus needs to be placed in areas with traditional success for sending many D1 players. Chicago, St. Louis, Georgia, Texas, and the Northeast have always provided Purdue with players. The focus should be placed on those areas again instead of the raw speed that the last two coaches have appeared to focus on. As an example...it would have done Ron Dayne no good to be behind the offensive line Purdue currently has. He was an incredibly college back not because of his speed but because he had an offensive line that was physical at the point of attack and simply wore down a defensive line. Purdue needs to find players who are first physically gifted with size and work from there. It does no good to have a DB be 5'8 when frequently they are placed against WR's who are 6'2 or taller (see EKU for a prime example).

To add a point to your needs, there needs to be an individual in place that acts between the head coach and the AD to serve as a liaison for the two. This individual should have a knowledge of major college football and the needs of a successful program. Personally, my vote for this would be Leroy Keyes. He has a passion for Purdue University, an incredibly knowledge base of what it takes to be successful program as he was part of probably the most successful run in Purdue Football history, and is passionate about having a highly successful athletics program as a whole.

 

[JohnnyDoeBoiler]

Just curious about #5: Recruiting Indiana? Besides a slew of top tier players this state is NOT a hotbed and never has been. People keep saying we need to recruit Indiana better but there isn't an abundance of football talent in this state. I agree they need to be able to land some of the top level guys that come out of Indiana but beyond that it's not a loaded state like some others. Indiana high school football is in the bottom 20 when it comes to talent level.

I agree. We need to recruit the Midwest better, but focusing on Indiana is a fools errand

Fully agree with both of you on this point. Indiana is a nice area, especially in Fort Wayne and the northside/northeast portion of Indy. However, let's not think Indiana is on par with other Midwestern states. Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois all produce a much higher volume of players in our immediate vicinity. However, Purdue has traditionally had success in states like Texas and Georgia...so developing a pipeline is not out of the realm of possibilities for Purdue given the strong academic side that we hold over similar programs.

Indiana currently has two players in the Rivals Top 250. Hunter Johnson of Brownsburg at #5 and RJ Potts of Fishers at #194. In comparison:
Illinois: 5
Michigan: 6
Ohio: 10
Kentucky: 1

Of the top 15 prospects for each state, the stars break down as such:
Indiana: 1 Five Star, 2 Four Star, 12 Three Star (first two star player at #16 overall)
Illinois: 0 Five Star, 5 Four Star, 10 Three Star (first two star player at #42)
Michigan: 1 Five Star, 6 Four Star, 8 Three Star (first two star player at #33)
Ohio: 1 Five Star, 12 Four Star, 2 Three Star (first two star player at #59)
Kentucky: 1 Five Star, 0 Four Star, 7 Three Star, and 7 Two Stars (first two star player at # 9)

MSU built their program on the three star players that are in great numbers in Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio and that is the focus Purdue needs to take.

 

[MilwaukeeBoilerFan]

steps 1-5, new coach, Chicagoland recruit harder than ever, in addition to step 5 (Indiana) more targetted to Cathedral, Warren Central, Ben Davis, Carmel etc. Build relationships with those coaches. I'd add that any former Purdue Alumni with talent that shows interest, reciprocate immediately if they are true Div I talent.
There will likely have to be some cleaning of house internally as well. Grade issues & any conduct detrimental to the team = immediate move along to free up some scholies for new talent. That alone may free up a handful of scholarships.

 

[indianphil]

I mentioned Indiana because we get nothing from our home base now. In a perfect world, we go to: Chicago, Cleveland, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Louisville.

One thing you forget about Indiana kids is that their hometowns tend to get interested and buy tickets.

 

[Cantonman]

Until a good football program becomes a priority for the school administration, nothing is going to change, and at present it is obvious that the football program is not a priority!

 

[C-Paranoia]

Just took a quick look down rosters, and for Chicago/Rockford area players, I counted:
5 - Purdue
10 - Wisconsin
10 - Michigan State
15 - Iowa
18 - Illinois
38 - Northern Illinois
...not even considering the rosters Northwestern & ND, and players from downstate Illinois. Seems our pipeline dried up, but the recruits are still out there.

Haze actually had a logical strategy with casting his net on the "State of Purdue" (i.e. Indiana and surrounding states) plus the typical hotbeds of TX/FL/GA, but not at all clear he's executing locally.