Jeff Brohm finishes his career as Purdue's head coach at 36-34 over six years. In many conferences that is enough to get you fired. At Purdue, there is both frustration and gratitude in that number.
I can't pretend that Purdue is an end-all/be-all destination in the college football world. Our school reaps the benefits of having helped form the Big Ten over a century ago. We're grandfathered in, in a way. As media rights deals and conference expansion bring in over a billion dollars soon, Purdue's historical ties keep it tethered to the Big Ten money cannon. It is clear that in the world of college football, if you're one of 32 schools in the new super conferences of the SEC and Big Ten, you're going to do very well financially.
And yes, I recognize it is me saying this after I was the one who once wrote Purdue should leave the Big Ten.
That was written over eight years ago during a much, much different era of Purdue sports. It was born out of frustration from an administration that was fine with the status quo and had openly said it did not want to get into a college sports arms race. Merely by virtue of being in the Big Ten Purdue is in an arms race whether it wants to be or not. At the time, the football program was mired in the depths of the Hazell era, basketball had just finished last in the Big Ten and missed the NCAA Tournament, and all messages from the administration screamed malaise. My point then was simple, even if I knew Purdue would never leave: if the school was not going to bother competing, why bother staying?
Many things have changed since. By originally going after Brohm, then working to keep him after his early success, Purdue showed commitment to football. Attendance increased from an average of 34,451 during Hazell's final season to 57,129 this past year. You can do a lot with 23,000 more butts in the seats every Saturday. That is part of a rising tide for the entire athletic department. Assuming the average spending by each fan in the building is $75 for tickets, parking, concessions, etc. those 23,000 extra people bring in $1.725 million more each game. The Big Ten's annual payments also keep going up. We have further seen commitment with the new football performance facility and the south end zone renovations that are currently beginning.
Coach Brohm saw Purdue through all of this, plus an entire season that was basically six glorified exhibitions in front of little to no fans. Yes, they don't build statues for 36-34, but when you consider where he rates on Purdue's all time wins list, he is virtually a miracle worker:
Joe Tiller – 87-62
Jack Mollenkopf – 84-39-9
Noble Kizer – 42-13-3
Jim Young – 38-19-1
Jeff Brohm – 36-34
It is frustrating to see Brohm leave just as he was beginning to sustain success. The last two seasons have seen a stark improvement with 17 wins, a divisional title, the first nine win season in nearly two decades, the first top 25 ranking in 14 years, and a New Year's Day Bowl appearance. Considering the Hazell era was a dismal 9-39 over four years (with only five of those wins against FBS level competition and just three in the Big Ten), what Brohm did was near miraculous.
Purdue is in a significantly better position not just football-wise, but as an entire athletic program than it was when I wrote that original article eight years ago. Mike Bobinski has proven to be a very different athletic director than Morgan Burke. Matt Painter's success has made the men's basketball program as lucrative as it can be. Other coaches like Adam Soldati, Dave Shondell, and Katie Gearlds have helped raise the overall profile of the athletic department.
I am sad to see Brohm go because he at least made Purdue football relevant again. It wasn't just the top 5 upsets. It was simply being competitive again in year one with that 7-6 mark and a bowl win. I can understand the pull of returning to one's alma mater, but he is leaving Purdue in a much, much better place than it was when he arrived. The pressure on his successor is continue to build on a solid foundation with actual committed resources as opposed build something out of virtually nothing. Competing for the National Championship in football is something that is incredibly rare and beyond most of our wildest dreams, but at least maintaining where the program is at this very moment, where it is competitive in the Big Ten and making decent bowl games, is reasonable. From there, occasionally making national noise when things fall right is just fine.
I have no earthly idea who will replace Brohm, but I do feel better about this coaching search than the last. His replacement will have a commitment of resources and a foundation that even Brohm himself did not have when he arrived. It is at least a good place to start.
I can't pretend that Purdue is an end-all/be-all destination in the college football world. Our school reaps the benefits of having helped form the Big Ten over a century ago. We're grandfathered in, in a way. As media rights deals and conference expansion bring in over a billion dollars soon, Purdue's historical ties keep it tethered to the Big Ten money cannon. It is clear that in the world of college football, if you're one of 32 schools in the new super conferences of the SEC and Big Ten, you're going to do very well financially.
And yes, I recognize it is me saying this after I was the one who once wrote Purdue should leave the Big Ten.
That was written over eight years ago during a much, much different era of Purdue sports. It was born out of frustration from an administration that was fine with the status quo and had openly said it did not want to get into a college sports arms race. Merely by virtue of being in the Big Ten Purdue is in an arms race whether it wants to be or not. At the time, the football program was mired in the depths of the Hazell era, basketball had just finished last in the Big Ten and missed the NCAA Tournament, and all messages from the administration screamed malaise. My point then was simple, even if I knew Purdue would never leave: if the school was not going to bother competing, why bother staying?
Many things have changed since. By originally going after Brohm, then working to keep him after his early success, Purdue showed commitment to football. Attendance increased from an average of 34,451 during Hazell's final season to 57,129 this past year. You can do a lot with 23,000 more butts in the seats every Saturday. That is part of a rising tide for the entire athletic department. Assuming the average spending by each fan in the building is $75 for tickets, parking, concessions, etc. those 23,000 extra people bring in $1.725 million more each game. The Big Ten's annual payments also keep going up. We have further seen commitment with the new football performance facility and the south end zone renovations that are currently beginning.
Coach Brohm saw Purdue through all of this, plus an entire season that was basically six glorified exhibitions in front of little to no fans. Yes, they don't build statues for 36-34, but when you consider where he rates on Purdue's all time wins list, he is virtually a miracle worker:
Joe Tiller – 87-62
Jack Mollenkopf – 84-39-9
Noble Kizer – 42-13-3
Jim Young – 38-19-1
Jeff Brohm – 36-34
It is frustrating to see Brohm leave just as he was beginning to sustain success. The last two seasons have seen a stark improvement with 17 wins, a divisional title, the first nine win season in nearly two decades, the first top 25 ranking in 14 years, and a New Year's Day Bowl appearance. Considering the Hazell era was a dismal 9-39 over four years (with only five of those wins against FBS level competition and just three in the Big Ten), what Brohm did was near miraculous.
Purdue is in a significantly better position not just football-wise, but as an entire athletic program than it was when I wrote that original article eight years ago. Mike Bobinski has proven to be a very different athletic director than Morgan Burke. Matt Painter's success has made the men's basketball program as lucrative as it can be. Other coaches like Adam Soldati, Dave Shondell, and Katie Gearlds have helped raise the overall profile of the athletic department.
I am sad to see Brohm go because he at least made Purdue football relevant again. It wasn't just the top 5 upsets. It was simply being competitive again in year one with that 7-6 mark and a bowl win. I can understand the pull of returning to one's alma mater, but he is leaving Purdue in a much, much better place than it was when he arrived. The pressure on his successor is continue to build on a solid foundation with actual committed resources as opposed build something out of virtually nothing. Competing for the National Championship in football is something that is incredibly rare and beyond most of our wildest dreams, but at least maintaining where the program is at this very moment, where it is competitive in the Big Ten and making decent bowl games, is reasonable. From there, occasionally making national noise when things fall right is just fine.
I have no earthly idea who will replace Brohm, but I do feel better about this coaching search than the last. His replacement will have a commitment of resources and a foundation that even Brohm himself did not have when he arrived. It is at least a good place to start.
