First off, just so you know, there will be two blogs today to ensure that there is attention paid to a pretty important win for Purdue, especially for its seniors.
But the only story that matters in the big picture of Purdue football right now is what's about to happen to Danny Hope.
We are aware of what people who don't cover Purdue are reporting. They can have their little scoop. We have to be right and we've had countless opportunities since Purdue lost to Wisconsin to take our shot, but we've erred on the side of caution. This is kind of important, you know.
What we can tell you right now is that all signs point to Danny Hope being fired, but nothing appears imminent. With that said, we could get an e-mail in an hour. Doubt it, though.
If you attended Hope's press conference after the Boilermakers' six-touchdown second half and 56-35 victory over IU you saw evidence of a relationship between coach and school that has clearly run its course. If it were a marriage, one of them would be apartment hunting right now.
Seeming resigned to his fate, Hope said he didn't know whether he'd be back and in typical defiant Hope fashion, he didn't let on that he cared all that much. He lamented a lack of support from everyone - everyone - outside the program and talked of being bound by "bad contracts."
Prior, his wife, Sally, took a moment to "gloat," taking digs at media members who she suggested have rooted for Purdue to fail.
Players, maybe having an idea the jig is up, hoisted their coach on their shoulders after the game. They really like the guy, love him really.
But for all intents and purposes, this is over. It is not official, though.
For weeks now, Purdue has been raising money behind closed doors, mobilizing to provide its next coaching staff significantly more in the way of compensation. Its target amount is in the vicinity of $4-and-a-half million to hire a new head coach and a new staff.
But if Purdue doesn't meet its mark, then what?
Purdue is well into its search for Hope's replacement, having spent weeks now assembling a list of potential candidates and making third-party contact with them.
Purdue can't possibly keep Hope in place until it gets somebody else to sign on, can it? We've already told you about the strange circumstances around Hope's contract extension around Christmas last year. If another coach had raised their hand at that time, maybe he'd have been coaching the Boilermakers against the Hoosiers Saturday.
But now that's not a palatable situation.
Also, with a bowl announcement forthcoming ? Purdue hopes to have something to discuss by 7:30 p.m. Sunday night ? there's a conflict of interest now as to when to announce a firing if one's forthcoming. The bowl is still a big deal for the program and the players and Purdue will not want to drown it out.
We are confident that Hope has been informed he's out. He did not deny as much after the Indiana game. We are also confident that Purdue decided Hope would be out several weeks prior.
Again, all signs are pointing to that being the case. All signs.
But nothing appears imminent, as in tonight or tomorrow.
It seems an extraordinary unlikelihood that Hope will be back in 2013 right now, but things can change in these situations. Too much goes into these changes for there to be no wiggle room.
It's just that right now, this thing looks to have passed the point of no return.
In all likelihood, though, Hope is going to be fired.
It's just that in typical Hope fashion, he's gone down swinging, winning just enough games to make this hard on Purdue.
But the only story that matters in the big picture of Purdue football right now is what's about to happen to Danny Hope.
We are aware of what people who don't cover Purdue are reporting. They can have their little scoop. We have to be right and we've had countless opportunities since Purdue lost to Wisconsin to take our shot, but we've erred on the side of caution. This is kind of important, you know.
What we can tell you right now is that all signs point to Danny Hope being fired, but nothing appears imminent. With that said, we could get an e-mail in an hour. Doubt it, though.
If you attended Hope's press conference after the Boilermakers' six-touchdown second half and 56-35 victory over IU you saw evidence of a relationship between coach and school that has clearly run its course. If it were a marriage, one of them would be apartment hunting right now.
Seeming resigned to his fate, Hope said he didn't know whether he'd be back and in typical defiant Hope fashion, he didn't let on that he cared all that much. He lamented a lack of support from everyone - everyone - outside the program and talked of being bound by "bad contracts."
Prior, his wife, Sally, took a moment to "gloat," taking digs at media members who she suggested have rooted for Purdue to fail.
Players, maybe having an idea the jig is up, hoisted their coach on their shoulders after the game. They really like the guy, love him really.
But for all intents and purposes, this is over. It is not official, though.
For weeks now, Purdue has been raising money behind closed doors, mobilizing to provide its next coaching staff significantly more in the way of compensation. Its target amount is in the vicinity of $4-and-a-half million to hire a new head coach and a new staff.
But if Purdue doesn't meet its mark, then what?
Purdue is well into its search for Hope's replacement, having spent weeks now assembling a list of potential candidates and making third-party contact with them.
Purdue can't possibly keep Hope in place until it gets somebody else to sign on, can it? We've already told you about the strange circumstances around Hope's contract extension around Christmas last year. If another coach had raised their hand at that time, maybe he'd have been coaching the Boilermakers against the Hoosiers Saturday.
But now that's not a palatable situation.
Also, with a bowl announcement forthcoming ? Purdue hopes to have something to discuss by 7:30 p.m. Sunday night ? there's a conflict of interest now as to when to announce a firing if one's forthcoming. The bowl is still a big deal for the program and the players and Purdue will not want to drown it out.
We are confident that Hope has been informed he's out. He did not deny as much after the Indiana game. We are also confident that Purdue decided Hope would be out several weeks prior.
Again, all signs are pointing to that being the case. All signs.
But nothing appears imminent, as in tonight or tomorrow.
It seems an extraordinary unlikelihood that Hope will be back in 2013 right now, but things can change in these situations. Too much goes into these changes for there to be no wiggle room.
It's just that right now, this thing looks to have passed the point of no return.
In all likelihood, though, Hope is going to be fired.
It's just that in typical Hope fashion, he's gone down swinging, winning just enough games to make this hard on Purdue.
