Well, that's college football for you.
A week ago, Purdue looked dead in the water, having been trampled in back-to-back games against marquee opponents on the road, looking like a team that couldn't possibly get the necessary two more wins to become postseason eligible.
But on Saturday, it was like that scene in the second "Terminator" movie, where the bad Terminator gets blown up - the equivalent of what happened to the Boilermakers the past two weekends - only to come right back together, good as new.
And that's where Purdue's season is right now, good as new, at least in the context of its chances to get to a bowl game, the singular barometer for success for the program right now, for this season anyway.
A week ago, this team looked like a long shot to win two of its final three to get those bare-minimum six wins. The future of its head coach, going into an off-season where he's going to need a contract extension if he's going to stay, has been brought into question.
Today, the script flipped even quicker than it did between the Notre Dame loss and Minnesota and Illinois wins earlier this fall.
Purdue beat Ohio State Saturday and looked good doing it. This was a legitimate win, no fluke.
And with as well as the Boilermakers have played at home this Big Ten season, there's no reason to think now they can't beat just-good-enough-to-not-be-bad Iowa next weekend, then close out the season on a three-game winning streak. Can and will are two different things, but it's very possible. When all's said and done, Purdue could finish runner-up in its division.
So this is where things are right now, a total reversal from seven days ago, when Wisconsin smashed Purdue like a mosquito.
It wasn't as decided a win, but Purdue paid the feeling forward to the Buckeyes, issuing them a puzzling loss and ensuring that interim coach Luke Fickell is now the leading candidate for the next MAC job that opens, if he wasn't already.
You can credit a resilient Boilermaker defense, a group turned into baby food last weekend but heroically came back from the brink this weekend to quiet an Ohio State running game any reasonable person would have expected to dominate.
Of course, it helped that the Ohio State's offense is about as multi-dimensional as a Post-it Note. Braxton Miller may be a great player one day because he's a marvelous athlete, but the young man simply can not throw a football. It was painful to watch, as the best wide receiver on Ohio State's roster played quarterback.
The past two weekends, as Purdue's defense was run roughshod over, it was facing offenses that gave it a lot to think about, that stressed defenses on multiple fronts. Ohio State's prehistoric offense did no such thing: All it's equipped to do right now is run.
The defense, led by Kawann Short, a young man playing like he's going to have a big decision to make this winter, came up big in Purdue's biggest win, but so did the special teams - it was the third game this season more or less decided by a blocked kick, the second such win - and Robert Marve.
The Boilermaker senior quarterback finally experienced his shining moment at Purdue, winning the game for the Boilermakers in overtime, with a critical third-down run, a critical third-down throw and the game-winning TD.
The Best of Marve took the game over after the Worst of Marve could have lost it. Had Ohio State won in overtime, his decision to throw the ball deep in the final minute - the interception cost Purdue a chance to win in regulation - would have proved a stake to the heart.
Look, say what you will about Marve and all the unneeded drama he's brought with him to Purdue, but good for him to finally enjoy a moment like this as he strives to finish his college career as something other than the best that never was.
People will ask now about the quarterback situation, now that Marve has finally really done something. You saw Marve's brilliant talent come out in that OT.
But Caleb TerBush has done well this season and right now, you may be looking at a situation where Purdue's coming off a big win, so why change?
But I do agree: Marve made a very strong case for himself today to be the guy Purdue rides either into the postseason or out of it.
So it was a big day for Marve, but also a big day for Danny Hope, who once again brought the best out of his team in a game it wasn't supposed to win.
Say what you will about him, but his guys don't give up. It could have two years ago before that Ohio State win. It could have last season after the Toledo game, then again headed to Michigan State. It could have rolled over after Notre Dame this year or again after Wisconsin. It never did, a credit to its leadership.
This season could have flat-out gone in the toilet after that Wisconsin game. Now, it's full of as much promise as it's been since the record was 0-0.
But as we learned once again today, it can all change like that.
The challenge for Purdue now is to make sure this great, great win ends up meaning something.
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This post was edited on 11/12 10:19 PM by Brian_GoldandBlack.com
