I mean dude I loved watching karlaftis as much as I loved Michael Jordan but come on we all know what happened with Melvin Bratton and more than a few others …
With all due respect, you might have that bolded part backwards.
I have to agree!!! Sure kiffin and Leach are being beat up in the Twitter world for their recent comments on the subject!
Yea, risk generational wealth to play in an exhibition? I’d pass too. They don’t owe Purdue anything. They have everything they had for 3 years. I wish them well
I agree it is the correct decision for them. But the system needs to be changed to align with this reality that the minor bowls are exhibitions. They should COUNT only as exhibition games. The competitive season is essentially over in November for anyone not in the the CFP. Once they expand the playoff I think it will become the football equivalent of the NCAA tourney, and these other bowls will be the equivalent of the NIT/CBI/CIT.
I agree with you on risking the player's future. But then you have to argue, what's the significance of the end of the regular season if you have more than 1 loss or aren't going to win your conference? Why would Bell and Karlaftis risk injury to play in the IU game at the end of the season? That's the irony and hypocrisy of this situation. Again, I'm not blaming them at all. I completely respect their prerogative and appreciate all they've done for Purdue. I think it's just become nothing more than a cool trend for the best players to sit out of bowl games. Nothing more. Nothing less.
IU game still is regular season and goes to where they finish in Big Ten and is a rivalry game.
Agreed.. I was thinking they’d play but these guys could have gone anywhere.. and so many guys of their caliber over the years haven’t given Purdue the time of day..
I'm with you in terms of respect for Bell and George in their decisions. But I agree that there is some hypocrisy in players not finishing with their teammates in bowl games. If players don't want to risk injury they should just start sitting out as soon as they have secured their positions in the draft. Our players had the same risk of injury against Indiana and still chose to play. So what if it's a rivalry game. Why risk millions if that's going to be the narrative?
These 2 young men would be high NFL draft picks no matter where they went to school. Maybe even Indinia.
Google "Football" and report back. There's inherent risk in playing any football game. Why not just stop playing as soon as you know for certain you will be drafted if fear of injury is the issue? Count me as one of the people who do not believe a bowl game is meaningless. If you're a member of the Purdue Boilermakers and your team is competing in a game against the Tennessee Volunteers then there is something to be gained by playing and winning. The Indiana game was meaningless if we're talking about injury. Who cares about a bucket? Who cares about finishing higher in the conference?
It’s called risk versus reward. Sorry to burst your bubble but the bowl game is an exhibition.
You didn't burst my bubble at all. It's called finishing what you started with your teammates.
Most of them would do the same thing if they were in the same position.
Cache with whom?
It's not an issue of getting it or not getting it. There is a case that can be made that players should sit out. But it is not a fact that leaving your team before the season has finished is the right thing to do. There's some honor that exists and some real cachet that can be gained by finishing the battle with their teammates.
And that's fine. But it's not a truth that they have no obligation or responsibility to their teammates. Family will always come first. But where does that slippery slope stop? Like I said, if protecting against injury so that you can take care of family is the only motivation, then they should have sat out the Indiana game.
No one's arguing about players or fans getting it. I understand why they're not playing.
I draw the line personally at regular season games, conference championship games, and playoff games.
I can respect that. But I draw the line at if Purdue is playing a game vs. somebody else then it's a game.
If the basketball team ends up in the NIT or CBI somehow, would you expect Ivey to play ?
I get your point. But what regular season games this year, other than maybe Notre Dame, put Purdue on the national stage, against a rival conference, especially the SEC? If the bowl games are meaningless and are just exhibition, then we shouldn't have lamented at all over the very bad loss to Auburn. That was pretty meaningless, right?
Absolutely! I would expect Ivey to finish with his teammates. After all, if we only qualified for the NIT, It's likely that he would have had a big part in making it happen.
I wouldn’t classify the Music City Bowl as a “national stage” type of game. But maybe that’s just me.
I disagree with this in bold. Precedent is important here. Like others have said, it is a risk vs. reward calculation. A lot of other draft picks sit out bowl games - it is the norm. But if you were to decide to sit out half the season or even a few games, you would stand out from the crowd and might get something about it on your draft profile. Up to a point these guys have to show to scout that they are team players and can show up to work and play through things. Right or wrong, that standard ends at the regular season. Because lots of other team players like Bell and GK have done it, it is not a red flag in the least.
Sitting out bowl games wasn't the norm until it became the norm. At first, plenty of people were baffled at the idea. Now it's become common. It's not that far fetched for sitting out regular season games to become the accepted new norm.
The Auburn game was quite meaningful. There are plenty of people who have stated that the Purdue brand took a major hit from that embarrassment of a game. Some have also stated that our performance in that game had, at least to some degree, a negative affect on our recruiting. Some of those same people are claiming now that a game like that is meaningless to rationalize players sitting out. They can't have it both ways.
Lol, I have no interest in debating degrees of meaningfulness. I'm just a little disappointed that we are playing in a meaningful game and our two best players won't be participating.
Bell did amazing considering he didn’t win Mr Football. I haven’t heard whether the winner who plays at ND is declaring early for the draft. Tic
Considering Mr. football from the following year is a deep reserve walk-on for a 2 win football team, I wouldn’t put too much stock into that particular award.
