It is a beautiful day in Central Indiana. Hopefully in exactly one month we'll be celebrating a season opening win over Toledo. If not, At least basketball season is three months away. On to the Boilermakings:
Rod Woodson heads to Canton - I can't believe I missed this earlier, but former Purdue defensive back Rod Woodson will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this weekend.
Purdue gets highly touted... Long Snapper - Honestly, I didn't even know this was a specialization in recruiting. I thought most long snappers were converted from other positions. My ignorance was proved this morning when Jesse Schmitt was announced as our ninth 2010 commitment. It was further cemented when I discovered there was a specific camp for long snappers
Let's face it, long snappers aren't very high on the priority list. This is probably the last we're going to hear about the kid except for small media guide blips unless he screws something up. No one knows the long snapper's name unless he screws up, so in that case I hope we go four years without hearing him announced until senior day 2013. It is a position of need, however. Current long snapper Andy Huffman has been a rock at the position for three years until an elbow injury sidelined him for the final five games of last season. He will be a fifth year senior this fall, so someone has to come in and take over. The dude is smart too as a three-time academic all-Big Ten selection. John Finch took over for the final five games of last season and did well. Finch will be a junior this year and he was also a highly rated long snapper in high school. I guess after all the snapping problems we had early in Tiller's tenure we decided enough was enough.
If you're not reading Basketbawful, you should - This item was sent to me by John from the Crimson Quarry, and it is one of the finest things I have ever been e-mailed by an IU fan. The author of this blog plays it coy what school he went to and what player he is talking about, but it doesn't take a mental giant to figure out the details he omits. If you want a great laugh every day, get into this story. I know J Money and Boilerdowd will definitely appreciate the story of Matt and Mat. Matt McHale (the author) gets bonus points for being a fellow Kokomo High School grad as well. What he talks about when he refers to K-town is the absolute truth. Represent!
Tim Cary is on the move - Some of you may be familiar with the work Tim Cary has done for Purdue over at the Bleacher Report. He recently took up a new spot as the Big Ten blogger over at Chicago Now. Tim has posted some quality stuff in the past. It is good he is representing Purdue in a larger forum now.
Painter has good chance to make Colts roster - Obviously, he won't be the starter, but Stampede Blue reports that the Colts plan on taking 3 quarterbacks into the season. He is, in fact, all but assured of making the team as Jim Sorgi and Peyton Manning are the only other quarterbacks listed on the camp roster. This makes my Purdue quarterback fantasy football plan complete! I'll take Drew Brees as my starter, Kyle Orton as my backup/Brees bye week starter, and grab Painter for the week 17 round when Manning sits down.
New practice fields ready for camp - As a Purdue alum, I am sad to see the Grand Prix track go, but it does allow us to have some much nicer practice fields for the football program. When I was in school, the guys held camp on the rutted IM fields on the west side of campus. I can't imagine how we didn't end up with more torn knees and such. We also get a look at what the field at Ross-Ade will look like if we ever decide to go to FieldTurf like much of the rest of the Big Ten has.
Cheerleading squad earns honors - I've made fun of cheerleaders before, but this is still an impressive feat. Our cheerleading squad recently earned top honors at the NCA summer cheer camp.
Remembering Tiffany Young - I am about a week late on this, but I found this story on the Journal & Courier's site. I remember being a student and hearing the news about Young, who was a key member of the National Championship squad just a few months earlier. I am glad that Purdue has embraced her memory with an endowed scholarship in her name for a women's basketball player.
Sheets doing well at training camp - Being 4th string may not seem like much, but as an undrafted free agent at least it would be a roster spot. You can only go up from there.