Big Ten Coaches Speak Anonymously about Purdue

Every year, the Big Ten coaches speak anonymously about the other Big Ten programs. In previous years, reviews about Purdue have been...not great. This year, Athlon Sports compiled these quotes and published them earlier today. Here were the quotes regarding Purdue:

“You have to give the school credit for making a great hire in Jeff (Brohm) because that job became as unappealing as any I can think of in the Power 5. That’s not to say Jeff can’t win there because he’s a damn good coach who didn’t get enough attention for what he did at Western (Kentucky). This is a hire that if things work out even halfway, it will make the league better by bringing up the floor."

"I don’t think they’re going to be able to replicate Western (Kentucky) on offense anytime this coming season. It will take some time because that roster is deficient for what you need to score in the passing game."

"Nick Holt is a great defensive coordinator, but I don’t know what you do right away other than break everything down and start over. We saw guys on (Darrell) Hazell’s roster who wanted to work and bust their butt. Start there, then you start recruiting out of state better."

"The quarterback (David Blough) doesn’t have any targets, and he’s not really what fits that offense, but he’s their best option."

"We’re interested to see what (Brohm’s) staff can put out there in Year 1 at receiver.”

There seems to be some concerns with Purdue’s roster, as the other B1G coaches seem to think that Hazell didn’t leave much, or just damaged goods, for Brohm to use. Despite these mixed reviews, I would say the comments regarding Purdue are trending towards the positive side, especially with their comments towards Coach Brohm and his staff. Comparing these comments to the ones made last year, I’d say the difference is night and...sunrise probably? Here’s two quotes about Purdue from the coaches last season:

“What they were doing on defense last year didn’t make a lot of sense. It was just very predictable and didn’t do anything to cause you problems. You could mess with their linebackers’ eyes. They were playing man a lot of time with corners who just couldn’t play man-to-man without some sort of help.”

“They aren’t great up front. You think of Purdue over the years having some pretty good defensive linemen, but don’t think I can name a single good player off that defense, and it was so easy to scheme them up because you knew what you were getting, you could check to certain things.”

Ouch.

It’s good to see that the rest of the Big Ten likes this hire for Purdue and that Coach Brohm can get something done in the next few years. Of course, I would not take these comments too seriously until Brohm proves himself. Nothing against Brohn, but we have to remember that one coach anonymously said this about Purdue and Hazell just before his first season:

“I look at Darrell Hazell and that staff — they’ve hired some damn good coaches. They have two really good coordinators in Greg Hudson on defense and John Shoop on offense. I respect both of those guys." …