Happy 2023 Boilermakers

I’ll make this brief. Just about 8.5 years ago when I came on board with H&R it was because my own site Jumbo Heroes (RIP to a real one) had died. All my fellow writers had moved on and after rebuffing Travis’ advancements once by trying to go it alone I could no longer keep it going by myself. So when he reached out again I said yes. Little did I know that Travis would move on to different pastures (I won’t say greener because H&R is the best) and I would be taking over as co-manager of this here establishment. What an incredible honor to step into this role at this site that Travis, and others, built from nothing.

As we have transitioned into new leadership here I know there have been some bumps and some things we may not be doing anymore that you liked but if that’s the case please let us know. We will be a slightly different site moving forward but we want to make sure we fulfill all your desires for Purdue coverage. For instance, tomorrow we will have both Gabi and Ryan on site at the Citrus Bowl so be on the lookout for their coverage of that.

2023 looks like it could be a special year for Purdue Athletics. Purdue football hired a rising young coach to take over for Jeff Brohm, and as I write this article Purdue basketball remains the #1 team in the country and will remain so when new rankings come out tomorrow. Never in my wildest dreams did I believe this team would be ranked #1. That’s why they play the games I guess. Head Coach Katie Gearlds is also working to turn around the women’s team and get them back to the NCAA tournament after quite a drop off in recent years. We have tried to increase coverage of the women’s team and we hope you have enjoyed it.

Keep an eye here on Hammer and Rails as we continue to build this community for all of you. If you’ve got suggestions or requests please leave them here in the comments but your best bet might be to tag us on twitter as that’s where we are most responsive. Thanks everyone for reading and I hope you have a healthy and prosperous 2023. Boiler Up!!!