Purdue presents realistic challenge
By MIKE SPRUNGER
Times have changed.
For years, Notre Dame gave Purdue a swift beating on the football field. The Boilers took their lumps, often begging later to be allowed to return the favor on the basketball court.
While Notre Dame still won't play Purdue in basketball, things couldn't be more different on the football field. No more should the Irish count on meeting Purdue and walking away with an easy victory.
Two years ago, Purdue shocked everyone (especially Purdue students) when it dominated the Irish by putting up nearly 500 yards in offense during a 28-17 victory at Ross-Ade Stadium. In the short time since, beating the Irish has almost become an expectation for fans and students at Purdue.
It's not cockiness. It's confidence. Something that the Boilers lacked before Coach Joe Tiller took over the program prior to the 1997 season.
After two nine-win seasons and two bowl victories against nationally ranked teams, Purdue is ready to contend with nearly anyone.
Ask any returning player at Purdue and chances are that last year's loss at Notre Dame is fresh on the memory. The Boilers led throughout, usually by double digits — until the fourth quarter. Leading in the last five minutes of the game, Purdue collapsed. Quarterback Drew Brees overthrew receiver Randall Lane and Tony Driver collected his first of two interceptions in the final minutes.
The rest is no secret: The Irish scored a game-winning field goal with less than a minute to play to defeat the Boilers 31-30.
Shortly after Purdue discarded Central Florida last Saturday at the Citrus Bowl, the talk quickly turned to Notre Dame. When asked, Brees sheepishly acknowledged that he had thought about the game.
I would venture to say that Michael Jordan thought less about his role in Chicago's last three NBA Championships than Brees thought about his desire to rectify the end of last year's game.
While angering a quarterback with only 14 career starts is not as threatening as calling his Airness "Michelle," Notre Dame fans can expect to see a sharp and focused Brees. Key signs of this include footballs flying with tremendous accuracy, few mental errors and a continuing trend of making something out of nothing when a play breaks down.
Once again, Saturday's meeting is a sellout. But, as the team has evolved in recent years, so have the fans. For the first time in years, Purdue's home crowd could be a factor.
The views expressed in this column are those of the auther and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Sports Stories for Friday, September 10, 1999
