Boiling Point

Depth chart, notes from Tuesday's presser

The first two-deep was released Tuesday, and there weren't any major surprises.
Eugene Bright will start at defensive end for Mike McDonald, who won't play because of a high ankle sprain. Coach Joe Tiller said Bright, a senior, has his best camp this fall since being at Purdue.
Freshman Tyler Haston is listed as a backup at strong-side linebacker behind Anthony Heygood, but Tiller figured Haston probably would only see time on special teams. That's in part because Tiller is more settled when it comes to the linebacking corps and because the Boilermakers may utilize a nickel package (with only two linebackers) on passing situations.
The players expected to start on the offensive line are Sean Sester (left tackle), Zach Reckman (left guard), Robbie Powell (center), Jordan Grimes (right guard) and Zach Jones (right tackle). Jones may be the most intriguing of the group. He's only a sophomore, but he's impressed enough in practice to get the nod over fifth-year senior Elliot Hood. Tiller raved about Hood on Tuesday. Tiller likes Hood's versatility and intelligence to play both tackles spots as well as his experience and the fact Hood doesn't get intimidated or freeze up on the line if a linebacker shows blitz. So if we don't see Hood in the opener, it sounds like it could be soon.

• Other than McDonald, Tiller said the only other player expected to miss Saturday's game is Garret Miller, who recently had arthroscopic knee surgery.
• Tiller recently watched the tape from the 1997 opener -- his first game as head coach at Purdue --  at Toledo. And it wasn't a fun viewing. "I actually had forgotten -- they say time heals all wounds -- but I had forgotten how dominant they were in that game," he said. "They were beating us, I believe, 34-14 late in the fourth quarter. So it wasn't like they won the game. They really dominated the game. That was something I've tried to forget until I pulled the tape out and was quickly reminded." The Rockets won the game, 36-22.
• Running back Jaycen Taylor is sporting an interesting haircut. He still has the long faux hawk, but now on the sides he has "33" and a football design shaved in.
• Curtis Painter was No. 5 on ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit's list of "what a difference a year makes" in quarterbacks. Receiver Dorien Bryant was on the "Players who don't get enough respect" list.
• For more on Toledo, check out these articles from The Blade. Here's one article on preparing for Purdue, and here's another about who will start at quarterback for the Rockets.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Browsing the sites

Some interesting Purdue blurbs on the sports sites this week:

• SI.com named Joe Tiller as the Big Ten's coach on the hot seat: "Nine bowls in 10 season has fans expecting better than last year's 8-6 record, which makes Tiller a victim of his own success."
• The same site didn't have a Purdue player listed among its top 10 in the Big Ten. That shocks me -- either receiver Dorien Bryant or guard Jordan Grimes should have made the list. But the magazine called Grimes one of the players to watch among the unranked teams in the conference. The blurb called Grimes a "mauler."
• ESPN.com already has bowl projections out for 2007. Ivan Maisel and Mark Schlabach have the Boilers playing Missouri in the Valero Alamo Bowl, which pits the Big Ten's fourth- or fifth-place finisher vs. the Big 12's fourth or fifth. CNNSI.com also has Purdue slated to play in the Alamo Bowl but against Texas A&M.
• For an update on Anthony Spencer, check out this link at the Cowboys site. Looks like he has a chance to start at outside linebacker.  Apparently another Fort Wayne guy, Bernard Pollard, is having some fun in the NFL, too.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

More from Tuesday's practice

Coach Joe Tiller appears to have some nice depth at the defensive tackle spot, and he's excited to be able to utilize it.
Tiller said the team will play five tackles this season that include Mike Neal, Alex Magee, Ryan Baker, Jared Zwilling and Jeff Benjamin. Neal and Magee were the likely starters heading into camp but have battled injuries. That's allowed Baker to make a move.
Baker, 6-foot-5 and 288 pounds, started 10 regular-season games last season and had six sacks. He also earned the team's Pit Bull Award in spring ball on defense. The award is given to the player who exemplifies sustained tenacity and intense play.
"It will be hard to keep Baker off the field as a starter," Tiller said. "He's just done too much during camp to not merit starting. He is very serious and very intense. He's very intent on starting this year, so even when we've had situations in practice that have been a little light-hearted, he's seemed to be pretty heavy. So he's pretty dialed in."

• The Boilermakers have quite a long list of players in purple jerseys, which signals guys who can't practice because of injuries. The most noteworthy are potential starters: end Mike McDonald, guard Jordan Grimes, safety Brandon Erwin and tackle Garret Miller. McDonald, who has a high ankle sprain, and Miller, who had a recent arthroscopic knee surgery, currently are the only ones who could miss the opener.
• Tiller said junior offensive tackle Dan Zaleski has quit the team. Zaleski's decision is surprising considering he was battling for the starting job coming out of camp and though that likely wouldn't have been his role to start the season, it'd have been shocking if he didn't get some time. Sean Sester and Elliot Hood are the current starters with Garret Miller recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery. Zaleski would have been a likely choice for a backup on either side.
• Dorien Bryant said he's working as the No. 1 punt returner. He's excited to get the ball in his hands as many times as possible, and that's a good thing for fans of the playmaker. I chatted with Bryant for about 15 minutes after Tuesday's practices for a feature story for next week that will run with our season preview August 29.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Football notes

Coach Joe Tiller figured with 22 seniors on the roster, he wouldn't have to worry about bad tempo in practice. Figured the leaders wouldn't let that happen.
So Tiller clearly was disappointed when his group didn't have much intensity in Thursday's practice, comparing his team to that of a youth football team.
"It was below average," Tiller said of practice. "Maybe a (youth team) would want to scrimmage us because they might whip us."
Tiller attributed the bad practice to "dead camp minds."
The intensity should be up by Saturday when the team will have a scrimmage at Ross-Ade Stadium. Tiller said he hopes to see players emerge in game situations, though there likely won't be much movement on the depth chart based on it.

• With Sean Sester working at left tackle since Monday after getting swapped from the right side, Tiller and his staff are now working to fill the hole at left guard. Sophomores Eric Hedstrom and Zach Reckman have been getting reps, and Tiller said they could share the load. "Our hope is between (Hedstrom) and Reckman, we can get a full game out of them," he said. Sester, who has started all 25 of his games at right tackle, made the move while Garret Miller was out with a groin injury. Newcomer Elliot Hood, a transfer from Vanderbilt, currently is starting at right tackle.
• Chris Summers' hold on the kicking spot was secured when Tim Dougherty opted to transfer to Louisville, Tiller said. "Dougherty has decided that Summers is the winner, so he's no longer going to stay with the program," Tiller said. "He admits Summers is a better kicker." Tiller also said freshman walk-on Brody McKnight currently is tabbed to handle kickoffs, which will be from 5 yards deeper this season.
• Terrell Vinson, who likely will start at corner for the second consecutive year, said he changed his number from 34 to 5 simply because he didn't like 34 and felt better in a single digit.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Basketball tags key recruit

In a much-needed move, the Boilermakers added another big man to its 2007-08 incoming class when it landed 6-foot-9, 235-pound Serbian Nemanja Calasan.
Coach Matt Painter had been hoping to add Calasan for awhile, initially targeting him in the spring. But it took some time for Calasan's visa to be secured, sports information director Elliot Bloom said.
Calasan averaged 15 points and eight rebounds per game while at Midland Junior College last year as a sophomore. He helped lead the team to a 29-8 record and the National Junior College Athletic Association championship. A division of rivals.com ranked Calasan as the No. 2 overall prospect in the junior college ranks.
Calasan's addition is crucial because Purdue lost its only low post threat when Carl Landry graduated. Freshman JaJaun Johnson is the tallest player on the roster at 6-10, but he still needs to add strength to match up with Big Ten players. The Boilers did add size with 6-9 transfer Chris Reid, who is listed at 255 pounds, but Calasan likely will be more polished, especially at the offensive end. Purdue's other big freshmen (6-8 Scott Martin and Robbie Hummel) are more of swing-type players than back-to-the-basket guys.
Calasan will have two years of eligibility remaining and is expected to arrive to campus this week, Bloom said.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Notes from media day

With the middle linebacker spot still undecided, coach Joe Tiller said at the team's media day there's a chance converted outside linebacker Anthony Heygood will get a chance at the spot.
Heygood was moved from running back to defense and was targeted as a starter on the outside. But with Dan Bick, last season's starter in the middle, still nursing a neck injury and not able to play with contact and the other options with little experience (redshirt freshman Kevin Green and senior Josh Ferguson), Tiller thinks Heygood could get a chance.
If Heygood is moved, Tiller said Jeff Lindsay or Mike Durrett could get time at outside linebacker. Another option is to simply play with two linebackers and use a nickel defense. The Boilermakers have depth in the secondary, which would make that possible.

• Scheduling isn't easy in this era of teams striving for as many home games as possible, and because of that, Purdue lost a potentially great match-up. Tiller said the Boilermakers talks to schedule a home-and-home with Nebraska broke down when the Cornhuskers opted to focus on having eight home games a season. "Why? It's the ticket to balance the books," Tiller said. "So they've decided they're not going to continue to talk with us. But I thought that would have been a good deal for us and them."
• Tiller said the Bermuda grass at the stadium is thriving in the 90 degree heat. "It's a phenomenal grass, but it needs the right grower climate, which happens to be the hotter the better," he said.
• Don't expect many -- if any -- true freshmen to get playing time this season. With so many starters returning (20 overall), it will be tough for any young players to break through. Tiller said the best chance could be at the defensive end spots, but even then Cliff Avril and Michael McDonald are solid options to start.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Middle linebacker, notes

I chatted with Dan Bick and Kevin Green after practice for a story in Thursday's paper about the middle linebacker position.
It's an interesting dynamic.
Bick still is nursing a neck injury, and I didn't think he sounded too optimistic about being able to hit people anytime soon. He seemed disappointed, naturally. Green, though, was completely excited about the opportunity to not only possibly start but simply to get playing time after redshirting as a true freshman last year. Josh Ferguson, a senior, is the other guy in the mix. He had a chance last season but didn't impress and then had his season cut short with a hip injury.
Certainly Bick would be the choice if he were healthy. But there have been concerns even before the injury as to whether he could hold up at that position for a full season. He's not as big physically as the other options -- he always gets tagged as "undersized," though he's listed at 6-1, 225 -- and that position can take a pounding dealing with linemen. Bick seemed to be a better fit on the outside where he could use his athleticism. But if he's tentative even tackling, then obviously all of speculation as to what position best fits him won't matter.
Bick said he thinks Green is a good player with nice tools who needs more experience. Bick is helping to try to get Green adjusted, and Green appreciates the advice. Even if it isn't sugar-coated.
"Every time I mess up, he's there to tell me, and he's not really telling me when I do good," Green said. "I think it's for a good cause. Every time I have a problem and I ask him what I need to do, he lets me know. I ask him, 'Did I have a good practice or a bad practice?' He's quick to let me know how I'm doing because he wants me to be a great player, too."

• Coach Joe Tiller said players have handled the heat well. He noted that with Daylight Savings Time, having later practices hasn't made much of a difference. The team started its afternoon practice at 4 p.m. outside Wednesday and moved inside for the final 30 minutes. During that time, a sign outside of Mackey Arena flashed a temperature of 99.9 degrees.
• Tiller assumed Bick participated in some contact drills during practice. But when he asked Bick, who was standing nearby, how much, he learned the answer was none. "You had no contact at all?" Tiller said to Bick. "No, sir," Bick responded. "Not 9-on-7 (drills)?" "No, sir." Tiller then returned his attention to reporters and quipped, "I think we're going to put him in the marching band."
• The Boilermakers have their schedule filled through 2010 with the addition of Western Illinois on Sept. 11, 2010.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Basketball recruiting moves

A couple recruiting moves were made over the last week: the verbal commitment by Ohio high school senior-to-be Ryne Smith and the announcement that Greg Hill won't be attending Purdue this fall.
Smith, a 6-foot-3 shooting guard from Toledo, told the Lafayette paper he will be playing with the Boilermakers in 2008-09.
Smith averaged 18.4 points, five assists and four rebounds as a junior at Whitmer High School. He made an unofficial visit to Purdue last week and gave his commitment the next day, the paper said. Smith said he plays in a motion offense now -- the same offense the Boilers' utilize -- and thinks that will help with his transition to the college ranks in two years.
Hill, a shooting guard from Merrillville, didn't qualify academically for Purdue and instead will attend Midland Junior College this fall, according to a release by the school.
Hill signed with Purdue after guard Chris Lutz opted to transfer. Before coach Matt Painter headed out on the recruiting trail in July, he said Hill was "very close" to being eligible but was waiting on a test score. Purdue basketball SID Elliot Bloom told the Lafayette Journal & Courier that he wasn't sure if Hill would attend Purdue after his time at junior college.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette