Purdue’s Hazell inspires despite struggles

IOWA CITY — Purdue Coach Darrell Hazell entered this season at a crossroads. But whichever direction he took, his players prepared to follow him.

Hazell, 51, guided Purdue to a 4-20 record in his first two seasons, including a 1-15 mark in Big Ten play. It hardly represented progress from mediocrity, of which the Boilermakers have wallowed since Joe Tiller's era ended in 2008.

But to his players, Hazell is more than a coach. He's a leader.

'The first year, I was scared. He was intimidating,' Purdue cornerback Frankie Williams said. 'Now I love him, literally. He could tell me to jump off the Skyway Bridge down in Florida, and I'd do it. He'd tell me to run through that wall and I'm running through it.'

Why is that?

'He's genuine,' Williams said. 'Just going through all the lumps and all the losses we have, you see it. You can't pretend to be genuine. Players see straight through it. We know he cares, and he's a man of his words. Just out of respect from him and his family.

'I remember one time after a game, I saw his son crying. It felt like that was my little brother crying. Stuff like that hurt. Just to know he cares, you want to do everything you can to see everybody happy.'

This year has produced more lumps for the Boilermakers. Purdue is 2-8 and 1-5 in the Big Ten. Hazell had eyes on installing a physical style of football on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Instead, his squad ranks 113th in rush offense and 112th in rush defense.

Longtime athletics director Morgan Burke publicly stood by Hazell in interviews last week. He admitted nobody was happy with the record but he said Hazell would return next year despite his 6-28 mark over three seasons.

'If there's confusion about who the guy is who's going to the lead the Boilermakers in 2016, let's dispel that,' Burke said last week on BTN.

Hazell's players were elated by the news.

'Morgan Burke is really inspirational,' Purdue receiver Domonique Young said Saturday. 'He's always around talking to us, motivating us, pushing us. Same with Coach Hazell. So whenever we hear something from him, it goes a long way. Coach Hazell, he's our head coach, so whatever he says it's going to register in our minds. I feel like what he said before he left our locker room was inspirational so we just went out there and played.'

At some point, however, the Boilermakers have to respond on the field. Purdue has battled in tight losses to ranked teams like Michigan State (24-21) and Northwestern (21-14), but Illinois (48-14) and Minnesota (41-13) drilled the Boilermakers. A home win against Nebraska (55-45) earned praise but was short-lived.

There is hope for Purdue, at least on offense. Four games into the season, red-shirt freshman David Blough was named the team's starting quarterback. He earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors after throwing for 274 yards and four touchdowns against Nebraska. True freshman running back Markell Jones — who was injured against Northwestern on Saturday — has rushed for 692 yards a 5.4 yard-per-carry clip and eight touchdowns. According to the Lafayette Journal & Courier, Jones averages 6.9 yards a carry in the second half.

But their play are the few bright spots this season. The Boilermakers are 101st in both total offense and total defense. That's not the balance Hazell wants — or needs — at the end of his third season.

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