At first the time off was kind of nice.
“We’d never been home for Christmas before, and everybody complains about how we never get to go home,” Dorien Bryant said. “So I went home, relaxed, hanging out, got to see my family and my friends.”
Family, though, was what reminded Bryant of exactly what he was missing.
As the wide receiver sat and watched bowl game after bowl game, as he watched fellow Big Ten teams competing while his teammates were scattered around the country, Bryant was reminded of just what Purdue was missing.
“I remember specifically it was the Iowa bowl game (the Outback Bowl), and they played Florida down in Florida, and I just got real depressed because I’m watching teams that we played against, and played solid against,” Bryant said. “We couldn’t pull these games out. Those guys were all in hot sunny places, and I’m sitting in my house (in Swedesboro, N.J.) with snow on the ground.
For the only time in Joe Tiller’s nine-plus seasons as their coach, the Boilermakers failed to make a bowl game last season. Even finishing the season with three straight victories only elevated Purdue’s record to 5-6.
This season, though, the Boilermakers have used the memory and motivation of a disappointing 2005 to get off to a fast start. They will arrive at Notre Dame (3-1) on Saturday boasting a seven-game winning streak and a 4-0 record. Their swagger has been refreshed and their confidence has been renewed.
The restoration project began almost as soon as the 2005 season ended.
“Everybody just looked in the mirror at themselves and said I don’t want to be the guy who messes everything up,” Bryant said. “We vowed to ourselves that we’d never have a season like that again. It’s not us, and it’s not Purdue football.”
What is Purdue football is the patented “basketball on grass” show the Boilermakers will try to stage Saturday. This season, with Curtis Painter at quarterback, the show even includes an option component.
Purdue comes into the game averaging almost 41 points per game. Painter has completed 64 percent of his passes for 285 yards per game. Bryant and tight end Dustin Keller have combined for almost 188 receiving yards per game. Plus, Purdue is averaging 164 yards rushing on 5.2 yards per carry.
The defense, led by pass rusher Anthony Spencer, is doing its part, too, though it has given up almost 29 points per game.
One of the biggest keys to the team’s improvement is Painter, who is playing with an increased level of confidence.
“I think Curtis is getting closer to performing the way he would like to and we would like him to,” Tiller said.
“I think he needs to continue to develop his patience and be more detailed in what it is that he is doing. He’s making progress. He has started nine games, which is not a complete college season, so I would grade him as a first-year starter. And he continues to improve.”
Bryant said he and his teammates plan on doing the same.And, Bryant said, the Boilermakers plan to give their friends and family a reason to travel to a bowl game.
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apatel@tribune.com
