Jerry Palm, what the heck is going on with your
Boilermakers?
_____________

Story by Tom Kubat
Lafayette (IN) Journal and Courier
March 20, 2006

Quarterback coach Blaine Bennett has become the fifth
Purdue assistant football coach to leave since the end of
the 2005 season, accepting an offer to be the assistant
head coach and wide receivers coach at Michigan State.

Bob DeBesse, Tony Samuel, Jim Chaney, and David Mitchell
have also left the Boilermakers since their 5-6 season in
2005.

"The biggest attraction for me is that it comes with the
assistant head coach title," Bennett said Sunday afternoon.
"I want to be a head coach again so I think that's a nice
title to have. And I'll be coaching receivers in the spread
offense that I'm used to being involved with, all the way
back to when I was a player."

Bennett, who already is on the job in East Lansing, will be
reunited with MSU head coach John L. Smith, who was a
defensive coordinator at Idaho when Bennett was a player
and also was the defensive coordinator when Bennett was a
graduate assistant at Washington State.

Smith interviewed four candidates before offering the job
to Bennett late last week. Bennett came to Purdue in 2001
after serving as the head coach at Western Oregon.

Bennett said he's not concerned about the perception that
Smith, who will be entering his fourth season with the
Spartans, may be on the hot seat.

"I don't know if that's true or not. I do know at this
level you need to win every year. So it's not a concern of
mine," said Bennett, who in December was promoted to
recruiting coordinator at Purdue. "In the Big Ten, it's
very competitive, whether it's at Purdue or Michigan State.
The expectations are that you win and go to bowl games.

"They haven't done that the last two years. They did it his
first year and they're very optimistic that they're going
to have a good year. They feel like they've got their guys
in place, the right players for what they're trying to do.
I think it will be a positive experience."

Bennett also disagreed with some Purdue followers who think
the turnover in assistant coaches is a sign of turmoil in
the program.

"Bob DeBesse had a chance to go back to Texas, coach the
same position and actually make more money," Bennett said.
"Jim Chaney had the chance to go to the NFL, which he's
wanted to do for the past two or three years.

"And I get a chance to have a title and make considerably
more money. It had nothing to do with where the Purdue
program is or going, or anything like that. It's just one
of those years."

Bennett also denied he left because Tiller, who couldn't be
reached for comment, bypassed him for the offensive
coordinator's position after Chaney left. That job was
given to offensive line coach Bill Legg.

"That was not a factor. Joe has been great to me," Bennett
said. "He hired me and gave me the opportunity to come to
Purdue and coach quarterbacks. He's been very loyal to me.
When Greg Olson (former Purdue quarterback coach) came back
(from the NFL), Joe kept me as the quarterback coach. I
think we worked very well together.

"To be able to coach Kyle Orton from day one was a great
opportunity for me. Working for Joe was fantastic. I told
him before he hired me that if he ever had an opening, I'd
love to work for him and it was everything I thought it was
going to be."

With spring practice scheduled to begin April 5, Tiller now
has two vacancies to fill as he prepares for his 10th
season at Purdue. Overall, the five departures are the most
under Tiller since four assistants had to be replaced
between the 2002 and 2003 seasons.

http://tinyurl.com/q3ww7




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