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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 22 • 24 He considers himself an "excellent teacher," a problem solver and a good communicator with college athletes. But it'll take a bit to gain familiarity with play- ers. He already has some with the coaches. He worked with Jim Bridge at Bowling Green and got to know Hazell when Kent State recruited his son, Ryan, to play for the Golden Flashes. He'd known of Hazell before that — Malone was on Michigan's staff when Hazell was at Ohio State and when DeBord was the coordinator for the Wolverines. "That was on a different side of the street, but I have great respect for everything Coach Tressel's group did there. That's what makes this a really inviting job," Malone said. "How can you not have good feelings about Darrell and the way he runs things, his priorities and his background?" PARKER SHIFTS Gerad Parker didn't know until Sunday that his coaching responsibilities were shifting. Hazell interviewed tight end, receiver and running back coaches last week after receivers coach Kevin Sherman left for Pitt last month, but Hazell didn't keep his current staff informed of the details of the coaching search. So Parker was a bit surprised to hear Malone was hired to coach tight ends and he was moving to coach receivers. But Parker was fine with the move — he was BY STACY CLARDIE SClardie@GoldandBlack.com T erry Malone admittedly wasn't look- ing to get back into college coaching. Malone was released in January by the New Orleans Saints after a nine-year run as their tight ends coach, and he was enjoying vacation with his family at Dis- ney World in mid-February. Then he got a call from Darrell Hazell. After getting a glowing recommen- dation from former Michigan offensive coordinator and close friend Mike DeBord, Hazell wanted Malone to interview for the opening on Purdue's coaching staff. So Malone interrupted the vacation to fly to Indiana, interview and then headed back to Florida. On the drive home Dis- ney, Malone got a call with a job offer. Days later, he was in West Lafayette, being introduced to the Boilermakers and attending the first 6 a.m. workout of the winter. "He's a perfect fit for our staff room right now with our players," Hazell said Monday. "He's got the right demeanor. He's got a wealth of knowledge, just be- ing able to listen to him on the board last week. I think he's good for that entire room. A guy who has been there, done it at all levels." Malone said after he met Purdue's staff, he felt like it was a good fit. He'd missed things about coaching in col- lege — building relationships with high school coaches, building bonds in recruit- ing, working closely with the rest of the staff. He'll also have a considerable oppor- tunity to develop players, especially the current group he's inherited at Purdue. Gone are the three most experienced tight ends, and the top players on the depth chart now are a walk-on and a red- shirt freshman. "That's a great part of what it is to be a coach, to be able to see the progress of a young guy who is willing to work," Malone said Monday. "I told them (Sun- day) night that you have to be a smart, have to be tough, have to be accountable to be a good tight end. But you see so much more progress when you're coach- ing a college kid as opposed to what I've done the last nine years. With the exception of a Jimmy Graham or some- body who comes in as a young guy and hasn't had a lot of experience, a lot of the guys I coached were men. It was getting them in the right spot and helping them extend their careers. But you didn't see the jump in progress that you will with a group like this." The dynamic would seem to fit Malone's strengths. F O OT BA L L : N E W S A N D N OT E S Stacy Clardie New tight ends coach Terry Malone met Purdue players for the first time Sunday and was on the field with them Monday dur- ing 6 a.m. workouts. He has a lot of studying to do on personnel before spring ball starts. Malone In; Parker Moves