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VOLUME 26, ISSUE 1 13 T here's this quote that bounces around, attributed to legend- ary former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden, outlining a four-year framework for a successful long-term rebuild. Goes like this … Year 1: Lose big. Year 2: Lose close. Year 3: Win close. Year 4: Win big. Purdue will hope the Bowden Blue- print applies to its looming 2015 sea- son, because Stages 1 and 2 are in the books, with 3 and 4 being the hoped- for lights at the end of the tunnel. The Boilermakers were cut down by the butcher's knife more often than not in 2013, their 11 losses coming by an average of about 26 points. Then in 2014 it was more the scal- pel, not that it hurts any less. Purdue lost a one-point game on the road at Minnesota and was tied at Indiana in the final minute. That's the difference between 3-9 and falling just shy of .500. Purdue was close last season, or at least closer. It looked the part of a competitive Big Ten team in October, including that game in Minneapolis. Purdue should have actually won that game, same as it probably should have beat- en IU. That's the "lose close" part. Now, it's time to win, to win close, to win big, to win by forfeiture, to win by act of nature, whatever. Doesn't matter. Just win. This is the rebuild's rubber year. This is now Darrell Hazell's team more than his predecessor's. It's time for that turning point. It's time to see what he and his staff have got. It starts on offense. When Purdue was good on offense last season, it was because of raw speed, the bulk of it now departed. And if you want to compare former starting running back Akeem Hunt and new starting running back D.J. Knox, well, they're both from Georgia. So there you go. Knox will embody the transforma- tion of a unit that's going to have to win with toughness, by playing more traditional, physical Big Ten football against opponents that have tradition- ally been more physical. Is increased tempo the great equal- izer for Purdue? Maybe, but such things are no longer particularly orig- inal in college football and the Boil- ermakers will have to show they can execute it properly. Tempo can be a tremendous advan- tage when pulled off, a spectacular trainwreck when not, a sucker-punch to the face of the unprepared or fa- tigued at best, a pigeon bouncing off a window at worst. But the reality remains Purdue will not move forward offensively until it gets quarterback stabilized. In the perfect world, Austin Appleby serves as the doorstop that halts the revolving door, by being Purdue's best quarterback and not just its oldest. It would be ideal for the one expe- rienced player to prove he's the best player, because the best player has to play, whether he's the experienced player or not. And the growing pains of freshmen in the fire are getting old and have yet to yield any dividends. Purdue needs a new identity on offense. The uncomfortable news, then, is two Sep- tember opponents, Mar- shall and Bowling Green, are such that the Boilermakers are likely going to have to figure out ways to score enough just to keep up. A third, Virgin- ia Tech, is such that they're going to have to figure out ways just to score at all. Purdue's got to stop opening sea- sons on the home field of quality oppo- nents. But there's no going back now on this Marshall game, same as there was no going back in 2013 when Pur- due opened at Cincinnati. The beginning of the season is daunting and October has Cuisinart potential, but if things fall into place, there's no reason six wins can't be scratched out of a schedule that con- cludes with fellow projected Big Ten also-rans Illinois, Northwestern, Iowa and Indiana. This is a crucial year for Purdue football, the year in which the program needs to embark on a sustainable up- ward trajectory. If it doesn't, it will have nothing to show for its struggles. Players have said all the right things about their offseason and by every ac- count done all the right things in pre- paring for Marshall and all that comes after. They want to win. Now, it's time to answer the most important question: Are they good enough to? j Neubert can be contacted at BNeubert@GoldandBlack.com Time For The Turning Point From Editor Brian Neubert