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GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 27, ISSUE 4 9 The Definition Of It W hen one peruses the cover title, it may come into question what the word "it" means. All you have to do is ask Coach Jeff Brohm, and he will tell you. It means everything. Recruiting, spring practice, the new facility, you name it and Purdue is in the beginning phase of an upswing, or so any Purdue fan would hope. Now, Brohm has been through a recruiting call, so obviously that has begun in earnest. But as is the case with any coach coming into a job less than 90 days from national signing day, it is a mad dash, full of more hoping that knowing in terms of whether you got the right guys to begin the turnaround that is so desired. I can't help but like Brohm's approach. As he told a meet-and-greet audience for a National Football Founda- tion function at Bruno's Restaurant in West Lafayette on Feb. 19, he is going to focus on cultivating talent close to home. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean Purdue will have a dozen commits from the state of Indiana in future classes, but what it does mean is this staff is committed to building this from the ground up. And Brohm has a sense that the better relation- ship he and his staff can build with coach- es from Indiana and surrounding states, it might build interest in the program and even put some more folks in the stands. Speaking of fans in the stands, Brohm intends to make an investment in developing relationships at all levels football in the Greater Lafayette area. Again, not because there are oodles of prospects out there, but because it is good business. The notion that "we are all in this togeth- er" played well with that the Bruno's audience, and if exe- cuted, it can't help but begin to assuage a community that has pretty much tuned out Boilermaker football. Brohm has an a little bit of an aw shucks approach to things that will play well here. Especially if the fans can see some im- provement, and prospects see how much he is committed to bringing back Purdue football to relevance. It's not going to be easy. But most things worth doing aren't. From Publisher Alan Karpick "This ain't a challenge. Challenge is when you don't have food to eat at home. Challenge is when the lights aren't on." JaMarcus Shephard on the challenge of developing young wide receivers "I'm looking at Purdue and thinking, 'What do they not have?'" ESPN color analyst Dan Dakich during Purdue's win over Michigan State Feb. 18 at Mackey Arena "What we're trying to do is not be out- worked by anybody. I think work ethic is critical. We're in the Midwest, people are making money off their hard work." First-year baseball coach Mark Wasikowski