GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 28, ISSUE 5 12
BY STACY CLARDIE
SClardie@GoldandBlack.com
T
hey'd had enough.
After another practice that didn't nearly rise to the
energy level necessary to compete — let alone im-
press anybody who needed impressing — the few players
on Purdue's defense who have any real game experience
did what they had to do.
After the 10th practice of the spring, in late March, line-
backer Markus Bailey (with his 25 career starts, the most
on the defense), safety Navon Mosley (22) and cornerback
Tim Cason (seven) gathered the rest of the Boilermaker
defense for a post-practice huddle.
It was not quiet.
Bailey, undoubtedly Purdue's best player and someone
who is working to emerge as a vocal leader, something this
roster desperately needs, was the last to speak.
He knew how many significant players the unit lost af-
ter last season, seven starters among the 11, plus a reserve
who was one of the best interior linemen in the program.
He knew how rough the spring had been to that point
with so many players being forced to step into larger roles,
young players who may not even be ready to do so but had
little choice.
But it didn't mean it was OK not to exhaust every bit
of energy — even if minds still may have been spinning,
even if assignments still were jumbled, even if the plays
weren't quite clear.
So Bailey, in a moment of revelation for his continued
growth as a leader, was blunt.
"They rode the coattails a little bit for some of those guys
(last year), and they just didn't have to really prepare," he
said later, relaying his message that day, "but now it's their
turn. Their number is being called on. So they needed to
understand that."
There may not have been much the generally young de-
fense understood this spring, but being loaded with reps,
Lea
rn
i
ng
C
u
r
ve
Inexperience showed
on defense this spring
Tom Campbell
Defensive end Giovanni Reviere, a redshirt
freshman, was one of 11 underclassmen on
the two-deep on defense this spring. And,
largely, he made the most of the increased
reps and is expected to contribute in the fall.