Goldandblack.com Saturday Simulcast: Neubert, Schultz talk Purdue sports

Welcome to our Saturday simal cast brought to you as you can see below by the Purdue Union Club Hotel we're grateful for their business don't forget a new Spa open there you can join meet go before that Notre Dame game next week meet them at the boilerup bar uh 811 beastro and of course if you want a little coffee on Game Day morning check out leap's coffee as well at the union Club Hotel we're grateful for them Today's show will be a good one they're all good aren't they but we're glad to have Newbert will'll talk a little basketball in the front end and then Derek Schultz the new voice of golden black radio it's going to be interviewing the interviewer uh on the second segment is Derek we'll talk about his experience in indianapol sports media how he got there and then some we'll look forward to that as well so sit back enjoy the by week enjoy the show and we'll look forward to a big week on goldenback docomomo Dame so uh without further Ado here's a little Brian Newbert for you Brian I want to at least bring Folks up to date uh it's obviously a busy month at least as Matt Painter looks to put uh I don't say the finishing touches but get his class 2025 class put together there's some some bewitching dates that are up up coming up here uh bring us up to speed with what uh what you know and what may be going on is it bewitching like Supernatural yes because I always say that like 2 o'clock in the morning is my cat's witching hour that's a Witching Hour turns him into a little demon yeah I don't know but be who's been fed after midnight IA she's bewitch because I I used to love Elizabeth Montgomery back in the 60s back when we watched a be witch one of my favorite shows anyway go you're Barbara Eden right no Elizabeth Montgomery Barbara Eden was a dream of Genie what's the difference well bewitch was a whole another show with Darren you know with the two Darren and uh Iden we're Turing away all of our young listeners right now right um yeah so Purdue uh you know it's been a long time recruiting this 2025 class and the first starts flying now whatever that actually means um you know here come the official visits this is the rare year uh based on recent precedent where Purdue doesn't come into the fall with its class pretty much locked up with a bunch of early commitments uh so September is going to tell the tale I think they're looking to sign too um but the roster limits forthcoming now give you a little wiggle room uh so does the fact that you really don't have any desperate needs for that uh 2025 team which on paper looks like an elite team you got Braden Smith and Fletcher lawy and Trey Coffman Ren presumably as seniors you've got all these freshmen on your team now with experience uh you've got miles covin and Camden Heidi with a lot of experience that looks like a final four core uh potentially and they don't need someone to come in and step in right away uh just like they didn't last year miles colen played minutes but not you know a huge huge role um so Purdue has been looking for a Forward Forever For the Longest Time pury recruited this classic and only had one scholarship that has gone by the wayside because Canon Catchings went by the wayside so now there's a second scholarship on top of this 15-man roster limit coming which gives you some wiggle room so Purdue is going to look to sign a front Court player and Purdue is going to look to sign a backourt player if a third player uh should emerg I I that that would be highly unlikely um to happen um TR Sicily officially visit this weekend that's the name that you know we've been harping on uh for years because for the longest time it was like the only established guy who was who was being targeted um as Purdue looked for a power forward uh so he officially visits this weekend the first of I think four visits I think his plan is probably to take all four visits and then make a decision you know I'm sure Purdue with as aggressively and as actively and involved as they've been in recruiting him would like to have had this wrapped up a long time ago but at the end of the day it's the kid's decision you know it's not like it's a combination of buttons you have to push and the kid commits just so happens these sorts of players have been committing early to Purdue forever Southern Indiana is a different deal uh for Purdue um but I I think that you know Purdue is still in a pretty solid spot with him uh just have to kind of push him over the edge uh not coers him but push him over the edge I think that he's been the produce so many times the official visits almost kind of redundant but I think having him around produce players for a weekend would would help I do think it's a deterrent uh for the schools that are living in the portal uh with him and that's going to be an advantage for Purdue and an advantage that gets Amplified when he's around a lot of the players he'd be playing with uh at Purdue should he come to Purdue so it's basically Purdue um Indiana Notre Dame Michigan State ia's been in there I don't can't remember if he's got an official visit there or not um but a guy who would fit well uh at Purdue um you know uh maybe from day one maybe not again Purdue does not have a desperate need uh the next weekend Purdue brings in Trey Singleton who's another fourman type albeit more of a guardy four uh than a forward four for I'm just making up recruiting parans here now um so if sis you know produce recruiting sisly but it's not a oneman deal at that position Trey Singleton from Jeffersonville a kind of a late uh entry to the mix uh visits next weekend uh along with Antoine West who is the scoring guard Purdue has been recruiting uh since July uh who Purdue seems to be sitting in a very very very favorable spot with um I I would uh go so far as to say I think pry will get him um so it's those two and then Sebastian Williams Adams who's another fourman visits later in September he's the best athlete of the of the guys that produce recruiting at the four probably not the best shooter but he's the best athlete very skilled guy so Purdue got options here at forward they've got the guard think they want Antoine West uh sitting pretty with him the the other component here is that again you have no urgent desperate day one needs for that 2025 team so going into the spring with open scholarships uh might not be the worst thing in the world look what happened this past year when you had an open scholarship uh and an opportunity to add that last piece of the puzzle type of player now Lance Joneses are hard to come by that work out perfectly you could not have scripted that any better uh than it worked out so banking on that sort of thing happening again you know might not be uh the most airtight plan but it is an option to try to do that sort of thing so um I would uh suggest that Purdue would not be in a situation where if they don't get two of the guys they want here one in the front Court one in the back court that they're not just desperately flaing and throwing scholarships at players just to have X number players on their roster so uh that was a lot of words to just say TR Sicily visits this weekend and a bunch of other guys visit afterwards but uh that's kind of where things are right now so uh Purdue will have a lot of 2026 kids in for official visits um that may not heat up until the season because it really benefits Purdue to get young players on campus for games because that's one of Purdue's biggest selling points is that game day environment so 2026 is a little bit on the back burner as 2025 uh sort of comes to the Forefront now of course pretty has a commitment in the 2026 class and we haven't caught up with you at least on this with Luke erle coming in uh tell us you guys had a chance to see him play and and what what he brings to the table what kind of you've written about that also on our site a couple weeks ago but bring our our YouTube s Saturday Sim willcast viewers up to date on that yeah we should link that in the comments ments here if we can do that on YouTube that was a pretty in-depth Scouting Report I did on Luke Earle um I've seen him with his high school I've seen him with his AU team I've seen him since he was a freshman um in Rock Hill playing with his Indiana elite team um so I like to think I I have a pretty good beat on that one um solid first commitment starting point for a class type of guy a real Purdue guy so to speak uh I don't I mean that to be reductive about what about him but he is a substance guy he's a guy who fits really well at Purdue uh high IQ toughness competitive the sort of guy who works at Purdue the sort of guy whose value is Amplified at Purdue because Purdue values what he does more than a lot of other people do inexplicably like you see how it works out at places like Villanova Purdue places that value substance and why everyone doesn't do this is beyond me but Luke erle is a I mean he was recruited primarily as a point guard I'd imagine he won't be the only point guard in the class I would have to think he's not um but I think he can play both spots I think he's he's the quote unquote combo guard who can shoot who can guard a couple different positions who can handle the ball both as a primary ball handler and a secondary ball handler and I think that sort of Versatility nowadays is just crucially crucially important as his defensive versatility uh not the biggest not the quickest not the fastest not the most athletic guy in the world but again the sort of guy who works at Purdue who uh you know stands for the sort of things Purdue as a program stands for a kid who wants to be at Purdue it'll be important to him and uh you know how many times we have to tell the same story I mean it's it it's sort of the classic Purdue guy and you know he he isn't some you know scrub that Purdue just grabbed uh you know Wake Forest offered him um Butler offered him he had a bunch of other high Majors looking at him I think in time he would have had some offers too I think he's going to be ranked um when our first 2026 rankings come out too so this isn't just some some glorified walk-on type that pretty took here I don't want anybody to think that um I think he he's a guy prod really valued painter watched like crazy um and you know he's he's that guy that was just like Jack Benner a year ago where as soon as I saw him play this year I was like pain or staking this kid because everything payter values just oozes out of him and you know I think you know painter uh ought to be in a position now or what he decides to do is inevitably assume to be the right decision and or automatically assumed to be the right decision I should say because his track record of these guys working out is pretty good and um you know I think uh you know there's a lot of work to be done on that 20 26 class producing on a lot of great players um but uh I think Luke Earle was a very uh fitting very Purdue start to that uh here I am making up words again a very Pur start to that 2026 recruiting class of course Mount Vernon High School I think the home of OT Bloom as well operations director yeah and Purdue has always had a really good relationship with the people at Mount Vernon they come to the team Camp every year right that probably has something to do with it um yeah but uh you know Matt payer puts a lot of emphasis on what the High School coaches think about their players and I would imagine that Luke erle got a very very high grade from his from his his high school staff former football player too by the way quarterback right he was their starting quarterback is a true freshman and you know what does football do what is playing quarterback for a football team do it makes you tough and it makes you a leader and now he's not playing football anymore because he hurt his foot but I I don't I don't think you could have enough quarterbacks on your basketball team I don't personally I don't think you can have enough football players on your basketball team but yeah um this is a guy who you know quote unquote checks a lot of boxes in terms of intangibles and the sorts of things prod do values Chris Kramer pretty good football player in his own right correct and I'm trying to H some other ones other ones recently that have been big time Big Time and Chris was a pretty BigTime High School football player I don't know that he would have I don't know if you I know you remember I don't know a scholarship would he have been a scholarhip guy a lot of places do you think yes okay yes he would have been a uh he would have been probably a mid- major to start off with uh in my opinion and I've covered football recruiting longer than I've covered basketball recruiting probably yeah Kramer would have been the sort of guy who would have gone to camps and run well and tested pretty well and shown his explosiveness and somebody said somebody would have said you know what we're going to do we're gonna make him a safety or we're going to put 20 30 pounds on him and make him a linebacker um a very Joe Tillery like uh I'm just adding I'm just adding a y to the everything a very Jo Tillery sort of uh outside linebacker back in those days uh but no he absolutely would have been a division one football player maybe even a big 10 Prospect back back in those days you were taking athletes and developing them uh now you just go get a transfer yeah but back in those days you would take a Dennis Kelly you would take a uh Landon Johnson you would take a I'm thinking of Cornell Middlebrooks for some reason no one who's watching this has ever heard of Cornell Middlebrooks but you would take High School running backs or High School safeties and you would make them or High School quarterbacks and you would make them into uh defensive players Ralph Turner comes to mind yeah uh as well I think Chris Kramer would have been in that mix he would have been a safety or he would have been a linebacker Patrick batty I know went from basketball to football did he and he played High School football I don't know how long did he play up to his yeah no remember he would have been a division one player too and he of course my opinion put a lot of size and strength on to make him an offensive tackle but he was a pretty good tight end and of course he played for played for a while in pury football after his basketball career was done if I recall so yeah he had some circumstances during his career that I think really sidetracked him I I don't I think he gets a bad rap for you know his basketball career not panning out the way um people would have preferred but um so yeah but no he he was a pretty good uh High School football tight end who probably would have been an offensive tackle yeah um had he gone football all right Braden Smith gets named to the Blue Ribbon uh first team or All-American team not a surprise but just you know you've talked a lot about Braden and what uh what he means and how he is now is the alpha dog on this this basketball team he probably arguably was last year just because of where his position was on the court um talk about that and just his importance you've kind of me you've mentioned that certainly before but just how good and how much he can lead this team forward in your view and what will be a very different style I would think a somewhat different style of basketball this year without obviously when you don't have a Zack Edy in the lineup well they're getting the ball to Trey Koffman Ren I promise you that so uh it's not going to be a guy who's gigantic just parking at the rim and and Bren Smith getting the ball that Purdue wasn't that last year either Purdue was really good in ball screens with Ed and and um Braden Smith and that's going to look different this year but it's going to be the same fundamental principle I I think but the thing for Braden Smith this year is going to be you know making the people around him better really making them better he did that with Edy and that that was an an underplayed part of the Zach Edy story last year was how much of him that Zack Ed unlocked I'm sorry how much of Zack e Bren Smith unlocked but also the other way around is how much of Braden Smith Zack Ed unlocked because people were so worried about Zack Edy rolling to the basket that that really opened up brayen Smith to be empowered as a scorer and that really vaulted him to a much higher level than um what he showed as a freshman now you know he's going to have some weapons around him but he's going to have guys who are going to have to acclimate to a little bit of a different sort of role playing alongside Braden Smith Trey caufman Ren probably being number one uh Camden Heidi miles culvin probably being two3 in no particular work uh the big guys wilberg Daniel Jacobson they're going to obviously factor into that a little bit too but people who are just looking at okay Braden Smith's got to score this year he he really he's got to score more this year he's got to be their leading scorer are probably not looking at the components around him having to play a role in him doing that and I think Tre cof and ren is very capable of being that you know um uh running mate so to speak um but I think the biggest thing for Braden Smith this year is just being a leader and being produce sort of tone Setter and bringing everyone else to his level uh which is not easy I mean his competitive level because he's an elite almost obnoxious competitor and I think when that sort of thing wears off on other people uh it really makes teams better uh I think he's going to have to you know be a good leader through some ups and downs when he's got so many young guys around him and not hold everybody to the same standard he might have expected of Zack Ed because it's not GNA be perfect you know Zack Ed was the best player in the country but he was also a very experienced player too so when somebody when somebody screws something up you know um it's about being positive and it's about you know being patient and I've seen a little bit that in practice and I've heard uh you know from people who've been at practice who say he's done a really good job with that and I'm probably making a mountain out of a mole hill here I just think it's a trap when guys are just obnoxious competitors um you know being patient with the guys who aren't like them and uh you know Chris Kramer was a little bit that way too and um I just think that that's as much a story of produced season as anything is um you know Braden Smith making everyone else around him better in every in every sense of the term both as a player as a scorer as a facilitator and as a leader um so uh yeah he's obviously a great player um but when things change around you greatness takes on different forms all right we obviously uh boil maker working out uh and we'll be getting more and more of that as they lead head into that late October early November uh October 26 scores perue who goes to kraton for a exhibition game talk just about what what you're going to be looking for and what's important here as they lead up to the start of this season we've kind of hit on that before but just the things that are things to watch for in this team as it develops towards the 2425 season yeah I mean just a lot of what I've kind of talked about is that they have all these freshmen and when you have this many freshmen there's no way around them having to really help you now that doesn't mean come in like Braden Smith and Fletcher lawyer did two years ago and you know be your back hort you know uh from day one it means Jakari Harris and CJ Cox being your backup back court which is very important you know because Braden Smith and Fletcher lawyer things are going to happen they're they're not going to play 35 40 minutes each uh it's very important you get good minutes from the from those other guards and I I every indication this summer has been both of those guys have been have been excellent and um you know that's very positive puru expected a lot from Jakari Harris but I think CJ Cox has really established himself as you know a quote unquote pleasant surprise um purd wouldn't have taken if puru didn't really like him but I think liking a guy and expecting him to be ready from day one to really help you be good are two different things and I think it's gone from one to the other uh here this summer I think Purdue's loved what it's seen from CJ Cox I think the two centers um are going to be important because Purdue is I think probably going to start TR off Moren at Center if I had to guess right now but they're going to play two different sets of personnel one of which would include having you know quote unquote traditional size at Center and that would be wilberg or Daniel Jacobson um so how ready those guys are uh is going to be a really important thing for pury to find out here uh this fall but they've been practicing off summer so it's not like this is all novel it's not like they all just showed up Monday or on the first day of classes and introduce themselves to one another um so the centers are going to be really important um I think how they use trof and ran is going to be something that's very important uh how they build their offense around different sets of personnel how they use Camden Heidi how they use miles Colin how much those guys exert themselves or how much those guys assert themselves not exert themselves assert themselves offensively defensively whatever it might be both of those guys are so athletic and so gifted that you know Purdue's got to take advantage of that those guys have to take advantage of it and um it's also going to come down to Purdue scheming ways to put these players in position to succeed Coffman Ren's guy who I think can score around the basket but can score mid-range can shoot the three can drive on people out of face UPS you know things like that so they're going to want to get him in a lot of different positions um and then culvin and Heidi uh one of those guy I'd imagine Cam and Heidi might see some screen and roll type of stuff uh too so how he acclimates to that sort of thing uh is going to be a big deal H how Pur how fast Purdue tries to play Purdue has never really played slow everybody thinks they have because they've always had a giant but their first priority was always to push the pace and now with Heidi and culvin both more on the floor but also imp powered uh it'll be interesting to see uh how that translates especially when C Ren at Center because that that's a small slightly quicker Center than most teams are going to put out there um so there's a lot you know Purdue's got to be good defensively Purdue's got a rebound rebound rebound rebound that is going to be a huge key for this Purdue team um that has gone into so many seasons banking on being really good on the glass because of Ed because of Mason you know things like that now um you're a little smaller uh you don't have the same proven cast of characters on the glass you did before I think trof and run will be a good rebounder um but he's not g to be a dominant rebounder and then I think you're playing Wings in in the front court at least to start off with those centers I mentioned before Jacobson and Berg when they come in they've got to be really good on the glass and they've got to be really good defensively uh you know containing the and protecting the rim and things like that so I could go on for days and days I've probably already gone on for an hour here on a simple you're already over your limit now I'm telling you but no no you're all good but you know I I'm I'm so active and trying to cover the stuff in the summer I feel like I've got it all pegged um here in August so um you just push a little button on me and I talk for a month or September by the way it is September now by the way not a September WR what's the difference not much actually the weather pretty much the same and and all that okay Brian appreciate your Insight as always uh reminder to the union Club hotel which is a sponsor of the Saturday simal cast Brian will be going to the spa before long it's just open a month ago I don't know that I have some pores that need exfoliating do they do that absolutely and they'll get your nails done you you'll be all set uh I think once you're done there of course the boiler bar 811 beastro the new Spa all things going on at the union Club Hotel we are going to next segment on Saturday simcast Derek Schulz we're GNA interview the interviewer and dereck's been picking up a little segment with him just kind of introduce him a lot of the Central Indiana folks know who Derek Schultz is and you're learning if you're watching ask about Pelicans I will I will and Derek has a uh been a good addition to our little our little uh audio and video support here at Golden black so stay tuned we'll be back with Derek here in just a second Brian this microphone you know what this looks like it's been terrifying me this whole time what is it it looks like that little ball of torture in Star Wars oh my remember the little thing that flies into torture Princess Leia when Darth Vader captures them at the start it it it's been haunting me well you know the union Club does not have onsite therapy but if you need that they can help you with they can help you where somebody can help you dealing with a lot of childhood issues here I know that's a that's a tough problem the sand people come out behind me I'm going to be absolutely Terri if they do on this show it'll be it' be really great because it would it would be we'd go viral and we' just have 60 zillion views so that'd be good so all right we will we appreciate it all we'll uh we'll be talking obviously Purdue hoops and much more watch for Brian's work on Golden black.com as promis segment two Derek Schultz joins us I always like it when we can interview the interviewee or interviewer that I don't whatever the frame you want to use it's a privilege for me to be able to do this with Derek Derek has joined our team as the host of golden black radio which uh we're thankful for that hosting on Tuesdays and Fridays and we appreciate that as well as we roll a little banner across the bottom but Derek doesn't need an introduction to folks from Indianapolis uh and all that he's done in sports med there for really the last 15 years you're not old enough to be into it for 15 years but that's what's happened uh Derek welcome to Saturday simal cast and uh thanks for taking the time on a Friday afternoon a bi-week Friday afternoon yeah absolutely and it is interesting to uh all the years that you and I have worked together Allan I think this is the first time where you're the one that's asking me the questions no it's funny it's funny I got I got a kick out of it is that on our site this week somebody posted of which they're prone to do as you know they go hey boy that Dereck does a great job they we need to find a replacement for Saturday simal cast maybe he can do that I said I didn't take that personally that's all good I said I said we can't afford it there's no way there golden black can afford Derek anymore there not true on all fronts when dererk would be it would be a great host to wherever he goes all right I want because Indianapolis and Perdue fans in Central Indiana for the most part to know exactly who you are and your background but uh give us a little bit about where you grew up in and I know you full disclos which is a good thing IU School of broadcast journalism graduate as well which is a darn good place to go to school but tell us about what got you interested in sports and and growing up and how you got to Indiana from that standpoint yeah so Alan I'm an iug grad from Connecticut yeah that that sound that you're hearing is everybody just uh turning sucking sound right uh so uh you know kind of a backstory um I born and raised in um Connecticut my my parents uh are originally from South Ben so um Indiana Natives and we had a lot of family that was up in that area and um my uh motivation for coming out here in high school was uh I wanted a big school far away and I was familiar with Indiana both of my parents actually as well our our IU alums um and I I very much enjoyed my four years there I I met my wife there um there was a time in my life where I was uh very much into IU Athletics and then I grew up uh I put it um you know I grew up I I I got into the the media business um you know I was not expecting to stay in uh in Indiana I I I had grown up idolizing um New York SP Sports Talk radio hosts like Mike and the madg and Mike Baca the New York da news who was the the columnist at the time and um my my dream was always to uh I grew up just a rabid Yankees Giants Nicks fan um and my dream was to to to work in New York and and and being my dad worked in the city um and all that and uh I did some internships um in Indianapolis with with WIC before 1070 The Fan existed with Kevin Lee who I think a lot of people are familiar with love Kevin Lee great yeah Indie Car NBC the whole deal um and then eventually with Greg rraw who's become a mentor and a close friend of mine over the years with the old ESPN 950 I mean we're going way back another friend of the family for that one and you know I kind of quickly realized from spending time in Indianapolis I'm like hey everything's everything's here um Pro Sports college sports high school sports Indie 500 um final four uh eventually a Super Bowl which we still didn't know about uh way back in those days um it's such a incredible sports city and sports are just such a big part of the fabric of of Central Indiana and and the city and and the state itself um and that really attracted me to staying around and and um I I got my wife convinced my wife to stick around as well and we've been in Indianapolis for um I've been in Indianapolis since 2006 and we've uh we bought a house near Butler University I can throw a rock and hit it right now in Midtown and um and we've been here for a little over 10 years now so um so yeah that that's kind of the quitz notes version I guess of of how I ended up here nothing hap no fun is ever had in the C on bloomington's campus from what I hear it's just it's almost like a monastery so I know that you didn't have any fun in college that part uh I can I can guarantee you but no and uh uh Connecticut's loss is Indiana's and we we I appreciate where where you are coming now this is airing act we're recording Friday afternoon but this is a Saturday Sim will cast you're gonna be upset with me because I'll be at Cubs Yankees tomorrow and uh that will be a fun experience we we're gonna boat if you can believe us we were GNA boat across Lake Michigan a good friend of mine that uh happens to have a nice boat we're going to go from Michigan City to Chicago weather's a little too choppy for that tomorrow so we're just going to do it the oldfashioned way and drive now we were going to boat up to the to the to the to the beach near Wrigley Field we're going to have to walk 25 minutes or so but it is Cubs Yankees and growing up a Yankees fan for you that uh that and Yankees still have a are in the hunt this year but it makes you know from a sports fan I mean I guess that's my question is getting to what that makes what what kind of sports fan they making because there's such passion in New England New York area for sports how did that mold you growing up in terms of how you how you viewed your sports fandom yeah you know the Yankees are actually still the probably the only team from my childhood that I'm still really emotionally invested in you know even you and Brian Newbert right yeah yeah even the Knicks I kind of left behind I mean they were terrible for 20 years until this recent surge you know the Giants want a Super Bowl here I got down on the field I scooped up some confetti I sent it to my dad and I said I am good for life I'm done there's nothing is ever gonna top this um I I think being you know kind of doing what we do Allan where you what I always say is you kind of uh get a peek behind uh Oz Oz curtain right yeah um and these are just normal people with really cool jobs and and I think it's great that the folks on knucklehead Central and everywhere else are are firmly um you know engrossed in sports and that's what makes Sports fun the fan interaction and being at Ross a or Macky when it's loud and packed and it's it's a big game um there's nothing like it there's just an adrenaline from that but but for me personally like my my idea of being a fan once you kind of remove those barriers it it just changed um and it was always important to me you know not like you know the old show I used to do Aquarian Schultz was was Meet the Press or anything but I do feel like you know to have integrity you wanted to be a straight shooter and and and and not be biased um we all have biases it's just it's it's impossible to be right down the middle but try your best to be and even when I was young and still like you know only a few years removed from IU um I always wanted to do that I I thought I was doing a disservice to fans if I didn't do that and I hope um that I I think you know in the years that we we've done so many things with Purdue and and with Purdue fans I I I hope that people have felt that I've presented that fairly um but now you know obviously being a University employee and and so you know there there are lots of things that that have kind of changed around that but you know my whole image of a fan I I just kind of I left that basically once I walked across that stage and grabbed my diploma and and started my professional life um and it's it's just kind of uh I I've I've left it all in the past I mean I I'll still throw you down a flight of stairs over Patrick ying and John Starks and Anthony Mason I mean those are uh but you know the the you know Jaylen Brunson and you know Mel Bridges eh whatever uh I don't really care anymore about that I think it has a lot to do though with what age you were and where you were in your life and those things they mean so much and and even at Golden black you know yes we are produce Sports and uh and we work hard to try to play it as much down the middle as we can we let the Knuckleheads do all the crowing from a fan standpoint but we try to play it down the middle yes you would we certainly have interest in what goes on and and like the people around Purdue and all that but it we think we do a better job if we kind of you know talk about the losses uh and and try to dissect those maybe as much as the victories though we all could admit from a Purdue perspective it was a lot of fun and error Iona last last March you can't I won't deny that for one second that was quite an experience all right yeah tell us a little bit about the what what you're doing because Purdue is initiative in the city of Indianapolis and you have a big part of that uh and it's kind of Purdue strategic at least at least the way I look at it you I maybe you know now now it's pury Indianapolis there's a university there but talk about what your role is uh with the university because it's interesting and part of really the overall strategy from a marketing and media on Down the Line relationship with the city of Indianapolis and the state of Indiana yeah it's exciting and I feel like I've been on the ground floor of it I've I've been with the university since December of 22 and the announcement of the split of iupi happened that previous summer so really we you know ever since then we we've kind of hit the ground running on the transition and of course the the official launch was um July 1 and you know we just welcomed uh produ students um in Indianapolis for the first time uh a couple of weeks ago for their first week of classes so I I've been heavily involved in that um external Communications essentially um from the central marketing and communication for the University but um you know if you're a a media guy or you understand media guys um how I always put it is Indianapolis is my beat so uh it it is one of my um focuses uh for what I do so a lot of the uh the news releases and um media interviews are are facilitated through our office uh down to me um with with faculty or um Indianapolis leadership or or things like that because of uh you know I've been able to kind of Leverage all of these relationships that I've built up uh over the years with television and and radio and and newspaper and even obviously now New Media digital media I I don't know if it's even new anymore it's such a part of our Lives now um yeah but uh yeah that that's you know in layman's terms kind of what what I handle um for the University as you look at the town and obviously you've lived in it a long time dealt with it from a media standpoint not only in your your days in radio and in journalism produ Purdue fans Purdue uh observers Purdue Alum want to know what kind of impact is being made in the city of Indianapolis because Indiana by demographic IU still has more graduates in the city of Indianapolis than Purdue does uh is that and and I don't know if it's the right term is the tide turning but produce emphasis and impact in the city of Indianapolis Mitch Daniels had a lot to do with that Resurgence and boiler business exchange all those kind of things but uh give us your your your view of where produce sits in that Marketplace and maybe how that continues to evolve if not change yeah I I think what's exciting about it is that here in Indianapolis there's there's so much Innovation and uh Tech growth yeah and the employers are here a lot of that Innovation is happening here and yeah we've got a lot of unbelievable Stu stuff happening in research and everything else in West Lafayette but here in Indianapolis is the city's industrial and economic Center um and so to build out a presence post IUPUI split and to have not only Indian app students but students and faculty from West Lafayette come down and and do you know students co-ops and internships and all that and faculty for opportunities for research and and and the whole deal I think there's just uh a amazing potential um when it comes to that I I I think the problem uh and the issue and this is not just the Purdue problem this is an issue Statewide and in other states as well is that it's wonderful that you know Purdue is able to attract talent and students from all over the world really but all over the country but what you don't want is somebody to come from Texas and California New York and just get their degree for four years and then bolt you know what I mean you you you want them to try to stay and and and promote brain gain for the state of Indiana and I think having IND ianapolis as an arrow in the quiver if you will for Purdue um may turn on some more students that maybe have that Urban background that that want the San Francisco New York Austin Texas kind of feel without the inherent hassles yeah and the the expenses of living in those places and knowing that um a lot of the same business and Innovation and economy is is happening right here in the heart of Indiana yeah I tell you that it's and since your time even from 2006 on a little bit before the Super Bowl uh indianapol had things going on there but it is a it can now become it is becoming a Young Person's town we think of even children of my a my children's age it's are relatively recent college graduat so they don't live in Indianapolis there it's a destination that kids think about now and and I think that Purdue you know it's always been this challenge for Purdue because of its engineering science background of the you know people living leaving the state of Indiana but that's been a big emphasis of trying to keep some of your best talent in the state and it seems like Indianapolis is a good place to do some of that yeah no question about it um you know the the the jobs and all of that are are largely here and um and I think uh Indiana is the Envy of some of the surrounding states I know like Wisconsin and some others have had some problems in in attracting uh talent to their state just in general not just keeping it but just attracting it and um you know there are some things and maybe this is a topic for a different show there they obviously just like for any other state there there are advantages and disadvantages somewhere and there are some things that I'm on board with and not on board with when it comes to this state but um o overall I think the the vision for downtown and uh especially the people that are working hard to attract investment here have have done a a really remarkable job in in transforming Indianapolis even just since 2006 in the almost 20 years that I've lived here much less you know 1986 hell this was you know Omaha Nebraska basically um compared to what it is now a major major city center all right uh radio listeners can also catch you and Jak query is still doing a show talk about that but then I want to ask you also give me the sentiment of of the city of Indianapolis Caitlyn Clark is uh continues to take the World by storm and yeah the Colts are going to start a season and and the Pacers are always interesting down there but first tell us tell us where because you we they can watch you on YouTube as well but talk about still doing the radio gig uh with Jake as well and having fun doing that yeah so so Jake and I did the the old radio show for about eight and a half years and then right right before covid um got our number called as we like to say uh U we're never replaced I mean it was one of those things it was a nationwide layoff and they they wiped out the sports departments in several middle markets and we were um suffered by that um you know that that helps me sleep at night I guess they didn't say hey you suck get out yeah hey a dollar get you a dollar yeah uh you know your your your show is just we're not going to do any shows on this station anymore so sorry um don't you feel better now no no that's no yeah go ahead not to mention the non-compete that they made sck to as well after you know but again um so we get once a week um with our friends at the ISC Sports Network Corp based just outside of Lafayette um they do a lot of uh high school and small colleges and Semi-Pro Sports and Greg rraw is the VP of programming there and we linked up with him um once that non-compete expired and and we've been with them since uh summer of 2020 um so uh Tuesday nights at 7:30 and we stream on YouTube and and still on the podcast uh you know iTunes uh Google play all that stuff uh as well that that that's on there and and it's been fun um and obviously Jake um you know the joke I always make is that when we got let go you know I I started you know re ramping my resume and and talking to people making contacts and making a career shift in PR and comms uh Jake's plan was just to sit around and wait for a radio gig to open up and that's exactly what happened and he landed there so good for him um but uh you know to let you behind the curtain again um we're good buddies and and we we wouldn't have had the run that we had um had we hated each other like we sometimes we always went for kind of the it's we're almost 10 years apart so old uh Little Brother Big Brother type thing um and I think we we still kind of keep that to this day um India in general with you know the Caitlyn Clark stuff I mean you know phen with a capital capital P right oh yeah um you know I talked about how exciting it is to be kind of on the ground floor of of this thing with puru and and the efforts in Indianapolis I think we're on the ground floor of the explosion of the WNBA like we had seen it with women's college basketball but but really only College yeah uh where you know the arrow has been pointing up for a long time now like six seven years where um I I think kind of ending with you know Yukon crushing everybody by 500 points once that whole run ends did that kind of opened the door for I think the popularity of of women's college basketball but now that's being parlayed into an explosion of of pro basketball in the WNBA it's changed the entire league um it's changed how we talk about the franchise here um you know I've got friends that are arguing about you know whether or not that they're going to um bring back Kelsey Mitchell and you know like we we've never talked WNBA free agency before you know um which is great um it's great um the investment attention all that is wonderful for women's sports and and Caitlyn Clark has been um you know not the only aspect of that but obviously the most key aspect of of driving that attention I don't know how that woman has I mean think about and you've thought about this and talked about it but the fact that what she went through a full College season all that pressure all that stuff turns around gets drafted where she is and turns around starts playing again and she's and she's living up to expectations that's what's is so impressive about I mean Alan think about if if Zack Edy had been playing for the last six months for Memphis Yeah games that count yeah you know what I mean like it's it's crazy there was no there I know people didn't want her left off the Olympic team but that was a blessing in disguise for the fever to have that to give her just a little bit of a breather yeah yeah unbelievable all right one question we'll talk you're gonna hit it obviously with Tom deard on Tuesday uh with golden black radio and of course you host golden black radio on Tuesday and then Friday our pregame show there's a team called Notre name coming into West day uh not since 2013 and there have been some from a Purdue perspective it's kind of a benchmark for where perue football has been dating all the way back to the 50s and before but uh talk about that and and you know we we saw Notre Dame beat Texas A&M pretty soundly or convincingly I should say and though they had to do some things in the second half to get that done perue was impressive in week one uh hard to know based on the competition but looking at it a week away now what are you going to expect what do you think you might see come Saturday at 3:30 in ross8 stadium I'm very excited to see Hudson card and makabe and love and and the rest of the the Purdue offense deal with what is on paper one of the four or five best defenses in the entire country um you know their their secondary n name secondary right now is an NFL level you know talk about Colts ailles heel there's some guys right now on Notre Dame like Benjamin Morrison right now would start for the Colts I think yeah um that that's how good they are in their back four and they've got other NFL players up front as well so I think it's a great litmus test um you know would it be more beneficial for Purdue to play Eastern Illinois or something this you know next weekend yeah probably I mean for if you're counting wins and losses but I think Allen most boil maker fans know what this season is when when they saw the slate and and I think judging this team on just what the record spits out is is a very unfair way to evaluate what 2024 Purdue football is going to be um I'm excited that the series is back I know it's going to kind of come and go um but there are a lot of great memories I mean obviously you go back to uh you know way back the 50s and 60s when Purdue uh had a a bit of the upper hand uh for for a spell there and then into you know that that cluster of Breeze years the very early tiller years from 97 to 2000 just four straight excellent games yeah um two games in South Bend that Purdue could have won probably should have won have won um and then of course you go into uh you know 2004 and the blowout there and Taylor stubberfield doing the boiler up all the way down the sideline because he he had 50 yards in the end zone and nobody else um so a lot of fun memories um not so fun memories in in recent years with the Hazel era and the Hope era um but overall I'm happy to see neran back and and I'm excited to see uh because I've been one of those people and it's not just because I'm wearing the golden black right um I've been one of those people that has had a had trouble with 18 of 18 um like I I I don't think that that indicates where Purdue is right now from a talent level they still have a long way to go don't get me wrong and they're still kind of building this thing in the wake of Jeff Braum lifting them back up again and Ryan Walters in year two but I think this will be a great early test to um see where they are as they head into what's just going to be continually a rigorous slate of games this year yeah I I I'm with you on the whole F I'd rather I'd really much be PR playing Notre Dame than Southern Illinois this week they will get Southern Illinois next year so you have to wait a year for that but my point is is that hard to beat that enthusiasm and excitement and the reason why that stadium is full uh or close to full even against Indiana State which was impressive is because you've got Notre Dame Oregon Penn State Nebraska on your home schedule yeah you know you may not win them all you're not going to win them all but you are going to have some fun competition and I think I do think I agree with you wholeheartly that that that from the Purdue fan perspective uh Purdue fans want to win but Purdue fans want to be competitive and be in the arena so to speak and I think this gives them a chance to do so so all right man hey thank you we're love we we're grateful to have you on our with our group we are a we we we think it's it's you know there are worse things in the world than having being able to talk sports right so that's good thing there are other problems in this world we get to do that that's fun we thank you so much time for your time today but also uh the fact that you stepped up uh yes Kyle Charters is alive and working at the pretty exponent not in a witness protection we've used that this is the final time we're using that but but what you do appreciate Derek jumping in and gonna really help our shows we're gonna have a lot of fun with it so Dereck have a great rest of your weekend a quiet one from a produced Sports perspective not always in your household I'm sure but we appreciate that and thanks so much yeah thanks so much alen and you guys I've always viewed as the the ogs of Purdue coverage I've known Brian for years and God Tom's career national uh goes back you know he has an incredible resume and I think we used to call you the unofficial mayor of West Lafayette The Unofficial produce Sports historian right so I'm I'm thrilled to be a very small part of the team and I I really am excited about this season and of course what What men's basketball uh does for an encore as well yeah it just wait till you have to deal with Newbert on a week- toe basis with r that'll be that'll be good that's going to chest that will test your great interviewing skills uh of course Brian on the front half half of Saturday simcast we we love Brian and appreciate that as well all right man thanks so much thanks to the union Club Hotel the boilerup bar uh we always say that Newbert is going to be go heading to the new spa at the union Club to get his nails done I think he'll be doing that before long but we appreciate that we'll be back next week post uh post Purdue Notre day Mike and Tom dehart will join me as we'll break down a little bit of what happened when the bmers took on another name have a great rest of your weekend everybody thanks again to the union club and we'll see you next week on Saturday simal cast