Bizarre game gives us hope

It was one of the strangest games I have ever attended. There was a large and raucous crowd backing the Hoosiers. Both teams had unusual breaks go the other way. It was over 60 degrees at the end of November. A car was set on fire in the tailgate field. Was this really happening, or did someone slip something into my water?\nMost importantly, and perhaps most bizarrely, IU outplayed and deserved to beat a superior opponent. The Hoosiers entered the game as 24-point underdogs. The question on most people's minds wasn't "Will Purdue win?" but "Will Purdue score 50?"\nAfter Purdue marched downfield on their first possession for a touchdown, most figured, "Here we go again." But instead of mindblowingly bad, this loss for IU would be frustratingly and tantalizingly close.\nIU's first good break occurred on Purdue's third possession. Boilermaker quarterback Kyle Orton hit wide receiver Kyle Ingraham with a pass, but the ball was jarred loose on a hit by safety Herana-Daze Jones straight into the hands of cornerback Cedric Henry, who returned it to the Purdue 16-yard line.\nIU's first bad break would happen four plays later. After three straight runs, IU didn't get the first down and settled for a field goal attempt that would make the score 7-6. The ball never made it more than three feet off the ground, as backup holder Rhett Kleinschmidt botched the hold and the kick went straight into IU's blockers. \nOn its next possession, IU's 45-yard field goal attempt landed in the middle of the end zone. \nPurdue went up 14-3 on the next possession, and things looked grim for IU when Tyson Beattie lined up for a punt after the Hoosiers went three and out after getting the ball back. They looked even grimmer when Beattie dropped the snap. But amazingly, no one on Purdue paid enough attention to go after him, so Beattie saw a hole and took off for an 18-yard gain.\n"I'd like to say it was planned," Beattie said. "I think my rugby instincts just kicked in."\nBut the drive would be halted at the Purdue 24-yard line when IU attempted to convert on fourth down rather than attempting a field goal.\n"Your inability to kick field goals distorts your strategy," coach Gerry DiNardo said.\nWhen Purdue jumped to a 21-3 lead early in the third quarter, it looked like the floodgates were about to break open. IU had moved the ball well offensively and only had three points. The Hoosiers had contained the Boilermakers' offense, but 41- and 33-yard touchdown catches by John Standeford looked to be backbreakers.\nBut the Hoosiers didn't know how to quit. Adding a BenJarvus Green-Ellis touchdown and a Bryan Robertson field goal to end the third, IU trailed 21-13 entering the fourth quarter.\nAnd then the Big Ten officials struck. It will never cease to amaze me that one of the best conferences in the nation may have the worst officials. But as IU opened the fourth with a short kickoff, the Purdue upback called for a fair catch. He dropped the ball, and Purdue and IU players piled onto it.\nBut we'll never know who recovered, since an official who assumed that the catch was going to be made had blown an inadvertent whistle. (We all know what assuming does.) The kickoff had to be redone.\nIt didn't matter, though, as IU got an interception from Henry, who in turn lateralled to Duane Stone for a return to the Purdue 16. \nOn third and goal from the five, LoVecchio tossed an easy touchdown pass just out of the reach of wide-open fullback Alex Stscherban. Earlier in the game, LoVecchio had just missed Stscherban on a 40-yard pass that would have also resulted in a touchdown.\nTrailing by five, IU had the nail driven in the coffin by Standeford on a 56-yard reception that set up a field goal.\nWith two minutes left in the game, IU had one last chance. Purdue had a fourth and one from the IU 36. But a spot more generous than the Salvation Army gave the Boilermakers the last good break of the game and the first down.\nIU lost 10 games this season. But in its final loss, they gave us reason to believe that a winning season is not too far around the corner.\nIU MVP: For the second straight week, BenJarvus Green-Ellis. The freshman became the first running back in 15 games to rush for over 100 yards against Purdue.