Kenny Thompson

It’s such an oft-used phrase, “defense wins championships,” that it’s almost become a sports cliché. But part of Purdue’s downfall in the NCAA basketball tournament a year ago was having a variety of offensive weapons who didn’t always want to guard their man. That is not the problem so far this season for the Boilermakers,…

My old colleague at the Lafayette Journal and Courier, Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame sportswriter Jeff Washburn, liked to say winning in college football and basketball is all about the “Jimmys and Joes, not the Xs and Os.” It’s difficult to argue that premise. Just look at the familiar names that seem to make the…

Baseball legend Yogi Berra may or may not have once said, “it’s déjà vu all over again.” The Ohio State basketball program had that feeling Jan. 5 after losing to Purdue on a last-second shot for the third season in a row. Jaden Ivey did it twice before hitting millions in the NBA Draft lottery…

Vince Lombardi, the legendary Green Bay Packers coach whose name is on the trophy that goes to the Super Bowl championship team, once said that success comes before work only in the dictionary. Larry Bird did not become a legend at Indiana State and for the Boston Celtics on just talent alone. “I don’t know…

With 2023 just days away, it’s time to reflect on a memorable year in sports. I have restricted my top 10 sports stories of 2022 to those opined upon in my weekly columns. Let the countdown begin. 1. Purdue football wins first Big Ten West Division championship – Yes, a prediction that actually came through.…

Purdue football is undergoing a youth movement with its coaching staff that Boilermaker fans haven’t witnessed in 45 years. If those fans are lucky, the results will be similar. Jim Young was early in his eventual College Football Hall of Fame coaching career when he left Arizona to return to the Big Ten Conference at…

This football coaching search was an opportunity for Purdue to be bold and reach for the stars like their Big Ten peers Nebraska and Wisconsin did a few weeks ago. The hire of Illinois defensive coordinator Ryan Walters was disappointing upon first reaction, mostly because of the raised expectations for replacing Jeff Brohm that came…

Time will tell if the grass is greener (or in Kentucky’s case, bluegrass) on the other side of the Ohio River for Jeff Brohm. Brohm’s 36-34 record that Purdue fans celebrated after the 9-39 Darrell Hazell era will get him fired at Louisville, his alma mater. And that’s the risk Brohm is taking with his…

History says Purdue will not come close to upsetting No. 2 Michigan on Saturday night at the Big Ten Championship Game. Since the Big Ten went to the East-West divisional format in 2014, the East winners are 8-0 with an average margin of victory of 35-15. As noted Saturday night by Gerry DiNardo on the…

Purdue guard Braden Smith earned the first of what could be several Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors Monday for his role in the 75-70 victory against Marquette in the Gavitt Games. The Westfield graduate and reigning Indiana Mr. Basketball scored a co-team-high 20 points to go with three assists and two rebounds. Smith…