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I never got to thank Joe Tiller.
No, I didn’t know the man on a personal level or interact with him frequently. I met him once, outside the cement walls of Ross-Ade Stadium before a 2009 game between Notre Dame and Purdue, one year after his retirement.
Fitting that it was that year, and that game when I had my first personal interaction with the Boilermaker legend. It was a decade earlier, during that same, highly-anticipated Notre Dame-Purdue match-up that Tiller made an impact on my life.
It was a sundrenched afternoon in September 1999 and my father took me inside the walls of Ross-Ade Stadium for the first time — at least that I can remember. The atmosphere was saturated with passion and enthusiasm and the buzz was contagious. That’s the type of environment Tiller created after winning 18 games in his first two seasons.
The game didn’t disappoint, either. It was a back-and-forth contest highlighted by Drew Brees’ big arm, Notre Dame’s bone-crushing defense and some questionable officiating. You know, typical college football stuff
It came down to one final play, Purdue leading by five and the Irish with the football at the 1-yard line. What was expected to be an easy touchdown for the Golden Domers turned into a disaster, as Jarious Jackson swallowed a botched handoff and was sacked as time expired.
Fans erupted, Ross-Ade Stadium shook and I was nearly trampled by a stampede of humanity, celebrating another huge win over the Irish.
I didn’t care. I just wanted that moment, that feeling to last forever. And in a way, it has. Tiller is the one to thank.
We lived near West Lafayette growing up, so after Tiller’s first two successful seasons at Purdue, my dad decided it was time to purchase season tickets. Boilermaker football had somewhat of a Michigan or Ohio State feel to it, there was a certain confidence and swagger that permeated the air on those Saturday afternoons while Tiller stalked the sideline.
I was right in the middle of it.
Purdue accomplished remarkable things under Tiller’s direction. The Boilermakers appeared in 10 bowl games during his 12-year reign, finished in the Associated Press top 25 poll five times and claimed a Big Ten championship in 2000, the program’s first since 1967. He won 87 games and became the program’s all-time winningest coach.
Those were just the measurable achievements.
Tiller revolutionized the way the game was played in the Big Ten. His wide-open, pass-heavy style of offense wasn’t suppose to work in a black-and-blue, smash-mouth conference. Yet his offensive approach was so unique and uncommon it was nearly impossible to defend. Now, 20 years after he coached his first game in the Big Ten, his thumbprint can be seen on a league-wide scale every Saturday afternoon.
You can’t put a number on that type of impact.
Purdue football was entertaining. The wins were exciting, the losses were devastating and the show was always incredible. For me, it was college football at its absolute finest.
Travis Dorsch’s game-winning kick vs. Michigan; Brees’ 99-yard touchdown pass vs. Northwestern; Purdue clinching a Rose Bowl berth vs. Indiana; I was there for all of it.
As a youngster attending so many exciting games on those fall Saturdays, it was influential even to me. Back then, I had no idea what I wanted to do, I just knew how special those weekends were in West Lafayette when Tiller was on the sideline. I wanted to be a part of that.
Here I am, nearly 20 years after my first trip to Ross-Ade Stadium, writing about Purdue and Big Ten football. I was never skilled enough, big enough or athletic enough to be a direct part of the sport, but I still have that same feeling every Saturday that I used to have growing up.
That passion has never left, and for that I am forever indebted to Tiller and those Purdue teams.
During Tiller’s 12 years in West Lafayette, I developed a passion for college football. The pageantry, the tradition and the importance every single Saturday has on the season. There’s nothing else quite like it. If it wasn’t for those days in the fall, I never would’ve realized that. I certainly wouldn’t be doing this for a living.
I have Joe Tiller to thank.
I just wish I would’ve told him that eight years ago.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB