Purdue came flushed with victory and confident af success. There had been nothing in Indiana to successfully stop her rushes, smash her interference, go through her lines or gollop around her ends.

So it was the unexpected that happened for after Purdue's first swift, almost flukelike touchdown, there was little in the playing of either to distinquish from the other .

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The above excerpt is from The South Bend Tribune of Nov. 16, 1896, two days after Notre Dame was beaten by Purdue, 28-22, in the two schools' first of 49 meetings.

Football and writing styles have changed since then -you wouldn't want to call Purdue a "her" in this day and age - but when these two intrastate rivals collide, the unexpected still does happen and distinquishing one from the other (especially during some classics in rainstorms) is also hard at times.

The two fought to a 10-10 tie in 1899 and in the third game of the series in 1901, Notre Dame finally pulled one out, 12-6. Then after another tie and two more Boilermaker wins, the Irish dominated the series through 1957, winning 19 of 23.

But Purdue won six of the next eight (1957-65) in the series that has been going on continuously since 1946. Those were Jack Mollenkopf years and very few Notre Dame fans will ever forget that bespectacled, round-faced coach who always seemed to have the Irish number.

But in Notre Dame's 1966 season opener, coach Ara Parseghian's Irish showed they had the right number - No.1 -as they began their quest for the national championship with a 26-14 surprise over the Boilennakers, Mollenkopf and senior quarterback Bob Griese.

It was the showcasing of the sophomore sensations Hanratty and Jim Seymour -Fling and Cling -and this passing combination got together an unbelievable 13 times for 276 yards and three scores. Seymour's statistics are still Notre Dame one-game records and even the great Griese -who ended his three-year career against the Irish with 43 of 69 passing -- could not overcome Parseghian's new passing pair.

We just weren't prepared for a pass catcher like Jim Seymour," said Mollenkopf after the game. "We had no idea he was that great."

But Fat Jack and his band of Boilermakers got even during the next three seasons as another great Purdue passer, Mike Phipps, did what no other modern T-formation quarterback has ever done - win three in a row against Notre Dame.

"Phipps had great poise, great touch and great leadership " said Parseghian after the 1969 game -a 28-14 Purdue victory. "He has had three wonderful games against us."

And Mollenkopf had 14. That year was also the last for the Purdue coach who announced his retirement after that 1969 season. He finished 10-4 against Notre Dame, 4-2 against Ara and although most people give the nod to USC's John McKay as Notre Dame's No.1 coaching nemesis, my vote has always gone to Jack, says Tribune sports editor Joe Doyle who saw all of Mollenkopf's teams.

Unfortunately, Bob DeMoss had to pay for Jack's success the very next year when Notre Dame overwhelmed the visiting Boilermakers, 48-0. Joe Theismann found Tom Gatewood 12 times in the runaway -three times for touchdowns -and one press box wag was prompted to write, "Notre Dame gained more than 300 yards by land, 300 by air and if the rain would have, kept up, surely the Irish would have gained 300 more by sea."

The rain didn't let up in the 1971 clash at West Lafayette and neither did the Purdue defense. But with 2:58 to play and the Irish down 7-0, a bad snap on an attempted Purdue punt deep in its own territory found Irish lineman Fred Swendsen on the ball first for a touchdown. Mike Creaney's catch on a Pat Steenberge pass gave the visitors two more points and the 8-7 storybook finish.