It's over: Purdue pulls plug on Ryan Walters era

In had become an untenable situation that had to be addressed sooner rather than later following a 66-0 loss at Indiana: Purdue has dismissed Ryan Walters, GoldandBlack.com has confirmed after ESPN’s Pete Thamel first reported.

Thus ends arguably the worst coaching hire in Purdue football annals, lasting 24 games and ending in a 5-19 heap. That’s a .208 winning percentage, the lowest of any Boilermaker coach. Yes, even lower than Darrell Hazell’s (.214). Walters will leave West Lafayette with some nice parting gifts, due over $9 million.

It was the shortest tenure of any full-time Purdue coach since Elmer Burnham coached just two seasons (1942-43). The last Purdue coach to work less than four seasons was Bob DeMoss, who lasted three years (1970-72).

This is a university famous for its patience, renown for moving in measured tones and not making hasty decisions. So, this move on Walters shows how dire the situation is. The football program had become an inferno. Something had to be done … now.

Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski had seen enough following an embarassing loss at Indiana on Saturday. That’s 11 losses in a row, which ties a school record to cap a 1-11 season.

Purdue zigged when everyone thought it would zag when it made this surprising hire back in December 2022. Why take the risk of hiring a thirtysomething coach from the defensive side of the ball who had no head coaching experience?

It was an unnecessary gamble. And Purdue is paying for trying to look smarter than everyone.

Credit for Bobinski for admitting he and his inner circle made a colossal mistake. Firing Walters was easy. But now comes the hard part: Hiring Purdue’s 38th head coach.

Back in 2016, Bobinski was in a similar spot. He had just dismissed Hazell amid fan apathy that had seen Ross-Ade Stadium turned into a morgue. The athletic department needed to fill fans with hope and seats in the stadium. Bobinski couldn’t screw it up. And, he didn’t, hiring Jeff Brohm.

While Brohm could be prickly, he has gone down as one of Purdue’s three best coaches since Jack Mollenkopf. Jim Young and Joe Tiller are the others.

Now, before he heads off to retirement, Bobinski has one last massive task he no doubt didn’t anticipate having to do: Hiring his third football coach. And, as with Brohm hire, Bobinski can’t miss.

Purdue needs a robust football program now more than ever, with revenue sharing that begins next academic year draining cash from the coffers.

Now isn’t the time for Bobinski to gamble on an unproven coach. This job requires a known commodity. And, it’s probably gonna cost Purdue a lot of money to get what it needs. It needs to pay up.

Two traits for the next head coach are non-negotiable:

1 – Proven head coach

2 – Offensive mind

Pretty simple.

Purdue needs its next Brohm, its next Tiller. It never should hire a defensive-minded coach. Ever. This school has to play an exciting brand of offense that builds off its “Cradle of Quarterbacks” reputation.

Know who you are. Purdue is an offensive-centric program.

Seems the hope was Walters could upgrade the talent with his recruiting acumen and youthful vibe. And he looked to be on his way to upgrading the roster.

Bottom line: Walters was not ready for this big stage. Not his fault. He was 36 years old when he got the job. What was his fault: Building an inadequate staff. There was too much youth. Not one member had ever been a head coach. Who was gonna challenge Walters? Who was going to offer advice? Who was gonna nurture him? Who was gonna challenge him?

No doubt, an uncompromising schedule helped undermine Walters. But plenty of blame can be laid at his feet, including too many misses in the portal.

Now, Purdue is turning the page … again. This is a program that for generations has been capable of only sprites of success. Sustained winning? It’s been a unicorn.

The next hire will be the program’s fifth head coach since Tiller stepped down after the 2008 season. Put another way: It will be five coaches in 17 years–average tenure of 3.4 years. In a sport that demands stability, Purdue football has been a ball of tumult and change.

This program needs to hire as sure a thing as it can in an 18-team Big Ten that is rife with challenges. The clock ticks. Signing Day is Dec. 4 and the portal opens Dec. 9.