Purdue coaching candidates: Paul Chryst, Dan Mullen, Tyson Helton among options to replace Ryan Walters

Purdue announced Sunday that it is moving on from coach Ryan Walters, creating the third Power Four vacancy during the 2024-25 coaching carousel. Walters, a former defensive coordinator at Missouri and Illinois, departs West Lafayette, Indiana, with a 5-19 overall record and a 3-15 showing in conference play. 

Walters had a tough job in replacing former Purdue coach Jeff Brohm, who won two bowl games and led the Boilermakers to a Big Ten Championship Game appearance in 2023 prior to leaving for Louisville, but Walters quickly undid a lot of the work that Brohm put in to make Purdue competitive. 

The Boilermakers did win four games in Walters’ first year, but star players like Deion Burks and Nic Scourton entered the transfer portal. The Boilermakers fell to 1-11 in 2024 and went winless in Big Ten play for the first time since 2013. They were outscored 261-17 in five games against top-10 opponents. 

Given the dearth of major coaching openings thus far, Purdue should be able to operate an extensive coaching search. But the Boilermakers don’t have tremendous resources to throw at their football program, and whomever takes the job will inherit a roster that’s trailing behind the rest of the Big Ten in terms of talent level. Purdue is at its best when it has an innovative coach that gets the most from his players. 

Here are the top potential candidates to replace Walters at Purdue. 

Purdue coaching candidates

Paul Chryst, former Wisconsin coach: Chryst has been out of the full-time coaching game for a couple of years, but he is a rare option with ready-made Big Ten experience with nothing really tying him down. A former quarterback at Wisconsin, Chryst spent several years as an assistant at his alma mater, got his first head coaching…

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Author : Will Backus

Publish date : 2024-12-01 19:58:00

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