Ask most Purdue Boilermakers fans their opinion on the state of the football program and you’ll likely get a scowl, a pained wince or a deep sigh expressing a wide range of emotions. Disgust, indifference, dissatisfaction, skepticism and many other emotions that do not show much trust in the program. This goes beyond the football program, as fans have sent their desperate pleas for a better on-field product directly to AD Mike Bobinski.

See what some fans who spent their Saturdays with Ross Ade this season think:

“If Bobinski and Co. turn a blind eye to the results on site, I see no need to visit Ross-Ade or, to be honest, even watch on TV. It’s already difficult enough for me to watch half the season with my previous commitments. So if they don’t make an effort to improve the product on the field, I’ll just stop watching.” – Purdue alumni and former AAMB member

“With this lucrative media deal, they have received a lifeline from the B1G and are pinching their money like they are a failing MAC team.” – Purdue alumni and former AAMB member

“We kept Hazell for 3.5 miserable years. This is just as bad a product, if not worse. “I will not spend a dime of my money on this program in the future as long as the current staff is in place.” – Former Indiana high school head football coach

“Purdue has the best fans. Look at basketball, look at volleyball and look at the support the football team received this year, even though it was terrible. Purdue fans deserve better. Get someone who can win and watch the money flow. This is how Purdue works. Take a look at how the basketball team performed in the NIL and how successful they were. They took a risk with Walters. It seemed worth it, but it failed. Get a current head coach who can bring in transfers. That’s exactly what Cignetti did and it immediately made them competitive. Do the same. Back the Brinks truck with the Tulane coach (Jon Sumrall) and Purdue could actually be competitive next year.” – Twitter user @stick1505

“Purdue won’t get a dime from me. I will come on game days to support the All American Marching Band (who deserve your time and support). I’ll park in front of campus, drive to Slayter for the band, and then leave. “Ross-Ade can be a ghost town if that’s what Bobinski wants.” – Purdue alumni and former AAMB member

“LOL @BoilerFootball I hid my comment about season tickets not being renewed next year. congratulations @PurdueSports – Just canceled my JPC @JohnPurdueClub membership too! Come on, Ryan Walters! Come on, Mike Bobinski! Go 1-11 Purdue Football! I will be taking my donations elsewhere in 2025. – Twitter user @DavidErnestkag

“This team, on paper, should be talented enough to compete for bowl eligibility. They can’t even score on offense. He can’t fix this. Even if you argue that it’s too early to say that, you can’t even argue that he did anything to earn that right.” – Twitter user @WandasAbed

If it weren’t for the bags on the heads of several fans at the last home game against Penn State and the chants of “Fire Walters” that were heard not only at football games but also at basketball games, and the multitude of very public opinions It was apparent from significant fans that they had lost faith in the second-year head coach. However, it’s not just the stumbles during courtside and postgame interviews that are causing fans to turn against Walters. It’s the atrocious product he’s been responsible for the past two seasons.

This season was one of the worst football seasons we’ve seen from a Purdue team since Darrell Hazell’s first season in West Lafayette. This season was very similar to 2024, when the only win came against Indiana State, the offense was an abject disaster, and the defense couldn’t do many of the basic things necessary for success. Seems to be a common theme as many knew after that first year that Hazell was immediately overwhelmed.

In fact, Purdue now finds itself in the national media saying how poorly their team is doing this season and that it shouldn’t have too much of an impact on their standing in the CFP. Is this really what Purdue has become? A joker for the national media to assess the futility? If Kent State wasn’t, well, Kent State this season, Purdue might actually get more attention (FYI: Kent State went 0-12 and their current head coach is now 1-23 in his two seasons. His one win came against an FCS team).

Some who haven’t seen Purdue might look at the record and the schedule and think it can’t be that bad, right? These people may say, “Yes, 1-10 is bad, but when the program has played #1 Oregon, #2 Ohio State, #4 Penn State, #5 Notre Dame and #23 Illinois while facing #10 Indiana prepared, then what? could you have expected that?’ It’s expected to be competitive, and Purdue hasn’t been that for much of the season after its 49-0 win over Indiana State.

Purdue has also lost to Oregon State (5-6), Nebraska (6-5), Wisconsin (5-6), Northwestern (4-7) and Michigan State (5-6). Of those five losses, Purdue was uncompetitive in three of them while losing at home in overtime to a terrible Northwestern team. Yes, the schedule was difficult, but there are six wins and the overtime loss to Illinois, so a competent coaching staff could have gotten this team to a bowl game. Then how bad can this staff be?

Let’s take a look at how Purdue performs nationally and within the B1G in key categories:

Do these reflect a coach seemingly making improvements to a program in his second year? Is this evidence that Ryan Walters can give the football program an identity that goes beyond biting his lip in the car during commitments and walking around in a tank top on game days? The flash and setting work when you win. Google it, as Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti suggested. Walters has stated that he will step back from his playing duties and take the reins in a more managerial role. Do these numbers and the result on the field show that a coach is capable of providing the leadership, vision and decision making to get the team bowling?

Walters was a bright addition to athletic director Mike Bobinski after one of the game’s best offensive minds left campus. Walters, as has been said, left an impression on Purdue’s staff during the hiring process. His defense seemed to give him an advantage at a time when offenses are evolving and becoming more explosive. It seemed like Purdue had found someone who had answers to that in a unique way, similar to Joe Tiller, who had an offensive answer to those big, physical defenses in the mid-90s of B1G football.

That hasn’t yielded any returns so far after improving a program that is just 23 months removed from a B1G Championship Game appearance and an 8-4 regular season. Walters joins Darrell Hazell, Bob Demoss, Alex Agase and Leon Burnett, who lost more games in their first year than their predecessor did in his final year at Purdue. These aren’t exactly stellar names to compare yourself to, as these coaches have a combined record of 61-110 and none of them are closer than Bob Demoss’ five games under .500%.

So I ask the question again: What has Ryan Walters done in his time as defensive coordinator and head coach that shows he has the ability to turn the situation around and improve the program to where bowl eligibility is and isn’t the standard? more? a surprise. Joe Tiller, Danny Hope and Jeff Brohm all did this early in their coaching careers at Purdue, showing that sustained success at Purdue is possible with the right skills and leadership.

The AD may be more concerned and preoccupied with what COULD happen next year rather than focusing on what is staring them in the face today. Yes, revenue sharing with players is a big step next season, and that may well make any AD hesitant to give their head coaches the trigger. That may be why more coordinators are being fired this season, but that doesn’t mean Purdue should just go with the flow. That’s not what made Purdue successful in its major sports.

For Purdue, there may be no other opportunity as great as this to find the right hire. There is currently only one position open in the power conferences, as North Carolina recently announced. That’s a job higher in the pecking order due to location and traditionally stronger programming, but Purdue is in the B1G and is on the verge of getting an absurd amount of money from its television rights deals.

To support this, Purdue has a uniquely devout fan base built through tough losses. A fan base that continues to come to Ross Ade Stadium when the team is 1-10 and is desperate to see a team that is competitive, fundamentally sound and plays hard. Unfortunately, given the events of the last two years, it looks like fans may well stay away from the stadium this fall until Ryan Walters proves it. And again, what evidence do we have that he is capable of doing this?

The fan base deserves better than a return to what we saw with Darrell Hazell when it was abundantly clear he was out of his depth at Purdue. Even then, one could point to improvements Hazell had made with records of 1-11, 3-9, 2-10 and 3-3 before he was fired. It should be an easy decision for Mike Bobinski considering Purdue lost in the B1G this season to what should be considered his peers. It should be an easy decision if you are willing to admit you made a mistake and take the right path to make it right.

Mike Bobinski was handed an absolute garbage fire when he took over as AD, and by signing Jeff Brohm he was able to hit an absolute home run. If his concern is about burdening the next AD with a coach he may not want, that AD can handle that in due course. They simply cannot allow this to continue for fear of what may or may not happen with the evidence presented to us. This evidence is clear. Purdue needs to get past Ryan Walters.