The pressure is on for any head coach in their first year, but Purdue football’s Barry Odom might feel the weight of expectations a bit more this season — Odom’s Boilermakers were projected to finish worst in the Big Ten Conference Monday by Cleveland.com’s Stephen Means.
Luckily the rookie coach received a bit of a morale boost from CBS Sports’ 2025 Big Ten Coach Rankings, which listed Odom at 14th of the 18 conference coaches.
“Odom is the lone first-year coach in the Big Ten for 2025 after Purdue swiftly ended the Ryan Walters experiment. But Odom isn't new to the Power Four level; he makes his return after his four-year Missouri tenure, which ended in 2019 with an even 25-25 record,” Cody Nagel wrote. “Since then, Odom rebuilt his reputation at UNLV over the past two seasons, leading the Rebels to a combined 20-8 record, including matching a program high with 11 wins in 2024. It's easy to forget Purdue is just three years removed from an appearance in the Big Ten title game. Perhaps Odom can find some of that winning spark and bring it back to West Lafayette.”
One of the biggest issues for Odom and the Boilermakers’ program ahead of 2025 is the question of starting quarterback. It’s still a question mark in Odom’s head, too.
Purdue returned only Bennett Meredith at the position, but added transfers Malachi Singleton from Arkansas and Evans Chuba from Washington State. The team lost Ryan Browne to North Carolina during the spring season, but the rising redshirt sophomore has returned to Purdue.
“I know that decision needs to come sooner than later,” Odom said Monday in a radio interview. “I also understand to make a decision when there's a competitive battle going on, with competition in the room, we need to let it play out a little bit.”
📲 Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
The Boilermakers are expected to record two home wins against their first opponents Ball State and Southern Illinois. Purdue’s over/under for the season is just 3.5. The team could pull off a third win against Big Ten opponent Northwestern, but other victories are unlikely.