Ever since Jeff Brohm left Purdue to fill the Head Coaching vacancy at Louisville, things haven't gone nearly how any Purdue fan would hope. Ryan Walters led the program for two seasons going 4-8 in year one before an abysmal 1-11 season in 2024. After the 1 win season, the leadership at Purdue made a change again hiring Barry Odom away from UNLV.
While Barry Odom arrives looking to bring the team back to a respectable level, the roster holes for the Boilermakers are glaring. This offseason was another great example of how the transfer portal can totaly overhaul a team.
Purdue's lack of roster continuity is a massive problem
When you are trying to build a sustainable program, one easy way to start improving is by getting the same players back on a yearly basis as the experience will only make them better. While the roster needed to improve after a 1-11 season, the level of turnover the roster went through is overwhelming.
Heading into the season, Purdue returns just one starter from last season showcasing just how much the roster has changed.
In all my years perusing Athlon, this is the first time I can recall a team (Purdue) with one returning starter. pic.twitter.com/bc5tvEbrqe
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) June 18, 2025
While roster turnover isn't the worst thing for a team coming off of a 1 win season, the level at which it happened at Purdue is startling. The Boilermakers lost 57 players to the transfer portal this offseason, replacing them with 52 incoming transfers. Among the players who transferred, Purdue lost 4 4-star transfers and 45 3-star transfers while adding 42 3-star transfers.
The top end talent that Purdue lost should be the most disappointing to fans especially considering where they ended up. Dillon Thieneman was ranked as the top safety in the transfer portal and the 6th ranked player overall staying in the Big 10 with Oregon. Tight End Max Klare was also the top transfer at his position and a Top-15 transfer who will face off against Purdue with Ohio State. Will Heldt was one of the top edge rushers to transfer and is such an impressive player that Dabo Swinney added him.
The Boilermakers most likely overhauled the overall talent level of the roster with their moves this offseason but, losing the elite players they lost only makes it tougher to turn a program around. Coming off of a successful tenure at UNLV, Odom has a ton on his plate if he's going to turn this program around.