Purdue football’s last win over a power conference opponent came nearly three years ago, against IU in 2023.
Much has changed since then.
That win by the Boilermakers was the final nail in Tom Allen’s tenure as head coach in Bloomington. A year later new Hoosier head coach Curt Cignetti would return the favor and deliver a 66-0 win that ended the Ryan Walters era in West Lafayette.
Walters’ replacement Barry Odom didn’t fare much better against the Hoosiers, falling 56-3 inside a Ross-Ade Stadium with more red than black and gold in the stands.
While the Boilermakers are 0-18 in the Big Ten over the last two seasons, Indiana has gone 18-1 and of course went on to win the national championship in January.
So what does this all mean under 40 days from the start of the 2026 season?
For one, it means after Odom spends nearly eight minutes at the Big Ten media days podium discussing all the reasons he’s excited for this year’s team, the first question he’s dealt is this doozy:
“When you look at Indiana, your biggest rival, what does that do for you and your program to see them turn it around so quickly and be at the top of the college football landscape?”
Oof.
Perhaps the individual asking the question should have waited until after Odom took on a few friendly questions?
It didn’t really matter.
The only other questions asked of the leader of the state’s college football pariah were whether his quarterback who has gone winless in the Big Ten the last two years can be better, and hey, how about that basketball team?
So with nothing more to discuss, what does Odom think about that giant shadow being cast from Bloomington?
“Yeah, number one, Coach Cignetti and his entire department did such a tremendous job on taking that over and elevating it to where they are today,” Odom said. “If you look at it in the landscape of college football, it should give every player, every coach, every fan base hope, vision and belief that it can happen.
“It’s sped things up for everyone, but you also look at how they pieced it together. It worked for them. It’s not the same for every team and program. We certainly feel strongly about how we’ve built this roster going into the year, and also understand if we get the opportunity to playing meaningful games in the month of November and you get a chance to play with extended time, anything can happen.”
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