WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – With the season opener less than two weeks away, Purdue Football got back at it on Tuesday morning with a renewed sense of urgency.
In the final days before the team officially transitions into game week preparations, second year head coach Ryan Walters and his staff are focused on fine tuning the details in every aspect of the game. His team will need to be at their best on both sides of the ball this year, as the Boilermakers face one of the most difficult schedules in the country. No team is scheduled to play more preseason Top 10 teams than Purdue this season.
"There's been good back and forth," Walters said of the battles between his offense and defense. "What I've liked is when plays have been made on both sides they've been competitive plays. Guys are where they are supposed to be, when they are supposed to be there. Then it just comes down to who's going to win their one-on-one matchup. It depends on the day or the situation. There's been good back-and-forth all camp."
One of the biggest points of pride for Walters in his first year at the helm was the performance of his team in the classroom. This past spring, the program recorded its highest ever semester GPA with more than 50 percent of the team above a 3.0. Deliberate decisions have been made to continue to foster a focus on the academics within his student-athletes.
"Most schools I've been to [practiced] in the morning," Walters said when asked about why he chooses to practice in the morning. "Everywhere that I've been that have gone in the morning saw an uptick in academic performance which has also been the case here. We've had back-to-back semesters breaking the academic records here…you've got a chance to do extra rehab, watch extra film, get some extra studying in. You maximize your growth potential throughout the day."
On the offensive side of the ball, New Mexico transfer DJ Wingfield was a priority target for Walters and company this offseason. The Los Angeles native is expected to come in and contribute right away to an offensive line that was injury plagued in 2023, but still led the Big Ten in rushing in conference games.
"I took a couple of visits," Wingfield said. "But this one stood out to me the most because of the connection we have. I just fell in love with the place…I just want to be on the field. Wherever the coaches are comfortable putting me I'll play there."
For the high-flying Walters defense, redshirt freshman Winston Berglund is yet another guy who is joining the linebacker room this season after coming to West Lafayette as a defensive back.
"I made the change last year at the end of the season," Berglund said. "It was a mutual agreement between me, Coach OB [O'Brien], Coach [Walters] and Coach Kane. I felt like that would be the best for me and this defense to add depth at that linebacker position. It's been great."
The Carmel native highlighted his speed, turnover ability, and pass coverage as key traits that he has that can set him apart as a linebacker. He will look to make an impact in the middle of the defensive unit this season.
In the final days before the team officially transitions into game week preparations, second year head coach Ryan Walters and his staff are focused on fine tuning the details in every aspect of the game. His team will need to be at their best on both sides of the ball this year, as the Boilermakers face one of the most difficult schedules in the country. No team is scheduled to play more preseason Top 10 teams than Purdue this season.
"There's been good back and forth," Walters said of the battles between his offense and defense. "What I've liked is when plays have been made on both sides they've been competitive plays. Guys are where they are supposed to be, when they are supposed to be there. Then it just comes down to who's going to win their one-on-one matchup. It depends on the day or the situation. There's been good back-and-forth all camp."
One of the biggest points of pride for Walters in his first year at the helm was the performance of his team in the classroom. This past spring, the program recorded its highest ever semester GPA with more than 50 percent of the team above a 3.0. Deliberate decisions have been made to continue to foster a focus on the academics within his student-athletes.
"Most schools I've been to [practiced] in the morning," Walters said when asked about why he chooses to practice in the morning. "Everywhere that I've been that have gone in the morning saw an uptick in academic performance which has also been the case here. We've had back-to-back semesters breaking the academic records here…you've got a chance to do extra rehab, watch extra film, get some extra studying in. You maximize your growth potential throughout the day."
On the offensive side of the ball, New Mexico transfer DJ Wingfield was a priority target for Walters and company this offseason. The Los Angeles native is expected to come in and contribute right away to an offensive line that was injury plagued in 2023, but still led the Big Ten in rushing in conference games.
"I took a couple of visits," Wingfield said. "But this one stood out to me the most because of the connection we have. I just fell in love with the place…I just want to be on the field. Wherever the coaches are comfortable putting me I'll play there."
For the high-flying Walters defense, redshirt freshman Winston Berglund is yet another guy who is joining the linebacker room this season after coming to West Lafayette as a defensive back.
"I made the change last year at the end of the season," Berglund said. "It was a mutual agreement between me, Coach OB [O'Brien], Coach [Walters] and Coach Kane. I felt like that would be the best for me and this defense to add depth at that linebacker position. It's been great."
The Carmel native highlighted his speed, turnover ability, and pass coverage as key traits that he has that can set him apart as a linebacker. He will look to make an impact in the middle of the defensive unit this season.