Former executive vice president and director of intercollegiate athletics Mike Bobinski will serve as Advisor during his final months with the University, supporting new Athletics Director Tommy McClelland as he begins his guidance of the department.
In his 10th year with Purdue Athletics, Bobinski led the Boilermakers to new heights on and off the fields of play, all while expanding support for all student-athletes and inspiring an already passionate fan base to continue stepping forward to elevate the Old Gold & Black.
Achievements under Bobinski’s watch included the rise of Purdue Men’s Basketball to consistent national prominence under head coach Matt Painter, monumental victories and bowl trophies for Boilermaker Football and multi-million dollar facility enhancements to Ross-Ade Stadium, Mackey Arena and the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex.
Hoops at the highest level is what the Purdue faithful experienced year-in and year-out, as Painter's crew reached the Sweet 16 six times in eight tournaments, only trailing Gonzaga's seven Sweet 16 appearances in that time span. The Boiler men's squad finished 2024-25 ranked No. 14 in the final AP Top 25 poll, marking the fifth straight year that Purdue has finished the season ranked in the final poll (20th - 2021; 10th - 2022; 3rd - 2023; 2nd - 2024; 14th - 2025).
In December 2025, Bobinski led the search for Purdue Football’s 38th head coach and recruited Barry Odom to West Lafayette. Odom, an experienced football mind with a track record of success, was fresh off engineering what could be considered the most impressive gridiron campaign in UNLV’s school history. In 2024, he coached the Runnin’ Rebels to a double-digit win season for just the third time in program history. Also the former head coach at Missouri, Odom has secured four postseason appearances in six seasons as a head coach before coming to Purdue.
Success across all 18 sport programs became an expectation at Purdue, with several noteworthy accomplishments. The Old Gold & Black’s volleyball program became a powerhouse under the leadership of head coach Dave Shondell. From 2021-25, Purdue accumulated a 124-41 record, leading to four NCAA Regional Semifinal and two Regional Final appearances during that span. Boilermaker Volleyball finished the 2025 season ranked No. 8 in the AVCA final poll, the program's highest finish since 2021.
Purdue’s soccer squad advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2021, and the women’s basketball team returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six seasons with a March Madness berth in 2023. Purdue’s golf programs excelled, with both the men’s and women’s squads combining for 13 NCAA Regional appearances since 2017. Both Boilermaker golf squads advanced to the NCAA Championships in back-to-back seasons – the only Big Ten school to accomplish that feat.
Three Big Ten Conference regular season championships were claimed by Purdue Men’s Basketball (2017, 2019, 2023), as well as one tournament trophy (2023). Football claimed its first-ever Big Ten West Division title in 2022, and additionally, women’s outdoor track & field won the 2017 Big Ten Championship.
Purdue’s energized fan base responded, with Mackey Arena builsing a more than 100-game sellout streak for Coach Painter’s hoops program. Football attendance grew from a season average of 34,500 in 2016 to 56,044 for the 2025 season, aided in part by the $45.4 million renovation of Ross-Ade Stadium in 2023.
Under Bobinski’s leadership, Purdue Athletics saw transformative growth in both facilities and student-athlete support. The Forging Ahead campaign, which aimed to support strategic investments in recruiting, retention and student-athlete development, exceeded its $18.69 million goal by raising more than $21 million. Forging Ahead fueled projects such as the Gelov Family Purdue Athlete Dining center and the Pete Dye Golf Clubhouse.
The state-of-the-art clubhouse, unveiled in April 2025, added to the already elite college golf experience provided at Purdue and includes the classic steakhouse, Boilerhouse Prime. The $34.4 million project was funded by men's golf program alumnus Sam Allen ('75) and his wife, Purdue alumna Marsha Allen ('75). The Allen family’s generous donation made history as the largest gift in Purdue Athletics history.
In 2024-25, Purdue amassed 489.0 points in the Directors’ Cup to rank 53rd out of 303 schools, the 83rd percentile. That was Purdue’s highest mark since 2017-18, when the Boilermakers set a school record under Bobinski with 585.5 points to rank 39th out of 351.
Boilermaker student-athletes continued to excel academically during Bobinski’s tenure. Following the Spring 2025 semester, Purdue’s student-athletes carried a cumulative grade-point average of 3.26. Additionally, 100 percent of the graduating student-athlete population secured a career placement opportunity to reaffirm the department’s commitment to each Boilermaker’s future after their playing days are completed.
Purdue Athletics celebrated 248 Academic All-Big Ten honorees in 2024-25, the third-highest total in school history. Beyond the classroom, Boilermaker student-athletes contributed more than 2,000 hours of servant leadership across all sports, reflecting Purdue’s deep commitment to preparing leaders on and off the playing field.
Bobinski, who was named the ninth full-time athletics director in Purdue history on Aug. 9, 2016 - the first with no previous ties to the school - led the Boilermakers amidst the ever-changing landscape of college athletics. He was just the fourth full-time athletics director at Purdue since 1942, following Guy “Red” Mackey (1942-71), George King (1971-92) and Morgan Burke (1993-2016).