WATCH: New Purdue coach Ryan Walters gets to 'first order of business,' puts Devin Mockobee on scholarship
It probably wasn’t by design that Purdue would turn to Devin Mockobee, a walk-on second-year running back, to be its leading rusher in 2022. Yet the sophomore produced a year that newly-minted Boilermaker head coach Ryan Walters sought to reward — and fast.
In a video shared by Purdue football on Tuesday evening, Walters is shown walking into what appears to be his introduction to the team. He immediately singled out Mockobee and recalled having to scheme against him as the defensive coordinator at Illinois.
“You know, first, where’s Devin at? Where’s he at? Devin? What’s up. Stand up, bro,” Walters said. “So obviously I played against y’all, right. When I found out he was a walk on, I went ‘What the hell going on over there?’ So first order of business, I’m gonna pull rank right now and you’re on scholarship, dog.”
For a few moments, Mockobee stood relatively still while his teammates cheered. Then, after it appeared to set in, Mockobee triumphantly stuck his arms above his head, spurring his teammates to hit a new level of volume.
Once the room quieted down, Walters got a few final words in on the video.
“So that’s — I guess that’s what it feels like to flex a little bit as a head coach. Congratulations, man, couldn’t be more happy for you,” Walters said.
Walters was hired away from Illinois by Purdue on Tuesday morning
Purdue landed Walters as the next head football coach, replacing Jeff Brohm who is now the Louisville head coach. The team announced the move on Tuesday morning.
“I am incredibly humbled and honored to serve as the head football coach at Purdue University,” Walters wrote in the release. “I am grateful to Director of Athletics Mike Bobinski and to President Daniels for this incredible opportunity.
“Purdue is a world-class university, and our football program will pursue the same excellence exhibited across our campus. My wife Tara and I, along with our boys, are beyond excited to join the Purdue and West Lafayette communities. Boiler Up!”
Under Walters, who is in his second season with the Fighting Illini, the defense has soared to new highs. Illinois is first nationally in scoring defense, first among Power 5 teams in total defense and first among Power 5 teams in takeaways with 29.