Ryan Walters gave his first speech to players as the new head coach at Purdue on Tuesday. He made quite the splash.
After entering the room and briefly introducing himself to his new team, Walters pulled rank. The 36-year-old asked for running back Devin Mockobee to stand.
Mockobee, a walk-on, ran the ball 28 times for 106 yards and a touchdown in a win over Illinois on November 12, 2022. Walters was the defensive coordinator for the Illini at the time and his unit got torched by the 6-foot-0, 195-pound redshirt sophomore.
Knowing first-hand what a talent that Mockobee is, Walters was shocked to find out that he was not on scholarship. As a result, his first order of business was to change his new running back’s standing.
“So obviously, I played against y’all, right,” Walters said. “When I found out he was a walk-on, I went, ‘What the hell is going over here?’ So first order of business, I’m going to pull rank right now. You on scholarship, alright dog.”
After some initial shock amongst everybody in the room over such an unprecedented move, Mockobee and the Boilermakers meeting room exploded with excitement. It was an incredible moment and the reaction was priceless.
During an impressive breakout season, Mockobee ran 182 times for 920 yards and nine touchdowns. The scholarship was well-deserved and more than earned for the former two-star recruit.
His father, Conrad, was grateful for it all and his emotion came through his words.
“I felt this for him,” he said. “It’s been quite the journey and worth every single second. Thank you coach and thank you Boilermaker fans for accepting my son.”
Walters’ first meeting at Purdue was unlike most other new coaches at their new programs. He came in hot and set the standard.
