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Football has historically played second fiddle to basketball at Purdue, and that’s certainly the case this year thanks to the dismal season the Boilermakers have had on the gridiron. Plenty of fans want Ryan Walters fired as the head coach—including some members of the student section at basketball games who’ve been warned against voicing their displeasure.
The Purdue Boilermakers men’s basketball season officially got underway at the start of November, which was a very welcome reprieve for fans who’ve been forced to endure a truly dismal football season that recently took another turn for the worse when the team dropped to 1-8 while losing its eighth game in a row after getting shut out by Ohio State in a 45-0 rout.
There’s no telling if Purdue will be able to match the run that saw the Boilermakers fall to UConn in the national championship game last season (especially in the wake of the Zach Edey Era), but all signs point to this year’s men’s basketball journey being an infinitesimally more enjoyable one than the slog anyone who’s emotionally invested in their football team has been forced to endure.
The Boilermakers did take a step in the right direction at the end of Jeff Brohm’s six-year tenure on the sideline, but they were forced to hit the reset button after the turnaround he helmed led to him being poached by Louisville. They ultimately opted to give Ryan Walters his first shot as the head coach of a college football team, but that has not turned out to be the best decision.
Walters went 4-8 during his inaugural season and is well on his way to finding himself sitting at 5-19 by the end of his second one based on the three remaining opponents on the schedule.
Fans are understandably fed up with the product he’s put out on the field, and that includes the members of the Purdue faithful who comprise the basketball student section known as “The Paint Crew” who broke out into a “Fire Walters” chant when they Boilermakers hosted Northern Kentucky at Mackey Arena last Friday.
However, according to The Exponent, they were sternly warned against doing the same prior to Purdue’s showdown with Yale on Monday night, as the approximately 3,000 students who comprise The Paint Crew (which boasts a fairly competitive application process) received an email over the weekend in which they were informed they could be kicked out of the arena and have their membership revoked for negative chants targeted at Walters.
An email was sent to all Paint Crew members Sunday, informing Boiler basketball’s student section that chants, such as the “Fire Ryan Walters” one that emanated from the crowd against Northern Kentucky, will not be tolerated going forward. pic.twitter.com/26NPH7DLL6
— Exponent Sports Desk (@Exponent_Sports) November 10, 2024
I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if that’s enough to dissuade a repeat performance.