Purdue fires football coach Darrell Hazell
- Hazell went 9-33 in three-and-a-half seasons with Purdue, including 3-24 in the Big Ten.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski hoped for better on Saturday.
Bobinski, in his fifth week on the job, wanted the Boilermakers football program to build on an emotional overtime victory at Illinois in Saturday's Homecoming game against Iowa.
Instead, Purdue's first half resembled much of the previous three-and-a-half seasons under Darrell Hazell. A porous run defense. Inconsistency on offense. A glaring lack of depth at multiple positions as the Boilermakers fell behind 35-7 in an eventual 49-35 loss.
That ultimately led to Bobinski's decision to fire Hazell on Sunday, less than 24 hours after the loss to the Hawkeyes.
Bobinski was hired as Morgan Burke's successor in part to fix a once nationally relevant football program that had dropped to the bottom of the Big Ten Conference. He started that process by ending Hazell's tenure with a 9-33 record, including 3-24 in the league.
"My hope for yesterday was that we would build on the dramatic win from last Saturday and come out and really show progress and show a sense of direction and momentum," Bobinski said during a Sunday evening press conference in Mackey Arena. "Certainly I've been thinking about this at the highest level from Day 1. There's no secret about that. This was a decision year or a pivotal year for our football program. I knew that when I arrived here.
"Honestly, as the game unfolded, particularly the first half where we just weren't as competitive, weren't making that sign of progress, it got me to the point where I think we're stuck in a place that we need to do something to change the dynamic."
Bobinski chose receivers coach Gerad Parker as interim head coach. There were no other staff changes.
Already rampant speculation about Hazell's successor will only grow in the coming six weeks. However, Bobinski emphasized the first priority will be the current team, which takes a 3-3 record to No. 8 Nebraska on Saturday.
"We've got a group of young men in that locker room that deserve nothing but our very best effort," Bobinski said. "We've got six games — we've got half a season — left to play. This is not just a, 'Hey let's get through Saturday and move on.' There's lots to play for."
Hazell was hired as the 35th coach in Purdue history on Dec. 5, 2012, after a two-year stint as head coach at Kent State. He replaced Danny Hope, who was fired after a four-year run that included a 22-27 record and bowl trips in each of his last two seasons.
Hazell received a $12.75 million, six-year contract. Purdue is responsible for the full value of the remaining two years of that contract.
Purdue never won more than three games in any of Hazell's three full seasons. It also never won back-to-back games. Purdue fired offensive coordinator John Shoop and defensive coordinator Greg Hudson following last season but retained Hazell. However, the same issues continued to plague the program.
After finishing last among Big Ten teams in run defense last season, Purdue again ranks 14th. Hazell changed quarterbacks mid-season for performance issues in each of his first three seasons. While David Blough currently leads the Big Ten in total offense, turnovers and offensive line issues have held the Boilermakers back.
Following Saturday's loss, Hazell was asked why he was the person who should lead the program.
"I’m doing everything right to help these guys become better," Hazell said. "There’s no question we’re moving forward. Obviously, it doesn’t feel good right after this game. We’re doing a lot of good things. We just have to keep pushing."
The Boilermakers opened this season with a 45-24 victory over Eastern Kentucky, followed by a 38-20 home loss to Cincinnati. After a bye week, Purdue rebounded with a 24-14 victory over Nevada to end September with a winning record for the first time under Hazell.
However, things turned with a 50-7 rout at Maryland in the Big Ten opener. The Boilermakers were outrushed 400-10 and, entering the fourth quarter, had been outgained per play by a four-to-one margin.
After an overtime victory at Illinois, Purdue returned home for its fifth straight Homecoming loss. The Boilermakers trailed 42-14 entering the fourth quarter.
Bobinski said the decision to fire Hazell came in consultation with president Mitch Daniels and board of trustees chairman Mike Berghoff, a former Purdue linebacker. He cited an absence of the "traction" he believed the program can and should display.
"College athletics can't have a better man than Darrell Hazell, and I would like to see more individuals with his virtues in Division I athletics," Daniels said in a news release. "But while character is mandatory every day at Purdue, positive performance also must be there.
"With new leadership and the rapidly evolving Football Performance Complex, I'm confident that better days are ahead. The Board and I fully understand and support the need for a successful football program and recognize the positive impact it brings to the intercollegiate athletics department, the campus community and Boilermaker alumni and fans everywhere."
Bobinski must now address a football program that has lost considerable fan support and revenue since the end of Joe Tiller's successful stint from 1997-2008. Outgoing athletic director Burke called football a "$5 million opportunity" in terms of revenues currently missing from the athletic budget.
Construction has begun on the $65 million Purdue Football Performance Complex, a centralized home for the team's locker room, weight room, meeting rooms and athletic training needs. Last week, Purdue announced the addition of lights at Ross-Ade Stadium in time for the 2017 season.
The promise of a coaching change will spark optimism in a fan and alumni base that has long ago grown skeptical about any incremental improvements.
On Sunday, however, the tone remained somber. Bobinski, Parker and Daniels spoke of their respect for Hazell as a person and the impact his removal will leave on the players in the locker room. Bobinski said he would have preferred not to make the change mid-season.
By halftime Saturday, he felt he had no choice.
"I felt like we had found ourselves as a program and as a team stuck in this see-saw of playing reasonably well and then falling backwards — a pattern that just didn't seem to have an end to it at this point," Bobinski said. "For me it was about finding a way to allow our team to have the vert best chance for success. Our upper class, in particular our seniors, they deserve the opportunity to make something of this year and to be part of the return to success of Purdue football.
"In my heart, I just didn't see that happening as we were currently headed, without making a change."
Contact Journal & Courier Purdue sports reporter Nathan Baird at nbaird@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @nbairdjc.
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