Ranking Purdue football’s best Ryan Walters replacement candidates

Helton reportedly was a “serious candidate” for the opening back in 2022 before it went to Walters, per CBS Sports’ Will Backus. The WKU head coach has delivered five winning seasons in his six years of leading the Hilltoppers. That includes the 8-4 campaign which now has the Hilltoppers pursuing the Conference USA title this coming weekend.

The former University of Houston QB also gives Purdue a chance to dip back to a past trend that worked. The Boilermakers plucked away former WKU head coach Jeff Brohm before the 2017 season, who went 36-34 at Purdue and delivered three bowl appearances.

Paul Chryst, former Wisconsin head coach 

Say Purdue wants to lure back a former head coach. Particularly one who knows the Big 10. Chryst has to come to mind.

Chryst hasn’t coached since getting fired five games into the 2022 season at Wisconsin. But he’s got an impressive 86-45 record in stops at Madison and Pittsburgh. He even went 67-26 and lost only one bowl game out of his seven appearances with the Badgers. Conference rival Illinois is thriving with a former Badgers coach in Bret Bielema. Purdue could shoot for similar success with Chryst available.

Jason Candle, Toledo 

Back to current coaches, Candle seems long overdue for a promotion to a power conference.

While his Rockets settled for a 7-5 season in 2024, he’s never finished below .500 throughout his tenure in Toledo. He boasts a 72-40 overall record. What may shy Purdue away is his bowl record (2-5 overall there). But Candle built a program from the ground up. He’s got a chance to do that in West Lafayette if he considers a leap of faith.

Bob Chesney, James Madison 

Here’s a bold idea to spice up the Indiana-Purdue rivalry and draw intrigue for football within the state: Hire Curt Cignetti’s replacement at JMU.

Chesney’s first Dukes team went 8-4 without Cignetti. Given IU’s immediate success under Cignetti, Chesney has emerged as a red-hot coaching contender for power conference gigs like this one. But Chesney’s 119-50 record as a head coach, including the 44-21 mark at Holy Cross, additionally piques the intrigue of him and Purdue linking up.

Ja’Marcus Shephard, Alabama co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach 

Shephard is the lone assistant who looks like a prime fit for Purdue. But his current body of work in Tuscaloosa, including coaching freshman sensation Ryan Williams, has nothing to do with his name getting attached here.

Shephard knows Purdue well — having served as Brohm’s co-offensive coordinator and WR coach from 2018-2021. David Bell and Rondale Moore were two of his wideouts at Purdue. He’s also a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana. The 41-year-old is a big wildcard for this coaching opening. But he knows the campus and was there during the competitive Brohm years.