UNLV football coach Barry Odom is leaving his job after two successful seasons in Las Vegas, accepting the opening at Purdue for the head coach position.
The Boilermakers, a Big Ten institution located in West Lafayette, Indiana, announced the hire on Sunday. Odom, in two seasons with the Rebels, reignited his coaching resume with a 19-8 record and back-to-back appearances in the Mountain West championship game. On Friday night, UNLV lost a chance to make the College Football Playoff, losing 21-7 to Boise State. In this year’s regular season, UNLV went 10-3. Early season non-conference wins at Houston and Kansas brought national attention to the traditionally struggling Rebels program.
Odom, a former linebacker and the University of Missouri, was head coach at his alma mater for four seasons in the late 2010’s. At Purdue, he replaces Ryan Walters, who was fired after a season-closing 11 game losing streak.
In addition to his head coaching experience at Missouri and UNLV, Odom has been defensive coordinator at Mizzou, Memphis, and Arkansas.
Photo credit – PurdueSports.com / University of Purdue Athletics / West Lafayette, IN
