WEST LAFAYETTE − It was the week before Christmas, and Charles Correa got a phone call from an unrecognized number.
Purdue defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Mike Scherer, who Correa followed along with Barry Odom from UNLV to Purdue football a year ago, was no longer on the coaching staff.
On the other end of that phone call was Kevin Kane, Purdue’s new defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.
He was reaching out to the perceived leader of the Boilermaker defense upon learning he was Scherer’s successor.
“Being one of the first guys he called truly shows how much he wants for me as a person, but also for this team as well, taking the time to call the guys instead of calling other coaches or going out recruiting before making calls to guys he’s excited to coach here,” Correa said.
First impressions can mean a lot.
In Kane’s case, his first impression on Boilermaker football fans wasn’t a good one.
Purdue’s defense was bad ― like, really bad ― in 2023 and ’24. By whatever data you want to use or simply by the eye test, the Boilermakers were far and away the worst defense in the Big Ten, and nearly all of the FBS, two seasons ago.
The defensive coordinator for those teams, who went a combined 5-19, was Kane, who like most of the coaching staff in 2024, had to find new jobs.
Kane made a good first impression on his new defense, of which only a few players remain from two seasons ago.
After one season at Minnesota, Kane gets a second chance to make a first impression in West Lafayette. He’s not aloof. Kane gets why Purdue fans have reservations about his hire.
“All I can say is come out and watch and see what we’re going to do,” Kane said.
As Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski put it in early January, “the proof will be in the results.”
We’ll have to wait five or so months for those. Sept. 12 against Wake Forest will be the first accurate gauge.
“I think Kevin is ready to put his stamp on the defense,” defensive line coach Kelvin Green said. “It’s just the mindset of us being together. Us attacking, us playing together. His energy and his every day presence and his everyday how he approaches being a DC is a joy.”
Kane’s hire did provide immediate impact.
Linebacker Winston Berglund and defensive back Smiley Bradford both had entered the transfer portal. Each was at Purdue during Kane’s last stint as Boilermaker defensive coordinator. Both withdrew from the portal.
“He’s just a great coach,” Berglund said. “Even before when he was here my freshman, sophomore year, he was a great coach. I just cant say enough good things about him.”
Kane was brought back and, according to Odom, will have more liberty to run the defense as he sees fit than perhaps Kane was allowed in his previous stint. Key pieces of this defense have provided positive reviews so far, though it’s a limited sample size.
“I like attacking. He is all about attacking,” defensive lineman Ian Jeffries said. “That is fun for me. Fun to be a D-lineman and it’s fun to just play.”
Saturday’s spring showcase at noon in Ross-Ade Stadium offers fans their first glimpse of what the Boilermakers will look like in the upcoming season.
Purdue is coming off a 2-10 season, which included three one-possession losses. One of those was at Minnesota, a game Kane was on the winning side of after a late pick-six sparked a Gopher victory.
The Boilermakers weren’t close to anything that would be deemed a success last season. But with some personnel upgrades, a few coaching changes and, perhaps with an improved defense, maybe there’s not as far away from it as you’d think.
“The margins in this conference are so small between winning and losing. And it’s not much different,” Kane said. “I look at what I just left at Minnesota and then I came here, the talent is not different. We’ve got to be able to go on the field and play harder and be situationally sound, better than anybody else that we can and we’re going to have a chance to win those one possession games.”
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on X and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue football DC has skeptics, relishes second chance to make impression
Reporting by Sam King, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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