The Purdue Boilermakers haven’t received a lot of good news over the past few weeks as former head coach Jeff Brohm is leaving the team to become the next head coach of the Louisville Cardinals and star quarterback Aidan O’Connell is skipping the team’s Citrus Bowl against the LSU Tigers. But they got a massive boost from legendary quarterback Drew Brees on Thursday.
As reported by college football insider Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated, Drew Brees, who played for Purdue from 1997 to 2000, will be joining the team as an interim assistant coach.
Drew Brees, the former NFL quarterback, is being hired as an interim assistant coach at Purdue, source tells @SINow.
He wanted to help during the coaching transition. He’ll assist team in prep for the Citrus Bowl and coach in the game. He can also recruit via an NCAA waiver.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) December 15, 2022
“Drew Brees, the former NFL quarterback, is being hired as an interim assistant coach at Purdue, source tells @SINow. He wanted to help during the coaching transition. He’ll assist team in prep for the Citrus Bowl and coach in the game. He can also recruit via an NCAA waiver,” Dellenger said in a Tweet on Thursday morning.
It’s a huge move for both the team and Drew Brees, and the college football world had plenty to say about it on Twitter.
Jeff Saturday walked so Drew Brees could Boiler Up. https://t.co/SC90vjqi5P
— Mike Golic Jr (@mikegolicjr) December 15, 2022
Lightning strikes at Purdue. https://t.co/LPAXq6vPq0
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 15, 2022
Amazing that he was able to recover from a lightning strike so quickly. https://t.co/ZwII4aKMwX
— Conor Orr (@ConorOrr) December 15, 2022
Was told Brees should be on campus on Monday. https://t.co/YSatHvxwTw
— Tom Dienhart (@TomDienhart1) December 15, 2022
Interesting, I'd say. https://t.co/fFxPDIV0eB
— Larry Holder (@LarryHolder) December 15, 2022
In a meaningless bowl game without their starting QB, this is a fun idea. Wonder if he'll join the staff after https://t.co/Aau7JbIvxy
— Joe DeLeone (@joedeleone) December 15, 2022
While this is not expected to be a long-term move and simply allows Brees to help the team for a short amount of time, this will be Brees’ first opportunity as a coach in any sort of capacity at any level of football.
