PURDUE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 18, 2023

Ryan Walters

Press Conference

Q. (In progress.) Those turnovers at the inopportune moments.

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, just definitely ball security issues. You know, we teach covering up the ball in a certain way when you're in traffic. That really led to putting the ball on the ground seven times.

We were fortunate to only lose three of them, but you can't win a ballgame against a quality opponent and turn the ball over four times, especially in the red area like we did.

Q. How are you guys going to work on the ball security this week in practice? Any emphasis on that?

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, that's the thing, we emphasize it every week. We have a designated day where we actually work ball security drills and turnover circuits on defense, which is why we've been really clean up until the other night.

So definitely will put an emphasis on it, and guys got to take ownership over protecting the football and carrying it the right way.

Q. And then with the last three games, looking at tape have you noticed any pattern with going for it on third and one and fourth and one and not being able to convert?

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, that's the pattern, it's not being able to convert. You know, so up to now we got three games of logged information that definitely will change my approach on when to and when not to go for it. We're constantly evaluating what type of plays we're running in those third and shorts, fourth and shorts, so we'll have a better plan moving forward.

Q. You said after the game on Saturday you had to do some self-evaluation to not make those mistakes ahead of Big10 play. What is that self-evaluation going to look like? Did you learn from these last three games?

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, it's a combination of couple things. One, structurally, offensively, defensively, and special teams, I think we're doing the right things.

I do think in some of the situational ball, are we asking our guys to do something that might not fit their strong suits? For example, this past weekend obviously the quarterback was a good runner and we had some design things where we had somebody responsible for him.

Is it the right guy responsible for him? Just things like that as you consistently learn your roster, learn what they're comfortable with and what their strong suits are.

But I'm not panicked just like I wasn't panicked after week one. It's a good opponent. Obviously they beat us last year. The team we lost to the first week, they're a good football team. We bounced back against Virginia Tech in some adverse situations.

No need to push the panic button now, but definitely need to continue to grow and improve, which I think this team will do as the year goes on.

Q. Through three games can you evaluate Hudson Card?

RYAN WALTERS: Obviously he would like to have the turnovers back, right? I thought this was the most comfortable he looked. We moved the ball up and down the field all night really. Just had the four turnovers. Obviously those turnovers came in costly areas of the field and costly moments.

But I feel like he's been poised under pressure. He doesn't really get rattled. He has great arm talent and is athletic enough to get you out of some situations and make plays.

I think he's becoming comfortable with his receiving corps and they're comfortable with him, so I think that we would all be feeling a lot different right now if we didn't have the turnovers we had when we had them.

He'll continue to improve as well. This is his first year in the system. But I'm happy he's our quarterback.

Q. I know defenses want to take away Deion Burks, but do you think he needs to be more involved in this offense?

RYAN WALTERS: There is a couple guys we would like to get more touches. I think Deion is on; Tyrone Tracy is another. Those are things we are evaluating constantly and trying to come up with creative ways to do so.

Q. The depth chart has an "or" between Mockobee and Tracy. I guess the job is open.

RYAN WALTERS: In my opinion those guys are both starting tight players in this conference and for us as a team. So I think those reps will be more evenly distributed. Hopefully we'll be better because of that on offense.

Q. Any update on Kydran Jenkins who missed the second half Saturday night?

RYAN WALTERS: Still going through the rehab process. If he's ready to go, he'll go. If he's not, he won't, and it'll be next man up.

Obviously he's a great player and definitely hurt not having him in the second half.

Q. 11 penalties Saturday night. What do you need to do to clean that up?

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, just you teach off them. Some of them are bang-bang plays, some of them could go either way. So I don't want to overreact, but the post-snap penalties will kill you, the pre-snap will penalties, but the ones in competition when you're competing for a ball or like a holding call on the offensive line that could or could not be thrown, you don't want to overreact to those.

But I think we had nine penalties on Saturday. Can't have those. We talk about all the time in order to win the game you got to not lose it, and you lose games by penalties and mental errors and turnovers. We were not great in those three categories.

Q. How do you feel about playing on Friday nights?

RYAN WALTERS: You know, it's tough after a Saturday night especially, just the quick turnaround. So today is like a Tuesday for us, but you definitely don't want to go out there and practice like a Tuesday practice.

We just came off a night game that had a lot of snaps on offense and defense. We've got guys banged up from Saturday night. We'll do more of a walk-through tempo today and hit a normal practice tomorrow, and then get into more mental prep as we approach Friday night.

Obviously I think the atmosphere will be great. It always as in Ross-Ade. Just the energy, electricity, and the fan support and community support in West Lafayette has been tremendous.

Hopefully they'll be patient with us. We'll put a product out there that will be exciting to cheer for. And I know our guys really appreciate the atmosphere that they create. That's why we do it. That's one of the reasons I was excited to come here, because of the environment that Ross-Ade provides.

Q. Is this a game where you need to have a short memory?

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, you got to have a short memory on all of them, but in particular this one just because of the schedule that lies ahead.

You know, quick turnaround and playing against a team that this university hasn't beat in 20 years, so a lot of things to look forward to, and just another opportunity to go compete. That's what I love about this team, is that they are not shy about the competition and are eager to go prove themselves, as is the staff.

So we're looking forward to a great night on Friday.

Q. I think you've played Wisconsin before obviously, but they have a new OC. What are the biggest differences you've seen on tape from this year's Wisconsin team to the one you played in the past?

RYAN WALTERS: Just schematically way different. Wisconsin as you think of them over the last however many years has been super run heavy, use of multiple tight ends, controlling the clock, and playing with a measured pace.

And Phil Longo is not that. He's a spread you out. He's lot more similar style to the way we play offensively. And so they throw the ball all over the place, and we'll try to get some balance. They have two really talented running backs, but you can tell they definitely want to air it out more than they ever have in the history of their program.

Q. You touched on this, but 16 straight losses. How do you wrap your head around that? In the Big10 nobody beats anybody 16 times in a row.

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, I mean, other than Wisconsin, right? You know, you just got to take -- each season and each game is its own lifespan, and so you can't dwell on that fact.

At the same time, you want to recognize it to use it as added motivation. You know, if we want to get to where we want to go as a program, that's the school we're going to have to beat year in and year out.

In order to do so you got prepare the right way and you can't go into a game hesitant or shy about who you're playing against just because of the logo on their helmet.

You got to go compete like you're competing every week. The goal is to win a game.

Q. Now that you watched film, how do you evaluate what Scotty Humpich did, what Will did with K.J. out last Saturday?

RYAN WALTERS: Yeah, they played well in spurts, and other times I know they would like to have some plays back. Again, that's in two part, you know, one, them playing within the framework of the defense and staying true to their assignment, and also from a schematic standpoint asking them to do things they're capable of doing and doing well.

So they are both highly capable, experienced guys. Obviously Will is a pressure man but he played well when he had an opportunity. Going to be a great player here and going to have a great career here.

So we're excited about both of those guys and happy that they're a part of our team and can play winning football for us.

Q. I think we asked you in the spring if you were going to look in the portal for a kicker and you said, we have a kicker. Ben has had some struggles. How do you keep him confident?

RYAN WALTERS: You got to go and look back at his preparation and what he's shown and done in practice so that when you get out in those live moments with added pressure and added eyes you resort back to your training.

So I think that that's what he's focused on and what we're preaching to him, and he'll be fine moving forward.

Q. So what Wisconsin is doing philosophically offensively now, what you're doing at Purdue on both sides of ball, taking players recruited to one very specific system and then shifting to something very different. What are the challenges of coaching, and how malleable do you have to be?

RYAN WALTERS: I can't speak on Wisconsin because I'm not in their locker room, you know what I mean? I don't know what they're thinking and what their communication has been.

But for us, it's you just find -- like I said, finding the right pieces to fit what we're trying to get done on offense and defense. At times it has looked really good. There are I would say 85% of the snaps were exactly how you draw them up and look clean and looked fast.

But like I said, you turn the ball over four times, you don't convert on some of the third and shorts, nine penalties against a team like Syracuse or a team like Fresno State, you know, they will expose you and take advantage of those mistakes.

And so if we can continue to play being competitive, tough, and at the end of the day being really disciplined, then I think we're exactly where we need to be and we'll be very competitive in this Big10 race.

Q. With Luke Fickell, have you crossed paths with him? How have you crossed paths with him over the years in your playing and/or coaching career?

RYAN WALTERS: The only time I crossed paths with him was at the Big10 head coach's meetings. He's definitely a great guy, and just getting to know him from that aspect. I got tremendous respect for what he's done in his coaching career and how he was able to elevate the different stops that he's been.

So we'll definitely have challenges. His teams are well coached and they play within the edge and are disciplined and physical. They compete at a high level.