Purdue football is starting from the bottom. Again.

Driving the news: Purdue is walking into their 2025 season opener against Ball State with nowhere to go but up.

• Experts and oddsmakers say they should beat the Cardinals, but early predictions from nearly every outlet put the Boilers dead last in the Big Ten, with some saying a winless conference campaign is a real possibility.

Flashback: The Boilers were pretty bad in 2023 when they went 4-8 under former coach Ryan Walters in his first season.

• They were even worse in 2024, winning just one game before showing Walters the door.

Yes, but: Odom, like Walters before him, isn't bothered by the talk.

• Instead, he is making every decision with a sense of urgency and a "deep responsibility to get Purdue football back to winning."

What he's saying: "We represent something so much bigger than ourselves," Odom said. "The urgency to get that done — I think about it every single minute of the day."

Plus: Going from not great to pretty darn good in a single season isn't impossible in the Big Ten. Just ask the Hoosiers.

If you go: Purdue vs. Ball State starts at 12pm Saturday.

• Tickets start at $19.

How to watch: Big Ten Network