Ryan Browne is Purdue football's QB, but the position battle isn't over

WEST LAFAYETTE – The name is the same, but the player is not.

To those wishing Purdue football had upgraded its quarterback position during the offseason, Boilermaker coaches will tell them it did.

How?

By seeing Ryan Browne transform, refusing to run away from his shortcomings a season ago in his first go as the full-time starter. Browne still needs to develop better accuracy on deep throws, but he's elevated his game everywhere else.

"I went and watched fall camp practice last year, and it's pretty silly," Purdue quarterbacks coach Darin Hinshaw said. "His footwork, getting loaded, his mechanics, everything has completely changed."

Leaning on a Rolodex that includes Peyton Manning and Drew Brees doesn't hurt, either.

Who is back (2025 stats): Evans Chuba, sophomore; Garyt Odom, redshirt freshman; Ryan Browne, junior; Bennett Meredith, senior

New faces: Corin Berry, freshman

More: Purdue football camp observations as freshman pushes for OL spot

One year ago, Ryan Browne was fresh off a spring spent at North Carolina, but by early fall camp had separated himself as Purdue's best option at quarterback. This year, there's no question about the starter, but two returnees are entrenched in a battle to be QB2 on the depth chart: Bennett Meredith and Evans Chuba.

Meredith started one game for Purdue, three seasons ago at Northwestern, a game where he and Browne alternated series until the second half. Now in his fourth season at Purdue after transferring from Arizona State, his experience is his biggest attribute.

Chuba is a high-ceiling QB who still needs to work on adapting to the real-game speed, but the potential is there. The former Washington State QB can make throws that no other quarterback on Purdue's roster can. If he can find more consistency, he's probably the best bet to back up Browne.

Unique to today's college football, Purdue returned four quarterbacks from a season ago.

"This day and age, where the room is always changing, it's a privilege to have the same room and just keep growing," Chuba said. "That's unique. You don't really have that these days in college football. That definitely helped us grow closer and just be comfortable to give each other feedback."

Corin Berry may not get the reps as a true freshman as the season goes, but, like Chuba, possesses traits that could make him a future option to call the offense. Odom is the head coach's son. He's been around college football since birth. There's no doubt he's soaked up plenty of knowledge to be ready if he's ever given an opportunity.

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: Ryan Browne is Purdue football's QB, but the position battle isn't over