Barry Odom Flips 2 UNLV Commits to Purdue, Including His Son
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One of the first commitments Barry Odom has received in his short time as Purdue's coach has come from inside his own home. His son, quarterback Garyt Odom, is one of two players flipping their commitment from UNLV to Purdue. The other is linebacker Parker Meese.
Fayetteville High School (Ark.) confirmed that both Meese and Garyt will sign with Purdue. They had previously been part of a 21-man recruiting class that Barry signed while at UNLV.
Update!
— Fayetteville FBall (@FayBulldogsFB) December 10, 2024
Welcome to the BIG 10!@GarytOdom @ParkerMeese
☔️☔️ pic.twitter.com/ovFLwNHQd6
Meese is a 6-foot-1, 215-pound linebacker from Fayetteville who received more than 30 offers on the recruiting front. He's ranked as the No. 212 linebacker in the 2025 class, per 247Sports. Other power programs to offer Meese included Arkansas, Auburn, Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Ole Miss, Penn State Oregon and others.
Garyt is a three-star quarterback who ranks as the No. 124 player at his position, per 247Sports. He received nine total offers, including from Louisville, Nebraska, Penn State and Texas A&M.
Those are nice additions for the Boilermakers, who signed a small 2025 recruiting class because of the coaching uncertainty. Purdue landed signings from just six prospects in this cyle. With Garyt and Meese committing, it brings that tally up to eight.
It's still a small class, but adding a few names certainly helps.
Related stories on Purdue football
PURDUE PREPARED TO INVEST IN ATHLETICS: During the introductory press conference for new football coach Barry Odom, Purdue University president Mung Chiang talked about the school's willingness to invest in athletics. CLICK HERE
ODOM BRINGS CHAMPIONSHIP MINDSET TO PURDUE: Barry Odom didn't mince words when talking about his goals at Purdue. He wants to win Big Ten titles and reach the College Football Playoff. CLICK HERE
CONTRACT DETAILS FOR BARRY ODOM: Details regarding Barry Odom's contract at Purdue have been released. The new football coach has agreed to a six-year, $39 million contract with the Boilers. CLICK HERE
ODOM MEETS WITH TEAM: New Purdue football coach Barry Odom met with his players for the first time on Monday. The Boilermakers shared a clip from that interaction. CLICK HERE
Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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