Purdue is set to hire Kent State’s Darrell Hazell as its next coach. (Alex Trautwig/Getty Images)

Purdue University is hiring Kent State’s Darrell Hazell as its new head football coach, reports CBSSports.com.

Hazell had a 16-9 record in two seasons at Kent State and previously served as Ohio State’s wide receivers coach for five seasons.  Purdue fired Danny Hope last month after he went 23-27 in four years at the school. Purdue also interviewed Cincinnati head coach Butch Jones for the job, and he ultimately turned down the offer.

This season, Hazell was named the Mid-American Conference’s Coach of the Year and led his team to their first winning season in 11 years. Kent State finished 11-2, got as high as No. 17 in the BCS rankings, and lost to Northern Illinois in double-overtime  in the MAC championship game.

Kent State will play Arkansas State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on Jan. 6 in Mobile, Ala. It will be their first bowl appearance in 40 years.

Purdue is hiring Darrell Hazell as its new coach, a source tells CBS.—
Bruce Feldman (@BFeldmanCBS) December 05, 2012

Danny Hope has been fired as Purdue’s football coach. (Jonathan Daniel, Getty Images)

Purdue University has fired head football coach Danny Hope, according to an announcement from the university, as tweeted by the Big Ten Network’s Tom Dienart.

Hope has been in the job for four years, taking over the Boilermakers after Joe Tiller’s retirement in 2008. Hopes record was decidedly mixed during his time at Purdue – he amassed a 21-27 overall record in that time, including a 12-19 mark in the Big Ten conference. Hope did lead Purdue to a bowl victory last season, defeating Western Michigan in the Little Ceasar’s Pizza Bowl.

#Purdue has announced that Danny Hope will not return as head football coach. Purdue will hold a press conference today at 6:30 p.m. ET.—
Tom Dienhart (@BTNTomDienhart) November 25, 2012

Point guard Billy Baron is on the move again. Having played just one semester for Rhode Island after transferring from Virginia, Baron is leaving Kingston after his father, Jim, was fired as the Rams coach.

Jim Baron has since been hired by Canisius, but Billy Baron says that it is not a foregone conclusion that he will rejoin his father.

“I want to explore my options,” Baron told Kevin McNamara of the Providence Journal. “I’ll explore playing for my dad at Canisius but right now it was too emotionally complex for me to stay at URI. It wouldn’t have been fair for me or the new coaching staff or my teammates. It’s been an emotional rollercoaster for me.”

Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com tweeted another possible destination for the younger Baron:

Purdue making a strong push to land URI transfer Billy Baron, sources told CBSSports.—
Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS) June 20, 2012

If Baron has to sit out next season, he will lose a year of eligibility and have only one remaining. However, there is a recent precedent for a player being granted a waiver when transferring after his father is fired: Central Michigan-turned-Pittsburgh guard Trey Zeigler.

The Purdue Boilermakers dismissed Kelsey Barlow from the team and suspended D.J. Byrd from Sunday’s game against conference leader Michigan State, according to a tweet from CBS Jeff Goodman.

Purdue just announced its kicked Kelsey Barlow off the team and suspended DJ Byrd for Sunday's game against Michigan State. HUGE news.

—
Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS) February 17, 2012

Byrd was arrested early this morning for charges of intoxication after a bar scuffle where Barlow was present. Head coach Matt Painter said that both actions are a result of a violation of team rules.

“This is an unfortunate situation, but we will move forward as a program,” Painter said according to USA Today. “We expect our student-athletes to live up to a high standard, and when their actions become detrimental to the program, there are consequences.”

The loss of both these players will likely hurt the team this weekend when they face Michigan State. Barlow had started 22 of 26 games and averaged 8.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. Byrd is averaging 8.0 points per game, but has more than doubled that average in his past five games.

The Boilmakers are currently 7-6 in Big Ten play and are sixth place overall in the conference.

Purdue Boilermakers guard, D.J. Byrd was arrested on Thursday evening for public intoxication charges, according to the school’s student newspaper, the Purdue Exponent.

Byrd has had a breakout season averaging eight points per contest and has had several games where he has tallied double digits in the points column.  He has also shot 50% from three-point range.

The Boilermakers are currently 7-6 in Big Ten play and are sixth place overall in the conference.

Purdue will face off against conference leader Michigan State this weekend.