Can this Crop Stop the 4-Star Flops

Purdue football recruiting is something we don't spend a ton of time talking about around here...until they're officially Boilers.  In our opinion, there's really no reason to get too wrapped up in a player's potential until you know they're going to be wearing gold and black.  All that said, when a highly-touted player signs his name on the dotted line, then, then, you can dream a bit about what might be.

Early in Tiller's time at Purdue, we watched Chris Daniels break records and frustrate opponents by bulking up in the off-season, running precise routes and being sure-handed.  We all wondered what a shiny new model would do in the new system.  Standeford and Stubblefield quietly entered campus, with little fanfare, but went on to absolutely obliterate old records...and continued in the path of Daniels by thoroughly-frustrating DBs and DCs alike; they were a puzzle that couldn't be solved it would seem...an unstoppable force.  Except in Stubby's case of course, a neighborhood pool fence and a girl wanting to go for a dip got him concussed during the summer and kept him off the field for a few games...but the dude still tore up the opposition upon his return.

When Tiller acquired the services of the Fort Wayne product, Selwyn Lymon, we thought the dream had come true...and the highly-touted, chrome-plated recruit showed a glimpse of what he could do as a Frosh in a blowout at the hands of UND.  The future seemed bright...but as we know now, it wasn't to be.

And that's been the case over and over again.

The four-star signee is as rare as UFO sightings or glimpses of Sasquatch...and sometimes, after that player leaves Purdue, we ask ourselves, just as in the case of the mythological creatures- Did it really happen?

Al-Terek McBurse had a host of high offers and a high star rating to boot.  As a Freshman, he showed that he could move in auxiliary duty...the future looked bright.  But as a Soph, he didn't look like the back that was advertised.  A little adversity, and he was off to greener pastures.

Close...but...

Most-recently, OJ Ross made an immediate impact as he showed his quickness and speed as a Freshman...But it was apparent that he was raw and needed to work on his route running.  It simply didn't happen.  Gary Bush started overshadowing Ross in spite of the God-given talent discrepancy...and Ross, while weighed down by off-field baggage faded out before being suspended last winter by Hazell.  This morning, it seems that it's become official and Ross will not return to the team (according to message boards...I still haven't found concrete proof) for his final season at Purdue.

Ross is the most-recent case of the 4-star flop for our Boilers.  Sure, you might argue that Ross had a pretty productive career...no doubt about that, actually.  BUT, he didn't have a career that equalled his hype or his obvious talent.

Production is often a combination  of work, attitude, talent and timing.  Sadly, Purdue's highly-touted signees haven't had all four very often.  We've said it over and over in a number of ways- Purdue players are generally fighters.  The problem is, guys that have been told they're great their whole lives generally don't have that fighting spirit.  The gritty players that overcome adversity become the darlings of our fanbase.  The guys with a lunch bucket mentality are our favorites (not just BS', mind you).

Purdue currently has three former 4-star players on the roster- Sophomore DT Watson, Frosh TE Carvajal and Frosh QB Etling.  Can this group of three be the first crop of high recruits to end the streak of bad mojo for the golden recruits? It would certainly seem that way.

Watson started his career on a promising note last season as he worked his way into the line-up about mid-way through the season.  From all accounts, he'll be on the two-deeps again in the fall and seems to be on track to make some noise.

Danny Etling has made his presence known as he's shot up the QB depth chart to the second spot...and it seems that Joe Tiller thinks that Etling will be the guy come this fall.  That's pretty interesting...Sure, Tiller isn't attending practice, but he talks to Hazell more regularly than you and I and is still pretty connected to Purdue.  He thinks that Henry's accuracy, mechanics and run-first mentality isn't what the program needs.  We'll see if his prophecy turns out to be accurate.

Carlos Carvajal is the one question mark in the group right now, it seems- Granted, he didn't take the typical route to Purdue after a year of prep school...and honestly, I'm not sure if he's a great fit yet.  He's got swagger like a Miami player of the 90s, it seems...but that doesn't really jibe with Hazell's way.  All that said, he's got an imposingly-long frame, and some pretty great tools to work with.  I still think his mean streak might put him at DE before the first game in 2013; we'll see.

Whether it's Ross, McBurse, Plue, Kacinko, Lymon, Paxson, Kyle Williams, Bushong, Van Dyke or Kirsch...We Purdue fans can easily recall our dreams of grandeur and shattered expectations shortly after due to a wide range of variables and complications.  Sure, players like Baker and Lindsay are sprinkled throughout that had solid careers, but the last real success Purdue had of the high-ranking players was probably Dorien Bryant...before that, Kyle Orton.

That's kinda sobering.

Part of that, of course is simply that Purdue doesn't get a ton of these guys, so the odds are a bit longer that they will have great careers.  Solid high-three star guys tend to do quite well at Purdue; Short, Greg Orton and others come to mind right away.  Hopefully Hazell's efforts will give us a bit of a larger sample to judge by, in the coming seasons.

The BS Curse? (and other football notes)

After reading GBI and Mike Carmin, I thought I'd weigh in on what's been happening in God's country under Coach Hazell's watch.

I always struggle in analyzing stats and reports following an intersquad scrimmage...was the offense winning an indictment of the defense? Is the defense's progress a sign that the offense isn't getting better?  We really don't know until the fall...but there are a few things we can glean from the reports.

First, Bruce Gaston played on Saturday...that's good news, and Hazell noted that. Regardless if Purdue plays a 3-4 or 4-3, Gaston's presence in the middle will be noteworthy.

Next, the DBs played pretty well even without Allen in the fold due to injury. They had a few picks and a few more were dropped, but a ton of passes defended.  This update is one of those that might not be great news for the QBs.

And speaking of QBs, the guy that I wanted to see at QB1, Austin Appleby, has dropped from 1A with Henry to 3. Stink. But I'll be frank about the QB battle for a moment- I don't care who's at quarterback if the good guys are winning.  Henry has an unconventional delivery and has struggled with accuracy at times...but Billy Dicken had an unconventional delivery and didn't have the strongest arm and played one great year as Purdue transitioned to Drew Brees running the offense.

I'm still foggy on when/how a player commissions the NCAA on a sixth season of eligibility.  But it would seem that Henry would be a shoe-in for such a season due to his ACL tear following a redshirt. If he gets the extra year, Appleby starts in '14 and Etling is able to redshirt in the fall, Purdue could have a legit QB plan for the first time in a long time. But hey, there are a ton of variables along the way that could derail that.  I just like that there are three good options in the stable.

Etling passed Appleby on the depth chart, according to Hazell, on Saturday...competitions is always a good thing.  Hopefully this coaching staff is better at making decisions and assessing talent than the last group...and I'm confident that they are.

According to the practice reports, a few RS Freshman are playing with the ones on the offensive line.  This is good and bad.  The good of course is that these gigantic dudes are living up to their billing.  The bad is that they're green, so QBs are needing to roll out quite a bit in order to find time and passing lanes. It seems that Henry, Etling and Appleby are all mobile enough, so that shouldn't be too much of an issue.

One surprise from the reports that I've gathered is that former QB, Robert Gregory is making some noise at the position. Cottom strained his MCL on Saturday, so a few guys further down the depth chart got some carries with the ones...and everyone who saw the scrimmage noted how Gregory ran extremely hard and didn't shy away from contact.  Conversely, Akeem Hunt looked fast and great outside the tackles, but didn't shine in between the tackles. Hazell is seeking more depth at the RB position...this leads me to believe that a guy like incoming Freshman, Kenyate Green will be able to possibly see the field in the fall.  BUT, if Cottom and Hunt are healthy, that's a damned good 1-2 punch to start with.

An on-going development as Spring progresses is the lack of mentions for two-year starter Gary Bush. Bush's class schedule has kept him from practicing this Spring, so that surely doesn't help. But the question is, will he be able to move back to the 1s in the fall when his schedule is (obviously) more conducive to Purdue's camp schedule.  As of right now, RS Freshman, Knauf is in the same spot wih the 1s that Bush is playing with the 2s.  I think there could be a ton of movement come August as Anthrop gets healthy and Ross gets out of the doghouse.

I also think Mostert, Anthrop and Hunt might all be playing a similar position in the Fall...but that's just speculation at this point.  It just seems that they all have a similar skillset.

Hazell called the scrimmage one of the best that he's been a part of since he's been a head coach. That's good to hear. I guess that clearly signals that this Purdue team will have around 11 wins this coming season? Maybe not, but as J alluded to last week, Hazell seems to be making good moves thus far and his openness along with the way he's handled the media are nothing but positive.

T-minus five days until Spring ball is officially concluded with the Black/Gold Game in Ross-Ade. I'll be there with a few miniature people; looking forward to it already.

Hazell's Hybrid Class

I've read and listened to a lot today about this incoming class...and a couple things stick out to me.  First, the quote I liked the best came via GBI from a student...not a player...not a coach.  But it was a reaction to hearing Coach Hazell speak this evening in Mackey.

"When you look at him compared to Coach Hope, he sounds more knowledgeable, sounds like he knows what he's talking about. Doesn't have those statements that make you scratch your head and wonder what he's talking about. He's concise, clear and you definitely can tell he's motivated."
-Tyler Gray, Purdue University Junior

Tyler's right on- there aren't many wasted words with Hazell...fans notice that, students are noticing...players will notice. On the same point, Danny Etling said that he thinks Hazell might be upset if he doesn't complete every pass in practice.  A new sheriff is indeed in town, and as recruits are all noticing, the culture has to change and is already beginning to do so.

Hope perpetually had problems with depth at multiple positions because it seemed like he had no plan...Hazell mentioned creating depth two or three times through recruiting, development and movement of players as needed...but still isn't too happy with the safety position; will need to move some corners.

This class doesn't seem expect to be great or even good because they're great players...they seem to believe that their collective work and discipline will make them better.  Another quote I liked was from David Yancey.  He said he felt honored to be able to just go into Mollenkopf and work out each day.

The sense of entitlement that some players show in college football doesn't seem to be evident with this group of 23 signees.

Hazell likes the versatility of this class a lot- from RBs that can play in the slot, to lineman that can play as OLBs in the 3-4, TEs that can move outside or DEs that might be able to bulk up and become DTs with a meal or two.

And speaking of Des, one of Hope's biggest weaknesses in the last two years at Purdue was getting new DEs to come on campus and become the next guys in the Den.  But Hazell and the staff, in mere weeks added to the class at that position specifically:

Antoine Miles, Johnny Tompson, Danny Ezechukwu, John Strauser, Jake Replogle and Evan Panfil are the DEs of 2013.  Miles seems physically most-ready to play right away.  Purdue beat out Nebraska, Pitt, WVU, Cincy and others for his services. Strauser's uncle coaches at Pitt, and Purdue still beat Pitt and Illinois out for him. Panfil de-committed from Illinois to come to God's country...and Replogle was the fourth Replogle to play college football in the last 6 years...the others all went to IU.

Just to their right or left, the Tackles are Johnny Daniels, a late addition to the class and Ra'Zahn Howard, who comes to Purdue via prep school...he's a big dude at 6'3" 305.

DBs include Austin Logan, Tyvel Jemison, Leroy Clark and Da'Wan Hunte.  Logan is the biggest of the four, seems to be a natural safety that chose Purdue over Northwestern, Stanford, IU, Cincy...others.  One of the gems of the class comes out of this group in Miami's Leroy Clark who chose Purdue over Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Florida and a few others.  He seems to the most-likely to see playing time the most-quickly. Clark's video from high school is really fun to watch as he seems to be looking to score all of the time, regardless if he's playing offense or defense or what the situation is...and he was a ball hawk.

The lone LB in the class is Dezwan Polk-Campbell...which leads me to believe that one or more of the DEs in this class will move away from the line in the spring.

Obviously, Hope focused on QBs in the last class, but Hazell said a wide-open QB competition begins in spring ball...we talked about the battle between Henry, Appleby, Etling and Marshall a while ago.  I like these guys quite a bit already- Henry's leadership, Appleby's attention to detail, Marshall's athleticism and Etling's drive to not rest will make this a tough race to have any favorites...I really want to see the right guy get the chance to run the show; getting rid of the two (three) QB system will be an improvement regardless of whom is named starter in August.

Only one Olineman in this class.  6'7", 310 pound, Jason Tretter chose Purdue over Harvard, Yale, Columbia and others...he was recruited by Hazell at KSU as well. Methinks that a guy with a bunch of Ivy League offers won't have much of a problem retaining the playbook.  Let's all remember that five OLmen redshirted last fall and will be Freshman again in the fall...and all of those guys are Huuuuuuuge.

Green stuck by his word.

Keyante Green leads up a group of talented RBs...and this group has a few interesting stories.  First off, Green fought the fact that he grew up as a Tennessee fan and received a late offer from the Vols to stay committed to Hazell and co. Green had a boatload of offers including Tennessee, aOSU, Ole Miss, UCLA, South Carolina and others. Keith Byars III, (son of aOSU great, of course) comes via prep school, but had offers from Louisville, Iowa, Illinois, Maryland and others. David Yancey had four siblings go to Purdue before him and Dalyn Dawkins was a late addition to the class...the only guy out of Kentucky.

Purdue picked up Garrett Hudson and Matt Burke at the TE slot.  Burke played in the US Army All-America game and had a bunch of Ivy League offers along with Boise State and others.  He's big (6'6"), but I'd expect him to spend a year getting stronger as Holmes and Carvajal are in front of him.

Only three pure WR are in this class...all 6'2" or taller:
Dan Monteroso de-committed from BC to play for Hazell...and also had an offer from Iowa and a few MAC schools.  Deangelo Yancey chose Purdue over Ole Miss, Mizzou, NCState and others and Myles Norwood comes to Purdue after spending a year in Prep School.

The guys that will be competing for playing time right away look like Green, Etling, Clark, Logan and Miles.  QB, RB, DB and DE all are a bit thin OR underexperienced.

It's a tough position for this coaching staff to come in so late in the recruiting season and still be able to land most of the guys who were on board for Hope's staff...but the old staff's last thumbprint at Purdue was keeping in contact with these guys...then the new staff attacked the in-home visits as soon as it was legal and did a pretty solid job.  I believe we'll see fewer Florida guys and more Midwesterners (specifically Ohio) in next year's class, but tonight, the staff can rest, at least for a few days, knowing their first collective action as a staff was a success.

Next up, Spring ball.

May The Best Man Win

It's official. Danny Etling has enrolled early to be a student at Purdue University...and later tonight, Darrell Hazell will no longer be a part-time coach at Kent State...And with this, the quarterback competition begins.

RS Senior, Rob Henry is still a QB at this point...and he's made it very clear that he wants to play quarterback for Purdue.  Henry has thrown for about 1,200 yards, 11 TDs, 8 Ints and completed about 54% of his passes at QB at Purdue. He started a handful of games a few seasons ago, is a former captain of the team and by all accounts is a pretty good teammate. Henry is a dangerous runner, but has unusual throwing mechanics as he doesn't seem to follow all the way through. He will seek a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA as he tore his ACL after he had already redshirted.  It'd be shocking if the NCAA didn't give him a sixth year since he's a great student and a guy who's involved in the community.  BUT, they didn't give Keith Smith an extra year a few years ago...so never underestimate the NCAA's ineptitude.

Henry is 6'2" and weighs 200 pounds.

RS Freshman Austin Appleby was a Nike Elite 11 QB coming out of high school in Ohio. If you've watched him pass, you probably notice that he has a lively arm and, at least in my opinion, the best mechanics of the quarterbacks in the stable.  While he's a dropback passer, he's a pretty good athlete that can run as well.

Appleby is the biggest QB in Purdue's stable at a legit 6'5" 235 pounds.

RS Freshman Bilal Marshall was a dual-threat QB out of high school in Dade County, Florida.  Marshall ran quite a bit in high school and his throwing mechanics needed work (the last time I saw him throw)...but he can get out of trouble with his feet very quickly.  From what I've heard, he's been an apt pupil since coming onto campus.  Not a ton of people are giving him a shot to start next season, but I think he's a darkhorse because Hazell's Kent State team ran the option this season.

Marshall 6'3" and weighs 170...but has a frame that should be able to put on 10 pounds by next fall.

True Freshman Danny Etling is a four-star recruit out of Indiana whose team struggled during his Senior season.  Much like Appleby the year before a few key injuries might have helped keep his offense in check during his final season in high school...and Purdue benefitted from that.  I thought he would surely receive more offers, but a lackluster Senior year kept some away.  He was invited to the Elite 11 National contest, but didn't make the finals.  His cousin, Joe Holland, helped convince him to come to Purdue...and through the transition of Hope leaving and Hazell being hired, he stayed true.  He's a dropback passer with decent mechanics, but doesn't throw completely over the top.

Etling is 6'3" and weighs 200 pounds.

Walk-on (So) Parker, who saw limited action this season, will also compete for the starting job.

Competition is nothing but positive and having options with different skillsets is probably exactly what Hazell wants to see the first day in camp later this year.  The only downfall for Hazell is that there's probably not one guy who is the clear-cut favorite...at least at this point since none of them started last season. We're still about two months away...but workouts will start this week.

With Hazell's open practices, I'm hoping to get to see these guys with my very own LASIK-repaired eyes in March.