Purdue Football Recruiting: So, how did they do?

ThelegendofShawnMcCarthy returns with his weekly recruit update. In this edition, ThelegendofShawnMcCarthy looks to the future, because looking back at the recent past is much too painful. So without further ado...So, how did they do?

Markus Bailey (LB): Bailey is facing the same frustrations as the Purdue defenders right now. His Hilliard Davidson defense is getting the job done, but the offense isn't putting any points on the board. Davidson lost a heartbreaker Central Crossing 20 to 21 in overtime. Bailey had a decent game posting 6 tackles, including a TFL and 32 yards on 7 carries. Bailey has outside linebacker written all over him. He is athletic enough to be an effective running back and linebacker in high school, which should translate well to the college level. Purdue might have the luxury of redshirting Bailey next year and letting him fill out into a Big? sized linebacker. If not, look for Bailey to be a solid special teams player next season.

Tyshawn Brown (WR): Brown finally showed why he was a big pick up for Purdue as he posted 86 yards and a touchdown on only 3 receptions. As his Mays team defeated Lovejoy 40-35 in a matchup of Georgia powerhouses. I have to wonder if Brown hasn't been nicked up to start the season, because this is more in line with the numbers he put up last season. Brown may compete early in the slot for Purdue. He's the kind of player that can take it the distance any time he touches the ball. I can also see him being used on the jet sweep that Purdue is attempting to incorporate into the offense. On top of his receiving abilities Brown returns kicks and punts for Mays, and Purdue will have two vacancies to fill on kick returns next year. I look for Brown to avoid the redshirt and contribute on both offense and special teams as a freshman.

Andy Chelf (DB): Chelf and his Southlake Carroll beat a good Abilene team 63 - 28 on Friday night. Chelf put up big numbers for the Carroll defense, leading a stacked Southlake team with 9 total tackles and an interception. It is also worth noting that on a team full of explosive athletes, Chelf returns kicks for the Dragons. Against Abilene he had 54 total yards on 2 kick returns. Chelf may find a way onto the field next season for Purdue. He is an explosive hitter and will come into college after playing for one of the best high school coaching staffs in the nation. I think he makes the two deeps at safety and will be an absolute missile in kick coverage. Hazel and company did an excellent job of spotting the underrated Chelf early in the process. Look for Andy to move up in the recruiting rankings as the season progresses.

Wyatt Cook(LB): Cook and his McDonogh Eagles certainly don't shy away from top notch competition, this time going on the road to La Salle College High School in Pennsylvania, and dropping the game 20 - 31. I can't seem to locate Cook's stats (if anyone can help me out, feel free to post the info in the comments) against La Salle. Cook is another guy that I could see coming in right away at the linebacker position and competing for early playing time. Like Chelf, he plays for an excellent high school program that is known for producing division 1 athletes. He is already a big kid at 6'2 225, and I anticipate him hitting the field in West Lafayette at around 235-240. Cook will be in the mix at middle linebacker from day one, and will contribute on special teams. If nothing else, Purdue's kick coverage should be better next year with the athletes in this class.

Sawyer Dawson(LB): Dawson's Plant City team dropped its second game in a row, this time falling to Bloomingdale 20 -24. Dawson had a lackluster game only posting 2 tackles and 1 pass break up. It will be interesting to see where Dawson ends up playing at Purdue. At 6'2 190 I could see him playing strong safety or outside linebacker. If Dawson slots in at strong safety he might be able to avoid a redshirt next season. If he slots in at linebacker, he will probably spend next season in the weight room. My prediction: redshirt.

Robert Ennis(RB): Robert had about as terrible of a Friday and Saturday as possible. First he was a healthy scratch in  Millville's 8 - 58 embarrassment at the hands of St. Joseph, for what I assume were disciplinary reasons. Then Ennis went into full mental meltdown mode on Saturday night and was arrested and charged with aggravated battery (a felony I believe) for punching a girl in the nose after a beauty pageant at his high school Saturday night. While the details of the altercation have not surfaced yet, it's pretty much agreed upon that Ennis slugged the girl in the face during an argument. That sound you hear Robert, that's the sound of your talent being flushed down toilet. I hope it was worth it. I see Ennis being released from his verbal commitment and going JuCo in hopes that a D1 team is able to overlook his transgression in another 2 years.

Tario Fuller (RB): Lanier, in only it's third year of existence as a school, continues it's surprise run through some of the elite high school programs in Georgia. This time the upstart Lanier Longhorns went on the road and knocked off Loganville 28 - 14. Fuller, and Lanier in general, had a hard time getting anything going on the ground against Loganville, recording 30 yards on 11 carries. However, Fuller was able to punch the ball into the endzone for Lanier, and did put up 33 receiving yards on 2 catches, highlighted by a 31 yard screen pass. There is going to be a logjam of young talent at running back next season with Byars, Green, Knox, Yancy, Fuller, Jones, and Worship all competing in camp for carries. I see Fuller as a redshirt next year, but he could sneak into the rotation because of his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield.

Markell Jones (RB): Jones and Columbus East continued to mow down their laughably bad competition, this time beating up on a hapless Floyd Central team 67 - 7. Jones only needed 16 carries to put up 245 yards and 5 touchdowns. At this point, is it even fun to beat up on teams that have no business being on the same field as Columbus East. Does Jones celebrate when he scores a touchdown or does he just yawn and jog back to the sidelines. It would be interesting to see how a player like Jones would look playing for Fuller's Lanier team. Maybe Jones is the real deal and a superstar, and maybe Jones is a good player on a good team playing against bad players on bad teams. Next year Jones will have a shot to crack the 2 deep at running back, but he's going to have to adjust to not having gaping holes to run through and going against players actually fast enough to catch him and strong enough to tackle him. Playing against such weak competition in high school will make the transition that much harder for Jones. I see him needing a year to get accustomed to other players being on his level athletically.

Ben Makowski (Snapper/Snapping Savant): Penn's record remained unblemished on the season after a 42 - 19 victory over South Bend Washington. The game was a little closer than the score indicated, with Penn scoring 21 points in the 4th quarter to pull away. Ben continued his pinpoint snapping accuracy again this week. At one point, the South Bend Washington players stopped mid play and began a slow clap in appreciation of Makowski unbelievable mastery of his chosen skill. Watching Makowski snap has to be similar to watching Einstein work through a physics problem. Ben Makowski will be the unquestioned starter at the long snapping position the moment he steps onto the Purdue campus. If there is a future All American in this class, it's got to be Makowski.

Matt McCann(OT): Bishop Chatard defeated Noblesville 24 - 14 in a game featuring two Indiana heavy weights. McCann and the Bishop Chatard line dominated the line of scrimmage, allowing the Trojans to rack up 344 total rushing yards on 65 attempts. B.C. only went to the air 6 times on Friday night. Noblesville couldn't stop the run, so Bishop Chatard kept running the ball. It is my hope that Purdue has come far enough along on the offensive line that McCann is able to redshirt next season and work on his pass blocking and hit the weights to turn some bad weight into good weight. I'm not saying that McCann can't pass block, it's just that he doesn't have to do it very often. He will eventually start at right tackle for the Boilermakers, but it won't be next year.

Joe "The Show" Schopper(P): Cathedral dropped its second straight game against an out of state opponent, this time falling to Trinity (KY) 31 - 19. You can't knock Cathedral's scheduling, but you can knock their performance. They are currently 1-4 but are still raked in the Top 10 in Indiana. I can't find the box score for the game (post in the comments if you have it) but I'm just going to assume Schopper had another solid game. Next season, Schopper will get to watch Thomas Meadows do his thing, while becoming accustomed to Ben Makowski's laser beam snaps.

Elijah Sindelar(QB): Much like Markell Jones, Elijah Sindelar really doesn't play a team that can compete with his Caldwell County team, and subsequently, he puts up obscene numbers. This time Sindelar put up 345 yards and 5 touchdowns in a half of work, leading Caldwell County to a 55-18 victory over Ballard Memorial. Sindelar continues his assault on the Kentucky record books, and should easily break the record for Touchdowns in a career at this pace. He would have probably broken it already if he didn't spend so much time on the bench in the second half of games. Next season, Sindelar will step into the unsettled quarterback situation and should be afforded every chance to step up and claim the position. That being said, he will have two experienced (not that it has been good experience) players in front of him in Etling and Appleby and the talented Blough will be coming off of his redshirt (unless Purdue decides to toss him into the mix this year). In an ideal world, Sindelar redshirts, learns the offense, and adjusts to the speed of college football next year.

Peyton Truitt (OT): West Lafayette was overpowered by a talented Rensselaer Central team 17 - 40. W.L. kept it close in the first half, but was outclassed by R.C. in the second half. Truitt's offensive line had a hard time keeping R.C. at bay, conceding 3 sacks, and only producing 133 yards on 39 carries. Truitt is going to need some time to hit the weight room and adjust to the college game and is destined for a redshirt next year.

Ike Warren (DB): Warren's John Tyler team flexed its considerable muscle in the 52 -17 destruction of a decent Whitehouse team. Warren adjusted nicely to playing with his right hand in a cast for the first time, recording 4 tackles and an interception. On a somewhat distressing note, Warren will once again be in Austin this weekend to watch the Longhorns take on the Baylor Bears. It should be an interesting game, so I don't begrudge him the experience, but he seems to be spending a good bit of time in Austin this year. If Warren makes it to Purdue I expect him to contribute day 1, and could win the starting cornerback spot being vacated by Antoine Lewis.

Richard Worship (RB): Worship missed his second game after injuring his back and watched his hapless Valley Forge team drop another game. This time Solon administered the beating to the tune of 13 - 45. Valley Forge can compete with a stud like Worship in the backfield, but just doesn't have the talent to hang with other teams when he is on the bench. If Worship can recover from his back injury (all indications are that he will make a 100% recovery) he will be in the mix at running back next year. At 6'1, 245 Worship may be able to find a job as a short yardage back. I don't foresee him redshirting unless his back injury lingers.

Basketball Recruit:

Grant Weatherford: Hamilton Heights defeated a miserable Taylor team 58 - 0 on Friday. Hamilton Heights didn't need Weatherford's typical super man effort to win this one, so they gave him a break. Weatherford recorded 14 yards on 1 carry and 65 yards and a touchdown on 2 receptions. Weatherford also had had one kickoff return for 76 yards and a touchdown and two punt returns for 40 total yards. He contributed 6 tackles, 1 pass defense, and forced 3 fumbles (I think that's what the caus stat in MaxPreps indicates) to aid the Hamilton Heights cause. Weatherford will be used as a role player and defensive stopper for Purdue's basketball team next year.