2017 National Signing Day Primer: Where Does Purdue Stand?

A week from today Purdue will officially sign Jeff Brohm’s first recruiting class. It won’t be an earth-shattering one. According to Rivals, it is currently 69^th Nationally and last in the Big Ten. Part of that comes from the sheer size of it. At 17 members only Wisconsin has fewer commitments. We also have no 4-star commitments per rivals (though according to ESPN T.J. Jallow and Tyler Hamilton are 4-stars). It is only slightly ahead of Hazell’s 2016 class (74^th nationally, 13^th in the Big Ten) and his 2015 class (71^st nationally, 14^th Big Ten), but it is at least slightly better. There are still some decent targets out there, too.

According to our tracking grid there are 6 scholarships left. This is a very inexact science and has a few notes:

· LaPerion Perry is on it, but not tracked. GBI (the authority we defer to here) has said they expect him to decommit, but he is still on the committed list for now. If he signs that would be five spots.

· Mykelti Williams, the former 4-star out of high school that went to Notre Dame, then went JuCo last year, is expected to sign with Purdue. He hasn’t made anything official yet, however, so he is like Perry: on the list, but not counting against the scholarships yet.

Officially, the following players have already signed and are enrolled:

Tyler Hamilton – This is the 5’9” 4-star receiver from South Carolina. He is a true freshman and will go through spring practice at a position of desperate need.

Kai Higgins – Higgins is a JuCo defensive end with three years of eligibility remaining. If anything, he will be key depth this coming season.

Jalen Jackson – Jackson is another freshman at a position of great need. It will help that he can go through spring practice and conditioning, but a 260 pound true freshman offensive guard in the Big Ten could be a disaster. Expect a redshirt as he bulks up.

T.J. Jallow – The 4-star JuCo safety is one of the top JuCo players in the country per ESPN. He has two years of eligibility and will be an immediate impact.

Ethan Smart – The JuCo offensive lineman has two years of eligibility and at 6’6” 290 pounds was brought in to battle for a starting spot immediately. That makes spring practice allt he more important for him.

So who gets the last 6 spots?

Assuming that six is the number of scholarships available, here are my guesses for who gets them.

Mykelti Williams – As stated, GBI said he is basically a lock without an official announcement. He would have three years of eligibility remaining too. Williams and Jallow at safety would be an immediate and significant upgrade in the middle of the secondary.

Corey Winfield – Weather delayed his official visit, but signs look good for him to commit when he comes this weekend. Winfield is a graduate transfer from Syracuse and would only have a single year at Purdue, but he is a multi-year starter and would be a significant upgrade at the position while younger players develop.

Preston Mixon – The offensive tackle has a home visit this week and looks like a strong candidate for Purdue. He was recruited heavily by Brohm at Western Kentucky.

Daviyon Nixon – Nixon visited Purdue this past weekend despite being committed to Northern Illinois. He is a good looking defensive end target and has enough size to play immediately if needed.

Isaac Zico – Purdue needs a wide receiver in the worst way and the JuCo kid would be an excellent pickup. His name also sounds like a Bond villain.

Sterling Jones – we need a linebacker for depth purposes and Jones, a 3-star middle linebacker, would be an excellent choice.

Once again, that is mere speculation as we close in on signing day. We’ll certainly have more later.