Purdue Football: Ja’Quez Cross Commits

Ja’Quez Cross, a 3*(82) 5’10, 170 pound athlete, out of Fordyce, Arkansas committed to Purdue’s 2021 recruiting class this morning.

Cross, a former South Dakota State commit, also holds offers from Arkansas State and Akron and was gaining traction with several P5 schools.

What He Brings to the Table

As you can see from his highlights, Cross is an explosive athlete. No one is exactly sure what position he plays, in terms of his college prospects, with different recruiting services listing him as a safety, wide receiver, running back and athlete.

For my money, I think he starts his Purdue career at running back. Purdue could use a change of pace back and receiving threat out of the backfield and Cross fits the bill. He’s averaging over 10 yards a carry this season and has put the ball in the endzone 11 times thus far. In addition to his exploits as a running back, he has collected 21 receptions for 546 yards and 7 touchdowns.

I also cover Kansas State, and they’ve been killing teams with their quick running backs catching passes out of the backfield. I’d love to see Purdue incorporate that into their already devastating passing attack.

Throw in the fact that Chris Barclay was his lead recruiter and running back seems like his likely destination.

Overall

Cross is from a tiny town in Arkansas and plays 2A football. I wouldn’t get too caught up in his rankings because those guys tend to be under rated. His film looks good and I think he can fill an important role for the Boilermakers moving forward.