Purdue Football Recruiting: Deion Burks Commits!

Deion Burks, a 5’10, 175, 3* (85) receiver out of Belleville High School in Belleville, Michigan committed to Purdue yesterday over listed offers from Boston College, Indiana, Iowa State, Kentucky, Rutgers and Cincinatti. Burkes is rated as the Burkes 980th overall player in the nation, the 139th wide receiver, and the 32nd ranked player in Michigan.He is the 8th commitment for Purdue’s 2021 class that currently ranks 12th in the Big10 and 43rd Nationally.

247 Sports National Recruiting Analyst Allen Trieu projects Burks a power-5 starter and compares him to former Oklahoma Sooner and current New York Giant Sterling Shephard. Trieu says Burks is, “ Overall, a very skilled prospect who has good intangibles and has made clutch plays in big games. Should be an early impact guy in the slot but should not be viewed as only a slot as he has been effective as an outside receiver in high school. Projects as a playmaker at the high-major level.”

Deion participated in The Opening Regional about a year ago and clocked a 4.14 shuttle time and 35 inch vertical jump. He also performed well at the Cincinnati Under Armour All-American Camp last summer, helping solidify him as one of the regions top slot wide receivers. As a Junior at Belleville, Burks put up 842 all-purpose yards and 13 touchdowns for one of the better programs in Michigan.

Burks is interested in competing for playing time early in his career with the impending departure of Rondale Moore at the slot position.

What it Means for Purdue Recruiting

Burks is the second wide receiver commitment for what could be a small 2021 class. The Boilermakers continue to prioritize recruiting in the state of Michigan, with Burkes joining fellow Michigan natives Maliq Carr, and Abdur-Rahmann Yassen from the 2020 class at wide receiver. The Boilermakers have also added Antony Romphf, Marvin Grant, Jalen Graham, Nalin Fox, and Spencer Hostege from the state of Michigan in recent classes.

Burks is teammates with 5* defensive tackle Damon Payne and 4* outside linebacker Jamari Buddin, both of whom have Purdue offers, with Buddin being the most realistic recruit for the Boilermakers. Having Burks in the mix can only help Purdue’s chances with both recruits.

In terms of numbers, I think Burkes will be the last receiver taken in the class, but I said that about Preston Terrell as well. This most likely takes 4* East St. Louis slot receiver Dominc Lovett off the table.