Saturday Roundtable: Football Newcomers

If it’s Saturday it must be the roundtable. Where I ask our staff a question and share their answers with you. This week? Back to football.

Other than Hudson Card, which football newcomer are you most excited to see out on the field this season?

Jumbo Heroes:

Excepting Hudson Card makes sense to me, which is why I asked the question this way, because he’s the obvious number one choice. I wanted the staff to have to dig a little deeper. The QB position will always be king at Purdue and Card is of course no difference.

The Purdue defensive backfield was a huge question mark coming into this season. Ryan Walters went out and basically changed the whole room. It was sort of a marvel to see. There are a number of names that stand out, but I’m anxious to see Penn State transfer Marquis Wilson. Penn State is known to land good athletes, good football players, and specifically a good defense. Purdue needed more athletes and just all around solid players in their defensive backfield and I think they found one in Wilson.

Ryan:

I’m pretty sure I have to go to the other side of the ball where Ryan Walters has brought in tons of talent. Some of the most intriguing newcomers are DB’s: Penn St transfer Marquis Wilson, Markevious Brown and Braxton Myers from Ole Miss, Salim Turner-Muhammad from Stanford, and Anthony Brown from Arkansas. All of these guys can provide sparks to the defensive backfield and I cannot wait to see them in Ryan Walter’s system. In case you’re wondering, Walters has a pretty good track record with DB’s. I’m excited for all of these guys but I think I’m most excited to see what Braxton Myers can do. He’s got the skill set and frame to be a big ball hawk for Purdue, which is always great to see on the field. Drew and Jed mentioned in his commitment article that he has a safety mentality in a cornerback. What’s not to love? September 2nd cannot come fast enough!

Gabi:

Normally I’d say an offensive position here because let’s be honest, offense is just more exciting. But I’m really excited about Braxton Myers; the four-star transfer from Ole Miss who will most likely be a starter for the Boilermakers from day one. Myers uses his high IQ to help stop the run as well read receivers. His size and speed allows him to time the receivers and jump routes quickly. He was largely considered one of the best cornerbacks in his 2023 class and I can’t wait to see him tear apart opposing offenses.

Jed:

I am most excited to watch Marquis Wilson. A transfer CB from PSU who’s athletic ability allowed him to split time at WR as well over his career. Now that he seems to be focused solely on CB, and with the need for a lockdown player at that position, Wilson is going to need to be good if HC Ryan Walters defense is going to be good in year one. Wilson can also provide a lift in the punt return game as well, which Purdue fans know was a scene of boredom over the course of Jeff Brohm’s tenure even with Rondale Moore and Charlie Jones being on the roster for 4 of the 6 years.