Recruiting News and Notes

Welcome to “BOILING OVER,” GoldandBlack.com’s weekly information clearinghouse, a spot for assorted bits of Purdue news, analysis and so on.

PURDUE BASKETBALL AND RECRUITING

Purdue had four-star point guard Tay Kinney on campus Monday and Tuesday for an official visit as it keeps up its pursuit of one of the top guards in the 2026 class, the hope being he’d come and step right in after Braden Smith leaves.

This will be a national recruitment for a player who projects as an instant-impact player and possibly an early-entry NBA prospect, though that’s a long way down the line of it.

The money part of it looms over every recruitment like this and remains a topic for down the line once some clarity comes to revenue sharing this spring. Worry about that later.

In the meantime, Purdue has done very well getting Kinney interested. P.J. Thompson has formed a great relationship with him, by every account, and Purdue does now have a really strong lineage of great guards to point to and an offensive philosophy that has really featured them. Purdue generally doesn’t promise starting jobs to incoming freshmen, but with players like Kinney, sometimes it’s just understood.

That’s where the money could come in, too. Early playing time — or better said, early opportunities to star — get you to the NBA faster and that’s where the real money is. As is when it comes to money Braden Smith is not standing on the street corner holding out a styrofoam cup trying to scrounge up lunch money. We think he’s probably in the vicinity of high six figures, though those numbers could change as the new system comes into play for future recruits. The developmental track record with players like Jaden Ivey and Smith is a sell, too, so it’s not just about the early opportunity to be on the floor but also to be coached well, empowered, etc.

That’s Purdue’s case, at least. This one will be a knife fight, though, as recruitments at this level often are, but you never know. Based on our observations of him in the spring and summer, he knows how good he is and that sometimes makes the backdrop of secondary importance. If you’re good, you’re good no matter where you play. Kinney has struck me as a basketball-minded guy that it’s really important to who thinks the game like a grown-up and carries himself like an adult. Purdue often jibes with those types of personalities. It has a bunch of them right now.

Purdue’s next 2026 official visit should be Bo Ogden for the USC game.

Our sense here is that Tennessee waking up on Trey Thompson has hit the reset button on him in terms of an early commitment, but Purdue’s message of not living in the portal could resonate there. Tennessee will live in the portal, as the whole SEC will. Purdue’s early prioritization probably won’t be forgotten either.

But we have no reason to believe anything will happen with anyone any time soon in terms of commitments.

Once Purdue stops playing games every 2.7 days, we’ll try to circle back with a few of these guys to get some updates and stuff. (BN)

PURDUE BASKETBALL

• Mike spoke to Daniel Jacobsen about his recovery and will have a full story next week, but long story short, the freshman has returned to light athletic activity and seems on pace to be where he needs to be come the off-season. Purdue is not hurrying this and will keep him out of contact/practice the rest of the season.

The goal is as it’s been all along: For him to eat and build strength. At last check, Jacobsen was around 230-235, a target goal being 250ish. We think he was sub-220 when he arrived.

• Purdue is taking Saturday and Sunday off to get caught up on its NCAA-mandated days off. Wednesday was basically just film and light shooting. This scheduling nonsense is real, folks, and we’ll see how it manifests itself again tonight. (staff)

PURDUE FOOTBALL RECRUITING

• As we told you earlier, 2025 RB Cornelius Warren took an OV last weekend. He had been committed to UNLV but de-committed after Barry Odom took the Purdue job. Houston, Baylor, Oregon and Texas Tech are among his offers. He’s a smaller, speedy back. Purdue already has two RBs signed in the Class of 2025: Ziaire Stevens and Jaron Thomas. Stevens is on campus.

“It was great, enjoyed it. I liked how they planned on using me and I liked the staff,” Warren told GoldandBlack.com.

• OL Marcus Mbow tells us he “should be” getting an invite to the NFL Combine, which runs February 29-March 3 in Indianapolis. Offensive linemen work out on the last day, March 3.

• Purdue will play host to roughly 75 recruits in the Classes of 2026 and 2027 for a Junior Day on Saturday. Following are the key visitors to know.

2026 OL Landry Brede, Mentor (Ohio) HS
2026 LB Mykul Campbell, Decatur Central (Indianapolis)
2026 DB Farel Carter, Decatur Central (Indianapolis)
2026 OL Nolan Cicero, Crown Point (Ind)
2026 DE Tristan Comer, Freeland (Mich.)
2026 S Gavin Day, Faith Lutheran (Las Vegas)
2026 WR Shawn Fishwick, Xenia (Ohio)
2026 LB Trevor Gibbs, Crown Point (Ind.)
2028 QB Chase Grove, Cathedral (Indianapolis)
2026 DE Charlie Jilek, Portage Central (Portage, Mich.)
2026 RB Braydon Johnson, Lakota West (West Chester, Ohio)
2026 DB Cato June, Westfield (Ind.)
2026 DB Deacon King, Westfield (Ind.)
2026 TE Tyler Klaner, Boonville (Ind.)
2026 LB Parker Maiers, Brebeuf (Indianapolis)
2026 QB Rocco Marriott, Platte County (Platte City, Mo.)
2026 OL Zach Rahm, Clay HS (Oregon, Ohio)
2026 CB Emoni Smith, Westland HS (Galloway, Ohio)
2026 ATH Lesroy Tittle, Nazareth Academy (La Grange Park, Ill.)
2026 RB Izaiah Wright, Oscar Carlson HS (Rockwood, Mich.)
2027 RB Xavier Dangerfield, Cathedral (Indianapolis)
2027 QB Oscar Frye, Brownsburg (Ind.)
2027 QB Jack Sorgi, Tri-West (Lizton, Ind.)

• Oscar Frye is a name to watch among the 2027 visitors, an in-state QB from Brownsburg with offers from Louisville, Toledo and Miami (Ohio) already.

“The new coaching staff has been great to me so far at their time at Purdue, so I’m definitely looking forward to talking more with them and just being able to learn more about the football program and the school itself are some things I’d say,” Frye told GoldandBlack.com.

• Yes, 2026 DB Cato June is the son of the former Colts DB of the same name. And 2027 QB Jack Sorgi is the son of former Colts QB Jim Sorgi, who also is a standout baseball player.

• The highest rated On3 2026 in-state visitor is Trevor Gibbs of Crown Point (No. 6). The other Top 10 Indiana visitor is DB Deacon King (No. 8). The former staff recruited King hard.