Recruiting News and Notes

This is Gold and Back Express’ spot for assorted bits of Purdue news, analysis, and so on.

PURDUE FOOTBALL

• Purdue brought in 29 players from the transfer portal in the first window. Expect the Boiler staff to be almost as active when the second window opens April 16-25. How active? It would not be a surprise to see as many as 20 players from the portal … with almost as many leaving.

• One position for sure the staff will import is a kicker.

“Our plans right now is to go find a kicker in the spring, hopefully an experienced guy through the portal to come compete for the job,” said special teams coach James Shibest. The only scholarship kicker on the roster now is Spencer Porath. A walk-on has been added to help in spring ball … and perhaps beyond.

• Big Gus Hartwig has been busy training for Purdue’s Day on March 5 at X3 in Fort Myers, Fla. What does he think NFL teams like about him?

“I’m big enough measure 6-5, 312, so I kind of have that ability to go play center and guard,” said Hartwig. “I think I’ll test well enough athletically, being athletic enough to play center, but then also big enough to play guard. So, I think it’s kind of having that versatility will give me some value.”

• Purdue held an early morning tryout from walk-ons on Valentines Day. It sounds like Purdue added some pieces to get through spring ball. Areas of need on that front: Kicker and offensive line.

• Interesting note pertaining to the three-year contracts for OC Josh Henson and DC Mike Scherer.

Each is entitled to the full value of their contracts if they are terminated by Purdue without cause. But both deals feature mitigation language that they must make “good faith, reasonable, continued and diligent efforts” to obtain another coaching position. Their new salary would offset Purdue’s financial obligation.

If either departs for another job, they would owe Purdue 100 percent of their remaining contract value through Dec. 31, 60 percent through the final game of the 2026 regular season and 25 percent through the final game of the 2027 season. Neither coach has a buyout for leaving except if: Odom is no longer the coach, if they leave to become a Division I head coach, or if they take an NFL job after the 2026 season.

• RB coach Lamar Conard–the lone holdover from Ryan Walters‘ staff–got a bump from $260,000 to $300,000.

• Purdue added some guys from tryouts. A few guys that had already been on the team:
-Kaleb Richmond
-Hayden Timosciek
-Ian Ramage
-A’Veyawn Madry
-Jack Weeter
-Nicky Myer
4 or 5 others, too.

• DL Blake Smythe of Franklin (Ind.) High is set for an OV: June 13

PURDUE BASKETBALL

• Spoke today with P.J. Thompson about some offensive topics and he mentioned times when Braden Smith “tries to do too much.” When it was pointed out that those moments have sometimes aligned with Trey Kaufman-Renn‘s second foul and ensuing exit from the game, Thompson intimated Purdue has been less set-oriented and more dependent on motion and that they can be better there, but also that players need to be “ready to shoot,” that “sometimes we pass up a good shot, then don’t get another.”

Defense and foul disparities have really been Purdue’s problem; offense, not so much.

“But our group has to be better, and when we turn the ball over, when we put our defense in a position where they have live ball turnovers like that and can score off them, we’re not gonna win because we’re not we’re not set up that way. We need to help our defense and our defense has to help our offense.

“The last three games we haven’t done that.”

• As mentioned earlier, Myles Colvin is OK after getting walloped by an illegal-but-uncalled screen at Michigan State.

I didn’t put this in the Review the other just to draw the line somewhere, but this was bad also, Jase Richardson pushing screening Caleb Furst into the shooter with two hands.

• Some wild numbers that were passed along to me today: The past three games, foul totals have averaged 21.3-13.3 in opponents’ favor. Purdue is getting nothing from the bonus, which it’s reached only three times during the losing streak. Opponents have shot 71 free throws to Purdue’s 40. All these numbers are departures from the 24 games prior.

Purdue’s defensive problems are part of this, but as the inane dialogue around Zach Edey reminded us, style of play shapes foul exposure.

That makes this make even less sense, because on offense, Purdue plays through the most physical post scorer in the Big Ten and a guard who puts more pressure on defenses than any other. On defense, Purdue is not a high-pressure defense, but rather a containment-minded one. It struggles against the dribble when isolated, but there have been a ton of calls against Purdue on rebounds, where Purdue does have to overachieve to overcome some limitations, and minor hand-combat infractions.

It has been odd. (BN)

• For the story I was to do today on Braden Smith and the career assists record, a look back at his very first. (I couldn’t get Smith today so story will have to wait.)

He needs eight at IU to break the record.