Running back D.J. Knox could be a breakout player in West Lafayette, but how much can he help an underwhelming Purdue roster?
By Charlie Green
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Purdue football has questions at nearly every position on its offense as it enters 2015.
Oddly enough, however, the coaching staff may feel most sure about a running back with zero career carries.
“We have a guy by the name of Dexter Knox, be ready to write some things up on Dexter (also known as D.J.) because he’s pretty special,” head coach Darrell Hazell said during Big Ten media days. “He’s an uncommon back with the ball in his hands.”
The sophomore back is listed at just 5-7 and around 200 pounds, but his coaches and teammates laud him as an absolute workhorse in the gym and even a “freak of nature,” as cornerback Frankie Williams put it.
To Williams, his off-season workout partner, Knox prepares like he constantly has something to prove.
“He’s just a guy who’s excited about competing; he loves being the underdog,” Williams said. “Coming out of high school with little offers, he’s hungry for success.”
Both Williams and Hazell said Knox put up 410 pounds on the bench press in a recent workout — and Williams made an odd but entertaining comparison to the short but stout tailback.
“He’s like a squirrel on steroids,” Williams said. “Because he’s so quick, and he’s powerful, he can literally do it all.”
Knox might have to do it all to, for the sake of Purdue’s offense. At quarterback, junior Austin Appleby recently got the nod after making seven starts a season ago, when he threw for 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions with a 52 percent completion rate.
The graduation of running back Akeem Hunt may hurt the team more in the passing game; he led the team in grabs in 2014.
Senior Danny Anthrop is back after leading the team in yards with 616. He’ll be much needed by the Appleby in the air attack. The offensive line isn’t great but is deep enough to provide a solid front line as opposed to last year, when injuries made it a liability.
Defensively, the team ranked 10th in the Big Ten last year in yards per game, giving up an average of 416.0.
Williams is a bright spot in the Boilermaker secondary after earning second-team All Big Ten honors in 2014. His man coverage skills, tackling, and punt-return ability make him invaluable on a team that needs all the help it can get.
Overall, the team will likely rely heavily on the run and hope that its defense can vastly improve from 2014.
Purdue could be in for another rough season, while hoping that Hazell’s program takes a developmental step forward.
“We put on 420 pounds of lean muscle mass since January, which you know, that’s a good thing for us,” Hazell said. “We’re starting to look the part.”
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