Purdue football national signing day: Meet the Boilermakers' 2022 recruiting class

Today is the opening of the early signing period and high school football players across the country are putting pen to paper, choosing their college destinations.

Here is a closer look at Purdue's 2022 recruiting class. We'll update as the signings are officially announced by the school.

More: Purdue football adds two receivers from transfer portal

In his own words: What Jeff Brohm said about key pieces to 2022 recruiting class

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QB Brady Allen

Hometown (High School): Fort Branch, Ind. (Gibson Southern)

Height/Weight: 6-5/210

Rating: 4 stars; No. 227 in nation, No. 6 in state, No. 15 at position

Note: A finalist for IndyStar Mr. Football, Allen led Gibson Southern to a Class 3A state championship and 14-1 record as a senior as he completed 68.7% of his passes for 4,253 yards and 58 touchdowns with six interceptions. Allen also rushed for 266 yards and six TDs. For his career, he passed for 11,918 yards and set a state career record with 149 passing TDs.

Doyel: Who the heck is Brady Allen? You’ll need to know, because he’ll do big things at Purdue.

S Jordan Buchanan

Hometown (High School): Suwanee, Ga. (North Gwinnett)

Height/Weight: 6-0/165

Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 126 in state, No. 106 at position

Note: The son of former Indianapolis Colts CB Ray Buchanan -- a former Louisville teammate of Jeff Brohm -- Jordan Buchanan picked Purdue over offers from Kentucky, Pitt and LSU.

DL Nic Caraway

Hometown (High School): Bryan, Texas (Bryan)

Height/Weight: 6-3/240

Rating: 3 stars; No. 872 in nation, No. 120 in state, No. 117 at position

Note: Caraway is the latest Purdue recruit to be selected to play in the All-America Bowl in San Antonio. “I can’t wait to show people how underrated I am and how much of a sleeper I am and how explosive I am and how well I read things,” Caraway told 247Sports' Steve Wiltfong. “I look forward to playing against all the talented guys in my class.”

OT Vince Carpenter

Hometown (High School): Red Bank, N.J. (Red Bank Catholic)

Height/Weight: 6-5/275

Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 27 in state, No. 128 at position

Note: Carpenter was named a first-team All-Shore selection by the Asbury Park Press and helped Red Bank Catholic average 32.7 points. The Caseys had one of the Shore's most balanced offenses. They rushed for 2,464 yards for an average of 205.3 a game and threw for 1,800 yards for an average of 150 yards a game. Carpenter's offers included Buffalo, Columbia, Connecticut, Dartmouth, East Carolina, Houston, Kent State, Kentucky and UMass.

DL JP Deeter

Hometown (High School): Manvel, Texas (Manvel)

Height/Weight: 6-4/265

Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 195 in state, No. 163 at position

Note: Deeter plays defensive tackle and defensive end for Manvel and had offers from Memphis, Oregon State, Stanford and Washington State along with others. He's ranked No, 49 on VYPE's Top 100 list for Houston-area players.

WR Curtis Deville

Hometown (High School): Iowa, La. (Iowa)

Height/Weight: 6-1/180

Rating: 3 stars; No. 809 in nation, No. 36 in state, No. 121 at position

Note: As a senior, Deville caught 34 passes for 763 yards and eight touchdowns, rushed for 944 yards (16 yards per carry) and 13 touchdowns and returned a punt and a kickoff for scores. He also runs track, finishing third in the state's Class 3A meet in the long jump and is a member of the school's 4x100 relay team. Deville had offers from Florida State, Western Kentucky, Louisville, Tulane, North Texas and Southern, according to 247sports.com. Receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard and special teams coordinator and defensive assistant Marty Biagi were Deville's main recruiters.

DB Joseph Jefferson II

Hometown (High School): Indianapolis (Pike)

Height/Weight: 6-1/187

Rating: N/A; N/A in nation; N/A in state; N/A at position

Note: An All-Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference selection, Jefferson is the son of former Colts CB Joseph Jefferson, who played with Indianapolis from 2002-05. He committed to the Boilers a few days ago and strongly considered his dad's alma mater, Western Kentucky.

TE Charlie Kenrich

Hometown (High School): Middletown, Ohio (Lakota East)

Height/Weight: 6-4/220

Rating: 3 stars; No. 751 in nation, No. 22 in state, No. 52 athlete

Note: A three-year starter for Thunderhawks coach Rick Haynes, Kenrich did a little bit of everything. In the triple option, he ran for 492 yards and five touchdowns and caught 15 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively he had 32 tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He also was the team's punter in addition to being rushing and receiving leader three straight seasons.

TE Max Klare

Hometown (High School): Cincinnati, Ohio (St. Xavier)

Height/Weight: 6-4/225

Rating: 3 stars; No. 1,148 in nation; No. 38 in state, No. 69 at position.

Note: An honorable mention Division I All-Ohio pick, Klare was a former Duke commit and committed to the Boilermakers on Tuesday. He was on an official visit to Purdue last weekend. He was also named to the second-team All-Southwest Ohio All-District this past season. He was ranked No. 15 in the Cincinnati Enquirer's Top 22 players from the Greater Cincinnati area.

RB Kentrell Marks

Hometown (High School): Cleveland, Ohio (Valley Forge)

Height/Weight: 6-1/180

Rating: 3 stars; No. 502 in nation, No. 17 in state, No. 38 at position

Note: A second-team Division II All-Ohio pick, Marks rushed for 1,470 yards and scored 23 touchdowns as a junior, was named the Great Lakes Conference Player of the Year. and was on Cleveland.com's preseason Mr. Football preseason watch list. He chose Purdue over offers from Kentucky, Michigan State, Iowa State and West Virginia.

LB Domanick Moon

Hometown (High School): Fort Wayne, Ind. (Snider)

Height/Weight: 6-2/218

Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 22 in state, No. 168 at position

Note: Moon led Snider to an 8-2 season as he made 86 tackles, including eight for a loss. Moon was a member of the Indiana Football Coaches Association Top-50 all-state team as a junior and senior.

OT Andre Oben

Hometown (High School): Jersey City, N.J. (St. Peters Prep)

Height/Weight: 6-4/280

Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 26 in state, No. 127 at position

Note: A first-team All-Super Football Conference pick, Oben has good bloodlines. His dad, Roman Oben started 130 games in the NFL and won a Super Bowl with the N.Y. Giants. Andre's older brother, R.J., plays at Duke. Roman Oben was a teammate of Purdue coach Jeff Brohm at Louisville. Andre had a Power 5 offer from Syracuse but Ivy League programs were showing interest.

DL Mariere Omonode

Hometown (High School): West Lafayette, Ind. (West Lafayette)

Height/Weight: 6-1/260

Stars/Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 23 in state, No. 191 at position

Note: A defensive tackle, Omonode finished the 2021 season with 65 tackles, including 19 for loss for Class 3A top-ranked West Lafayette. West Lafayette lost to Brebeuf in the first round of the sectional. Brebeuf and fellow Purdue recruit Joe Strickland. "He practices at such a high level. We tell our kids if they have any aspirations of playing college football they need to watch Mo practice," West Lafayette coach Shane Fry told the Journal & Courier. "He has no other gear – he’s 100% all the time. That’s what it takes at the next level... He does have the measurables," Fry said. "If you’re undersized, that’s one thing but his speed, his strength is going to match up with anybody coming into Purdue right now. The prototypical height is not there but he has all the confidence in the world." Omonode picked the Boilermakers over Arkansas State.

ATH Roman Pitre

Hometown (High School): Baton Rouge, La. (University Lab)

Height/Weight: 6-5/215

Rating: 3 stars; No. 858 in nation, No. 38 in state, No. 63 athlete

Note: Likely suited for linebacker, Pitre had offers from Arizona State, Baylor, Colorado and Louisiana among other schools. His first offer came from Virginia.

OL Malachi Preciado

Hometown (High School): New Orleans, La. (Warren Easton)

Height/Weight: 6-2/265

Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 55 in state, No. 82 at position

Note: Preciado was named first-team All-District in 2020 and is projected to play center. He chose the Boilermakers over offers from Columbia, Harvard, Southern Miss, Marshall and Louisiana-Monroe.

WR Zion Steptoe

Hometown (High School): Frisco, Texas (Memorial)

Height/Weight: 6-0/170

Rating: 3 stars; No. 843 in nation, No. 117 in state, No. 126 at position

Note: Steptoe was ranked No. 58 in the Dallas Morning News' preseason top 100 and in his final two prep seasons, Steptoe caught 68 passes for 1,257 yards and 12 touchdowns, according to MaxPreps. Steptoe, a first-team all-district performer, was originally committed to Utah.

DL Joe Strickland

Hometown (High School): Indianapolis (Brebeuf Jesuit)

Height/Weight: 6-4/250

Rating: 4 stars; No. 249 in nation, No. 7 in state, No. 31 at position

Note: Strickland led Brebeuf to the Class 3A state finals and finished with five tackles, three for a loss, and two sacks in the title game, including a safety of future Boilermakers teammate Brady Allen. He chose Purdue over Indiana and Stanford. Strickland’s relationship with defensive line coach Mark Hagen played a role in his decision. Strickland attended camps at Indiana when Hagen served as an assistant coach for the program. Strickland also developed a strong connection with current defensive end George Karlaftis and the program’s strength and conditioning coach Dominic Reno.

RB Terence Thomas

Hometown (High School): Youngstown, Ohio (Boardman)

Height/Weight: 5-11/185

Rating: 3 stars; No. 982 in nation, No. 30 in state, No. 75 at position

Note: Thomas gives coach Jeff Brohm and his staff the flexibility to move him around to different positions, including the return game. "They plan to use me a bunch of different ways," Thomas told the Journal & Courier in June. "I would like to think I'm versatile enough that I can be used all over the field. They can use me in a variety of ways. That's why I feel like I made a good decision by going to them." Purdue recruited Thomas as a running back/athlete but he also played quarterback and receiver during the 2020 season. He totaled 1,162 all-purpose yards with 17 touchdowns. Thomas picked the Boilermakers over Boston College, Kentucky, North Carolina State, Marshall and Kent State. Purdue offered Thomas in March and needed to take his official visit to reaffirm his initial thoughts about the Boilermakers. "I already knew since they offered me - I've been leaning toward them for a while - that I might as well make it official," Thomas said Friday. "What stood out about Purdue was how well family-oriented everyone was. I felt that when I went on my visit and you could tell the love was real. The coaches are amazing, the campus is amazing, the academics are great and you can't get anything better than that."

OT Cross Watson

Hometown (High School): Portage, Mich. (Portage Central)

Height/Weight: 6-5/270

Stars/Rating: 3 stars; N/A in nation, No. 30 in state, No. 116 at position

Note: A Division 1-2 first-team AP All-State pick, Watson has been a starter since his sophomore season despite not playing football until the eighth grade. "I’m not into projecting where a kid might go as far as college and after, but as far as his position, I think he can play any of the interior offensive line positions,” Portage Central coach Mick Enders told MLive.com. “I think if Purdue needed a center, he could go in there, and if they need a right tackle, he could jump in there and be just fine. That’s the quality of kid that Cross is. He’s going to be coachable, he’s going to give you everything he has, and he’s going to work hard... From snap to whistle, he plays the game the way it needs to be played,” Enders said. “He is intense; he finishes plays; he’s vocal with the guys up front and communicates well, and he’s just a real calming influence in the huddle for us as well.”

This story will be updated.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: National signing day: 2022 Purdue football recruits list, bios