Austin Burton honed skills at M2 QB Academy in Massachusetts
Mike McCarthy worked with Austin Burton for just a short period of time, but he is impressed.
McCarthy operates M2 QB Academy, a New England quarterback development institute based in Massachusetts. The former college coach and signal-caller worked with Burton, the newest Purdue quarterback who is joining the program as a grad transfer from UCLA.
“The things that stood out to me most about Austin were his leadership, athleticism and arm talent,” said McCarthy. “He was able to react and make every throw, on and off of platform, and really elevated the level of play of everyone at the session with his energy. That, in my opinion, is the No. 1 trait of a good leader, being able to elevate the play of others.”
Burton’s arrival will add a needed veteran arm to the Purdue roster. Burton will be immediately eligible and able to battle for the starting job this fall. His arrival will soften the blow of Elijah Sindelar not using the sixth season of eligibility he was granted last year. Burton arguably will be the most athletic of the signal-callers on the roster for Purdue. He will be a redshirt junior in 2020 with two years of eligibility.
“He is very positive and respectful, supportive of teammates,” said McCarthy. “From what I’ve heard, all of his teammates, they really like and respect him. He is definitely a great leader and a role model for all young QBs coming out of New England. He gave great feedback to the WRs and QBs we were working with that day.”
Sindelar had been the Boilermakers’ season-opening starter since Brohm arrived in 2017. Sophomore Jack Plummer and junior Aidan O’Connell are the front-runners to be the No. 1 man in 2020, with Plummer likely being the favorite to win the spot. Still, the competition between Plummer, O'Connell and Burton will be intense.
“He has very smooth and solid mechanics, he has an efficient stroke and does a good job getting back on balance, setting his feet and throwing, said McCarthy, whose academy trains between 70-80 quarterbacks. “He gets the ball out extremely quick and accurate in the quick game, and also showed great tempo on his throws. We try to implement drive throws, layered throws and touch throws in our trainings, and he executed them all very well.”
M2 QB Academy was founded in 2017 and trains some top names in the New England area, including Brady Olson (a 2021 prospect with offers from Georgia Tech and UMass); Sean Brackett (a four-year starter at Columbia) and Brady Martin (a Rhode Island commit), among others. McCarthy's quick breakdown on Burton:
• He is an athletic QB with quick feet who can extend plays with his legs.
• Threw 18-yard field comebacks with ease.
• Showed great arm strength.
• Accurate deep ball.
• Accuracy in the pocket with movement is great.
• Did well working through progressions.
• Showcased QB IQ talking through concepts.
Purdue learned the value of having depth at quarterback in 2019, a season which saw Sindelar (concussion, collarbone) and Plummer (ankle) both lost for the year to injury and Nick Sipe (back) retire from football because of injury. Just like that, O’Connell—a walk-on who began 2019 as the No. 4 signal-caller—started the final three games.
Now, the Boilermaker depth chart will include Plummer, O’Connell, Burton, redshirt freshman Paul Piferi and incoming freshman Michael Alaimo along with redshirt freshman walk-on Jack Albers. Burton must get up to speed quickly and has a lot to learn. But he is the ultimate wild card.
“Very athletic, all of our drills are based off of reactions,” said McCarthy. “We have one challenging reactionary drill where you have to go over hurdles, react and throw off platform, off the right foot or off the left foot, depending on where your weight is. And he picked up with ease and was extremely accurate.”
Burton arrived in Westwood as part of Jim Mora, Jr.’s, final recruiting class. He was a rivals.com three-star prospect from West Orange High in Newton, Mass. He saw action in five games at UCLA in 2019, hitting 44-of-64 passes (68.8 percent) for 365 yards with one touchdown. And he ran 23 times for 100 yards (4.3 ypc) with a TD. He made one start, completing 27-of-41 passes for 236 yards in a 48-31 loss vs. Oregon State on October 5. Burton redshirted in 2017 and didn't play in 2018.
“He is excited for his opportunity to come in and compete at Purdue, his main focus right now is learning the new playbook, as well as tying those concepts into his training. He is excited about the offense Coach Brohm runs and I think it fits his style of play perfect.”
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