Exit Interview: K J.D. Dellinger

For J.D. Dellinger, his time at Purdue went by quickly.

He arrived from Charlotte in 2016 as part of Darrell Hazell’s final recruiting class. Dellinger leaves West Lafayette with the fourth most field goals made (40) in school annals. And his 74.1 success rate (40-of-54) is second best in Purdue history.

Now, the fifth-year senior is gone, opting not to use the extra season of eligibility in 2021 the NCAA granted due to the pandemic. That means Purdue will have a new kicker next season.

The 6-2, 200-pound Dellinger showed calm under fire, nailing late-game field goals to win games twice, at Illinois in overtime in 2016 and at Northwestern in 2019. Dellinger was 1-of-3 all-time from over 50 yards with a career-long of 53.

Dellinger was the Boilermakers’ No. 1 kicker as a true freshman in 2016. He shared the role with Baylor transfer Spencer Evans in 2017 and then redshirted in 2018 when Evans handled the job.

Dellinger’s best season was 2019, when he hit 13-of-16 field-goal attempts and all 35 of his PATs. That season, Dellinger earned consensus honorable mention All-Big Ten honors.

Dellinger hit 7-of-9 field-goal attempts last season. His two misses came in a 34-31 loss at Minnesota, one of which was blocked from 27 yards and another missed from 33. After the loss, he tweeted an apology to fans. Dellinger again was a consensus honorable mention All-Big Ten selection in 2020.

GoldandBlack.com caught up with Dellinger for an Exit Interview.