This has been a long time coming for Yanni Karlaftis.

The Purdue freshman linebacker hadn’t been on a football field for about a year. It was August 2020, when Karlaftis led his West Lafayette High School team vs. Lafayette Jeff.

After that one game, Karlaftis’ season came to an end due to a lingering hamstring injury he tried to play through but couldn't.

It has been a long road back to this August and the start of training camp at Purdue. Karlaftis is healthy. And, he's ready to make his debut season meaningful.

“It's been real nice,” said Karlaftis. “It's been a real long process … So, it's actually been really fun just being able to play some football, finally.”