Rondale Moore had 575 pounds on his back in Purdue’s weight room when strength coach Justin Lovett spoke up.

“Coach Lovett said, ‘If you can do it, let’s go. If you can’t, we’ll stop here,’” Moore said.

They didn’t stop.

The number hit 600, and the result was an eye-opening physical feat and the viral video that came from it.

It’s not that 600 pounds is a record-breaking squat for a college football player at the game’s highest levels.

But when it’s raised by a player listed at just 5-foot-9 and 175 pounds — and perhaps generously at that — it’s something.

That was a lot of weight on the young wide receiver’s shoulders, but also a fitting optic, perhaps, for the season to come.

Purdue’s hopes — or expectations — are extremely high for one of the jewels of its freshman class and one of the most physically gifted players on its roster, a freshman for which there is no maybe about him playing this season. There’s no redshirt on the table here.

Moore is playing — probably a lot — and Purdue’s coaching staff will use every ounce of its offensive ingenuity to see to it that he’s not just playing, but playing.

“We’re going to throw a lot at him early, and as we get going, get halfway through camp, we’ll tailor it down and figure out exactly he’s good at it and can handle at this point,” Coach Jeff Brohm said. “But we’re excited to utilize him and he’ll do everything in his power to work hard and be ready to play.”

It’s not just about Purdue’s enthusiasm about a talented new recruit, but also the context which that recruit steps into.

Many of the mandates Brohm has laid out for his team in Year 2 under his direction, notably the need to generate big plays, but on offense and special teams, speak directly to Moore’s skill set.

The strength is one thing. The combination of his reputed sub-4.4 speed, break-neck quickness and exceptional athleticism are another.

“The first thing you notice is how fast he plays," quarterback David Blough said. "He plays at a different speed than everybody else.”

Moore is being worked in on both kickoff returns and punt returns, elements of the game where Purdue was far from productive last season, but will play as prominent a role as he can handle on offense. Maybe not as an every-down player at any position — returnee Jackson Anthrop is a known commodity in the slot — but one for which the final snap count may come from a variety of sources, inside, outside, backfield, even.

First, he has to learn.

“It’s taking baby steps at first,” Moore said, “and getting a hang of the offense and how everything works around here.”

Again, Purdue will push the whole playbook on him, then narrow things if need be.

But the final result likely won’t be restricted to the screens and jet sweeps and such, the plays you’d normally associate with receivers his size.

The biggest piece, most likely, of Purdue’s big-play aim is the downfield game, the Sindelar-to-Mahoungou element that changed the Boilermakers’ season for the better last season.

Mahoungou towered over defenders, a tight end body type in a wide receiver, the sort of frame you’d more likely associate with the deep ball.

Moore might be an exception, based on the impression he’s made through two practices. He may not have the vertical presence in stature, but he may provide a vertical presence nonetheless.

“He tracks that deep ball so well,” Blough said. “As quarterbacks we like guys who make you look good when you throw that deep ball to them and he can set it up, slow himself down, keep the defender on his back and catch that ball over his shoulder at the last minute and those are things that make receivers special.”

Brohm cites Moore’s speed, obviously, as his greatest asset as a long-ball target.

Sindelar cites his use of that speed.

“His routes are extremely crisp,” Sindelar said. “When he cuts, it’s one step. He doesn’t take any false steps. Its really fun to watch.”

When the catch is contested down the field, Moore will not have ideal height and length to rely on.

What he will have is the strength, as evidenced by the July weight-room session and the video that came from it.

“It makes people forget about the whole height aspect,” Moore said of his strength. “The strength and the speed, they take away from some of the things that you can’t control. I just try to control everything that I can.”

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