Kentucky offensive tackle nets early Purdue offer
Naturally, given its coaching staff's connections, Purdue has established an early presence in recruiting Kentucky.
One of Jeff Brohm and his coaches' early targets: Offensive lineman Will Bramel.
The 6-foot-5, 250-or-so-pounder from Boyle County High School in Danville, Ky., visited Purdue last weekend.
"It was great," Bramel said of his visit. "You could tell there's a new energy at the university and the new facility they're building, they're awesome. Watching the basketball game against Michigan State and seeing the fans' passion, I just liked everything about the visit."
Bramel was offered a scholarship shortly thereafter, his first from a Power 5 conference. It joined a prior offer from Marshall, as well as a few FCS programs. Bowling Green recently offered, too.
"They said they see a lot of upside in me and they want offensive linemen with height who can move, that that's what they look at most," Bramel said of Purdue. "They think they can get some weight on me. I'm not as heavy right now as I will be, because I'm in the middle of basketball season right now. They said that doesn't bother them, that they see upside from me because I'm tall and I can move.
"I feel like my main asset is I'm pretty smart. I've only started at offensive tackle for two years now, but I feel like I'm getting smarter at the position, with calls and things like that on the line. I think mentally I'm doing pretty well."
Purdue knows Bramel well. Brohm and some of his coaches previously began recruiting him for Western Kentucky and had him on campus for its game against Vanderbilt last fall. Bramel said some of his high school coaches have connections to Purdue's, as well, from their backgrounds at Louisville.
That familiarity could matter for Bramel with Purdue, but it's early in the process for him.
"It's all hit so quickly with colleges," he said. "I'm just enjoying it while it's going on and we'll go from there. I'll have a plan for recruiting soon, hopefully."
Copyright, Boilers, Inc. 2017. All Rights Reserved. Reproducing or using editorial or graphical content, in whole or in part, without permission, is strictly prohibited.