A complimentary backfield comprised of Devin Mockobee and Tyrone Tracy Jr. was an integral part in Purdue's offensive plans a year ago. Despite the departure of the now New York Giant running back, Lamar Conard looks to have a similar dynamic this fall, but with a new face entering the mix.
Illinois transfer Reggie Love III joins the Purdue backfield alongside returning starter Devin Mockobee to create another formidable one-two punch for offensive coordinator Graham Harrell and company. While Love is a different type of back than the aforementioned Tracy, the fresh face compliments what Mockobee brings to the table.
"They compliment each other just beautifully," Conard said.
"The way I compliment 'Crazy Legs' is, you know, Mock does a lot of stuff. He's real twitchy. I'm a little bigger than Mock. You know, both of us are explosive, run hard. So just having another guy that can go out there and play all all three downs is fairly good to me," Love said.
Love has found himself in multiple roles throughout his career prior to West Lafayette, serving as the primary backup to All-American Chase Brown in 2022 before leading the Illini in attempts, yards and touchdowns last season.
Seeing Love lead a backfield in the Big Ten, as well as playing his role previously helped sell Conard on what the Illinois transfer could provide for the Boilermakers out of the transfer portal.
"All the things that I believe in, that coach Walters believes in, is Reggie Love. He is tough as nails. He is, in my opinion, an every down box running back. He can do the dirty work for you. He's quicker than you realize, a bit more burst, but he has more to his tank," Conard said.
Purdue has seen what Mockobee can do, leading the team in rushing in each of the last two seasons, but there is still another level the former walk-on can reach. The quest for doing so has required Mockobee to take his diet more seriously to expand his game and be more versatile out of the backfield.
"I've always had that kind of mentality to want to run through guys, but obviously I didn't have the size to do that last year or the year before. So, I think it'll make a very big difference with the weight that I have this year, to actually be able to run how I was more comfortable running, versus trying to get away from stuff," Mockobee said.
While Mockobee and Love are expected to split playing time, there is no envy on either side when it comes to snap counts or recognition. Conard sees Mockobee as the leader of the group, but believes the Boilermakers have two starting caliber players out of the backfield.
"There is no battle. Mockobee is that guy, but if you pay attention to who I am, they're both starters. I know that's what it says in the ledger, like it doesn't matter to me. I mean, if we call the play that was preferential to Reggie for the first call, Reggie is gonna be starting," Conard said.
When someone makes a play, it sends a message to Love and the rest of the group to up their respective games, but the growing competition stems from love... no pun intended. Purdue's running backs having that mentality is what Conard loves about his group this season.
"It lets you know that you got no time to slack," Love said. "I got a saying, 'compete out of love rather than envy' and I feel like that's what we do a good job of. You know, everybody knows when those guys make a play, we got to make plays too. So it just bring everybody along."
"That's the great thing about the guys I got is they just want to win. You know, they have their own similar goals, but they both know who they are and what we need them to be," Conard said.
Beyond Love and Mockobee, the Boilermakers have some questions about the third running back spot on the depth chart. True freshman Jaheim Merriweather and redshirt freshman walk-on Elijah Jackson have been the top two candidates for the spot, but neither has cemented themselves just yet.
"The fight is just to become more consistent, because they have the talent," Conard said of the young duo. "The third running back you got to put in the game, you want him to be explosive. You want to be able to trust him. And at some point, if he has to carry the load, he can."
Merriweather was one of Purdue's top signees from the 2024 recruiting class, offering an intriguing skillset with his 6-foot-2, 210-pound frame. The dynamic back has flashed brilliance, but finding consistency could help unleash the talented freshman in the near future.
"Jaheim Merriweather is tall, long, crazy athletic, but it's about being consistent," Conard said. "He's getting there. He's processing the game much better. He's slowing it down. His mental mistakes are becoming less and less, now it's a matter of being able to play at the tempo we need you to play at consistently."
Jackson came to West Lafayette as a walk-on last year, where he was a standout on the gridiron and track at Lawrence Central in Indianapolis. The 5-foot-8 speedster holds school records in the 60-meter dash (6.77 seconds) and 100-meter dash (10.47 seconds). The blazing speed is what attracted Purdue and has held up during his first two years with the program.
Conard views Jackson as a potential contributor out of the backfield, but confidence with those impressive physical tools is the next step to making it happen.
"Elijah is just a pistol man. He has exceeded all expectations. He's came out and had a fantastic camp, but obviously he's 5'8", 190 pounds. So you got to be smart about how you use him. But he's an explosive little dude. He's got 'it', now it's a matter of being confident in all situations," Conard said.
