Purdue football landed an flip target today, netting a commitment from 2026 three-star Hillcrest (Ill.) defensive end and ex-Northern Illinois commit Max Carmicle. Carmicle was in West Lafayette for an official visit over the weekend, where Barry Odom and the Boilermakers secured the flip.

Carmicle has had an interesting recruitment in the last six months, as he initially committed to Northern Illinois back in January. Shortly after that pledge, he received offers from the likes of Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Cincinnati, as well as Michigan State, Kansas State and Kentucky most recently.

Purdue also entered the mix in May and have now completed the flip of an intriguing defensive end to add to the 2026 recruiting class. Carmicle's size and athleticism have helped make him a difference maker off the edge for Hillcrest, as the 6-foot-7 pass rusher tallied 40 total tackles, six sacks and eight tackles for loss as a junior in 2024.

Rivals National Recruiting Analyst Greg Smith offered his thoughts on Carmicle’s commitment to Purdue.

“Carmicle (6-7, 215) is a raw but very intriguing prospect at defensive end. He’s got a great frame that will be able to hold more weight after he enters Purdue’s strength and conditioning program. If he continues to develop he’s got the ability to turn into a very nice pass rusher at the college level. Flipping him from Northern Illinois is a nice win after they identified him early give their track record of developing players.”

Carmicle's commitment now gives the Boilermakers' their 11th pledge in the 2026 class and the first across the defensive line in the class. The Illinois product joins the likes of defensive backs Emoni Smith and Dana Greenhow, wide receiver Kymistrii Young, offensive linemen James Williams, Rico Schrieber, and Brock Brownfield, tight end ArMari Towns, quarterback Corin Berry, linebacker Brayden Sweeney and running back Izaiah Wright in the class for the Boilermakers.