An overzealous Leland Smith walked into Fullerton College with the expectations of dominating the junior college ranks and split. After coming from TCU, where he was a walk-on in the spring of 2023, Smith thought highly of his abilities and figured his stay in Fullerton would be successful and brief.

He was right.. but the path to making that expectation a reality became a road filled with bumps.

It took just one half for the talented pass catcher to find himself benched by head coach Garrett Campbell and offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach Keenan Gardner. It was a disappointing debut that saw him go without a catch, but served as a valuable lesson that would shortly thereafter vault him into a new opportunity.

"I'd say that was probably my most humbling experience," Smith said. "I had it in my mind that I was like, 'Oh, I'm just gonna come in here and make some plays and get out.' I thought I was better than I was, and I learned very quickly that I had a lot of learning to do, had a lot of development to get done," Smith said.

"He had a terrible first half. This kid was jamming him and it had nothing to do with ability, it was just the moment. So, I benched him. But a lot of it was to see what his response to it was," Fullerton receivers coach Keenan Gardner told Boiler Upload after Smith committed to Purdue in February. "The first thing I noticed is like I said, the guy that I put in behind him was a freshman, is he immediately started to encourage him, told him what he was looking for."

Smith describes himself as a "bounce back" after bouncing from a TCU walk-on to the junior college ranks and now Purdue. The moniker serves as a reminder that opportunities are meant to be jumped on.

"I feel like being a bounce back is really just a big piece of just being able to take every opportunity, even when you feel like your back's against the wall, just being able to seize every opportunity," Smith said.

"The whole experience of going to junior college was humbling, but also at the same time, it was a blessing. I felt like I was given another opportunity. I feel like that sort of mental state is something that I carry with me into everything, like coming in and going through fall camp, I had adjustments to make. I understand that I'm given the opportunity to come out and be great and use my god given abilities to go and help my team," Smith said.

It took the Purdue receiver some time to come to terms with where he was as a player and person while in Southern California, but once everything clicked, it was literally and figuratively off to the races. Smith turned up the heat as the calendar hit October, going for 14 catches for 364 yards and four touchdowns across a two-game span.

That is when Purdue wide receivers coach Cory Patterson and company pulled the trigger on offering the lengthy pass catcher.

Smith wound up committing to Patterson and the Boilermakers in February, where he got another opportunity, one that he would not let slip through his fingers.

Despite playing just 11 snaps on offense against Indiana State, Smith indeed seized his first opportunity in the old gold and black. In the latter half of the third quarter, Smith connected with Hudson Card for a 31-yard touchdown to put the Boilermakers up 35-0.

The score was a moment Smith had been envisioning ever since his pledge to Purdue and finally got the opportunity to make it a reality.

"It was incredible for me, honestly, just what I looked forward to, what I was dreaming about the whole time before getting up here, before making that decision to come up to Purdue. And then just working for it all through fall camp, just being able to make an impact and help my team in any way," Smith said.

"He's 6-4, 220 (pounds) and then is one of the probably top five fastest guys on the team. He's been doing that kind of stuff in fall camp," head coach Ryan Walters said after the game. "Anytime you got a bigger guy and a corner pressed up and you're checking fade, the odds are are in your favor."

That skillset was not only used on offense, however, as special teams coordinator Chris Petrilli put it to use in another area that also proved to be beneficial for the Boilermakers on Saturday afternoon.

After having a 90-yard touchdown catch during a scrimmage in fall camp, Smith hit 22.5 miles per hour, tracked by Catapult devices worn by players to track speed, among other things. Once coaches saw the speed firsthand mixed with his length, Petrilli knew he could be a force on special teams.

Ryan Walters revealed that the night before the Indiana State showdown, Petrilli told Smith that he believes he will block a punt after seeing encouraging signs in practice. Although, maybe he didn't even know how soon that would come.

Smith slithered by Indiana State blockers late in the fourth quarter to get his hands on a Harry Traum punt, which then led to another Purdue touchdown, putting the final nail in the Sycamores' coffin.

Buying into playing special teams wasn't something that took much convincing for Smith, who recognizes its necessity to win football games, as well as seeing how he could help his team.

"I think it's one of, if not the most important part of the game. I feel like a special teams play is like a big dunk in basketball or grand slam in baseball, like a big play on special teams can change the entire momentum of the game," Smith said. "Coach just figured out a way to use me and use my length and my speed. I think he's done a great job, and me just buying in and being able to go wherever he tells me to go, that's where I'm gonna be at."

When he's not blocking punts, Smith is a matchup nightmare for opposing defensive backs. His ability to haul in deep balls down the field and a threat in the red zone was what brought Smith to West Lafayette, but he doesn't want to simply be known as a one trick pony. The splashy plays are nice, but he strives to become a well-rounded receiver for the Boilermakers.

"Not being just a deep threat guy, like obviously that's a cool part, and it's the splashy plays. But being a full wide receiver, being a complete wide receiver, takes more than just a guy you can stick in on third down. I want to be more than just that and I feel like I'm continually progressing towards that as well," Smith said.

"Having my coaches around me, like Coach Durron (Neal) and Coach CP and Coach (Jason) Simmons, just being able to teach me how to implement all of these new skills that I maybe wasn't used to. Not just rely on my natural abilities, but also put in different traits that it takes to be a full wide receiver," Smith said.

That desire remains a work in progress, but Purdue's "bounce back" wide receiver is ready to seize his newfound opportunity in West Lafayette, regardless of where that finds him on the gridiron.