Before he lines up, most often in the slot, Cameron Posey takes a look at the sticks, knowing where he needs to get for a first down.
It’s common — most every receiver should have that type of awareness, particularly an underneath target — but Posey is turning his approach into results. The senior wide receiver has frequently been able to help extend drives lately, a reason why Purdue ranks fourth in the Big Ten in third-down conversion at 46.7 percent.
Posey’s five third-down receptions in the last two games have reached the first-down marker — one he ran into the endzone for a touchdown — and he’s done the same with a couple of second downs. In all, of his 11 receptions vs. Nebraska and Penn State, seven have been for first downs, including the first six consecutively. And one of the four misses was a second down that he picked up on the ensuing third-down pass.
“Being a veteran, an older mature player, it’s knowing the situations and have some football awareness, knowing where the sticks are,” Posey said following Purdue’s practice. “If it’s third down, knowing you have to get by the sticks, don’t be a yard short.”
The run has helped Posey pick up the pace in the second half of the season. The senior has 23 receptions this season, although probably for not as many yards as what he would envision, only 172, for an average of 7.5 yards per catch. His long is 15. Yet that’s not his role, either.
Instead, he’s there to be a reliable target for David Blough, helping Purdue to navigate the field and get more opportunities for bigger plays.
“I think he also has got confidence now, knows he's a pretty good football player,” said interim coach Gerad Parker, who also coaches the Boilermaker wide receivers. “… We've been good on third down. I think our schemes have put us in good position. It allows those guys to work on some things they're good at in option routes and those things that we've done with them, and he's taken full advantage.
“So a lot of it is scheme, a lot of it is because of what he's doing, and I would also think that a lot of it has been alleviated by two outside guys that have played pretty high level, too, which helps.”
Posey agrees. He thinks he’s found more room recently because of the play of DeAngelo Yancey and Bilal Marshall — and Domonique Young before that — big-play receivers on the perimeter who are occupying the attention of the defense. The trio has combined for 82 receptions in eight games this season.
But it’s likely a credit to Posey, as well. Parker says the 6-foot-1, 192-pounder has practiced with a higher intensity in recent weeks, joking that the Boca Raton, Fla., native has a little too much of a southern Florida “chill guy” persona at times, but not as much lately.
“I’ve been getting that since I got here,” Posey said, laughing. “I’m just a laid-back, quiet-type guy. It’s just who I am, I don’t know.
“… But I feel like with the new things we’re doing (in practice) and the high energy that we have, the whole team is playing a lot faster and with more energy. So I wouldn’t single myself out and say that I’m doing anything special, I’m just doing what I’m told to do. I think the whole offense is playing faster and with more confidence right now.”
And it’s helping Posey end on a high note. He’s got only four games left, starting Saturday at Minnesota, in the regular season, and hopes the Boilermakers could add a fifth.
Regardless, he’s happy with his ability to contribute, especially now after a slow start to his final season.
“I’ve gone out and done what they’ve asked me to do since Week 1 and I’m going to continue to do that,” Posey said. “If the ball happens to come my way a few more times, I’ll be absolutely OK with that. I’m going to keep going out there and playing with high energy, like the rest of the offense, execute and make sure we can win some games.”
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