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More: Jeff Brohm on Purdue signees

Elijah Ball is a defensive back, meaning he could play either cornerback or safety at Purdue.

He did both during his career at Ben Davis.

Purdue sees the 6-foot-1, 190-pounder as a cornerback first.

"But his team moved him to safety, so he's able to play both positions," Jeff Brohm said when Ball signed in December. "He has good makeup, he's a competitor, he doesn't come off the field. He works extremely hard. When you go see him in school or talk to his coaches, he's a guy of all of them that they have at Ben Davis has worked his tail off even past the season, so we like his work ethic. I think he'll come in and compete for a spot."

Ball picked Purdue in early June over Cincinnati, Colorado State and others.

Coach's Impression: After attending Indianapolis Ritter early in his career, Ball moved over to Ben Davis as a sophomore and played primarily cornerback.

But circumstance, including the shooting of standout DB Rondell Allen, changed the Giants' complexion at safety, and Ball was moved over, largely in order to put one of the team's better tacklers in position to make more of them, secondary coach Quinton Wilburn said.

"Later in the season, he became great at it," Wilburn said, "but early on, I do think it was a little bit of a transition for him to just play and not think too much."

Ball was an important piece of a Ben Davis defense that was often so dominant his numbers were held down by opponents' inability to advance the ball beyond its defensive front.

Equipped with college bodies all over the field, Ben Davis had the luxury to use a player of Ball's dimensions at safety.

"In Indiana," Wilburn said, "a kid like that might be an outside linebacker or defensive end. And we could have put him at outside linebacker to be honest with you."

Though he was relatively new to his position, the charismatic senior played an important role on his team beyond his play, Wilburn said.

"It's hard to find leaders sometimes from this generation," he said, "but he's definitely one."

— Brian Neubert

Rivals.com's Thoughts: "Ball is a solid, hard-working defensive back who will be trusted to play centerfield and not give up the big play, while also contributing in run support. His size is good, his skill set is average but his football IQ is high." — Midwest analyst Josh Helmholdt

What He Means To The Class: Ball's either going to be a safety with corner coverage skills or a corner with a safety's physical nature, and so versatility can be a plus for him, with safety being his likely landing spot.

And his athleticism will be welcomed in a Boilermaker secondary that could use short-term and long-term upgrades in that area.

He was one of Purdue's earliest in-state priorities and it's never a bad thing to land charismatic people from your most important recruiting territories. — Brian Neubert

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