In the immediate wake of news that Purdue has begun its search for long-time athletic director Morgan Burke's successor, it is simply far too early to know how that search may turn out.

Here, though, are some names that could be part of its initial vetting process.

(Listed alphabetically)

The 52-year-old chairman of Purdue's Board of Trustees and founder and president of Lenex Steel in Indianapolis, Berghoff is an important university figure and trusted presence around university president Mitch Daniels.

The 1985 Purdue industrial management graduate was a walk-on linebacker for the Boilermakers and has been known as a strong advocate for the athletic department. He was front and center, for example, alongside Daniels when plans for the new Football Performance Complex were unveiled.

Berghoff's held a seat on the Board of Trustees since 2009, and his term runs through 2018.

He holds no athletic administration experience, but obviously is well acquainted with the university and its highest levels of leadership. He is known to be invested in the athletic department's success and does have a football background.

It is not known whether he would be an interested party in the position, given his business interests and role as Board chairman, which he'd have to vacate to assume the A.D. position.

UPDATE: It has been announced that Berghoff will lead the search for the new A.D. What that means for potential candidacy remains to be seen.

The 50-year-old Xavier athletic director is a West Lafayette native and former member of Burke's leadership team at Purdue. He left in 2006 to become A.D. at Bowling Green - holding that post from 2006-2013 - after serving as associate athletic director for external relations and director of the John Purdue Club. Christopher was at Purdue from 1997-2006.

Christopher played football for a short time at Miami (Ohio) before his career was ended by injury and presided over a Mid-American Conference football program at Bowling Green, his one coaching move being to replace head coach Gregg Brandon and replace him with Dave Clawson, who took the Falcons to two bowl games before landing the Wake Forest job.

Xavier does not have football, but does boast an outstanding men's basketball program.

Christopher is known for his engaging personality, often an important component to fund-raising - he was integral in raising money for the Ross-Ade Project in the '90s and at Bowling Green, secured the two largest gifts in school history - as well as media relations and such. He is well respected in his field, knows Purdue well and boasts meaningful experience as an A.D. Additionally, given his background, the opportunity at Purdue at least at one time might have been viewed as a "dream job" sort of situation, though it's unknown whether that's still the case as he's advanced in his career.

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The former Purdue baseball and basketball player is a senior associate athletic director for student services and sport administration at North Carolina State.

Previously, he worked for the NCAA in Indianapolis, working as assistant director of championships, coordinating championship events for seven smaller sports.

The former Boilermaker pitcher was a first-round MLB pick coming out of Purdue and played for three years before injuries derailed his career, according to his North Carolina State bio. He then transitioned into scouting and coaching before joining the NCAA.

Clinkscales walked on to Purdue's 1989-90 basketball team, so he was a teammate of current Boilermaker coach Matt Painter. The two were roommates on the road, as well.

The 45-year-old is an Indianapolis native.

The former Purdue and NFL quarterback and College Football Hall-of-Fame inductee boasts a football background and name cache throughout the university community and state of Indiana.

The 57-year-old former All-American and is currently working at Purdue in corporate development after serving as Director of Development for the Krannert School of Management, from which he graduated in the '80s.

The Carmel native previously worked for the NCAA for seven years, as its associate director of educational programs, before spending four years as a community affairs consultant for the St. Vincent's health system in Indianapolis.

He possesses no athletic department experience, but is known as an engaging, well-respected person who's well connected, with a diverse background of fund-raising and external relations experience. And he possesses a football background.

The 56-year-old Ohio University athletic director is a Purdue alumnus and the son of former Boilermaker basketball coach and administrator Fred Schaus.

He's led Ohio's athletic department since April of 2008 after holding the same post at Wichita State prior.

He has run a MAC football program at Ohio, a program that's played in a bowl six of the past seven years under former Nebraska coach Frank Solich, who preceded Schaus in Athens.

Schaus has also shown an eye for talent in his basketball hirings, hiring Gregg Marshall at Wichita State and current Illinois coach John Groce at Ohio.

Schaus has a reputation for his marketing sense and fiscal efficiency.

Prior to his time at Wichita - he left that job for OU in order to be closer to his father as his health declined; Fred Schaus passed away in 2010 - Jim Schaus held positions at Oregon, Texas-El Paso, Cincinnati and Northern Illinois.

• It is unknown, maybe unlikely, that internal candidates will be viable during this search, but long-time department fixture Nancy Cross and current associate athletics director Calvin Williams could merit consideration.

• Former Purdue offensive lineman and long-time radio color analyst Pete Quinn has been one of the football program's strongest advocates among its alumni and a charismatic presence who's been very successful in his business career.

• Purdue men's basketball supervisor of basketball operations Elliot Bloom has real potential for this sort of position one day. A strategic, outside-the-box thinker who's held different roles within the athletic department, the 39-year-old has also worked at Kansas and Duke, giving him a wider view of how things are done elsewhere, as well. His experiences at Purdue alone have covered responsibilities related to sport administration, promotions, media relations and outreach, among others.

• Based on his credentials, Bob Bernard might merit consideration. Bernard has worked in corporate sponsorships, marketing and licensing with Purdue athletics since the 1990s. He recently sold Strategic Marketing Affiliates, a sports marketing business he founded, and now serves as President/CEO of Learfield Licensing. Bernard was a starting outfielder on the Boilermaker baseball team and graduated from the Krannert School in 1983.

• Another to watch, although maybe a long-shot, is West Lafayette native Josh Whitman. The former Harrison High School graduate, who went on to play for Illinois and briefly in the NFL, is in his second year as the athletic director at Washington University in St. Louis. Whitman, 37, has also been mentioned as a possible candidate at Illinois.

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