Receivers focus on earning respect, catching ball

By Paul Trembacki
Sports Editor

Ted Gilmore isn't a big fan of disrespect.

The new wide receivers coach doesn't want his players getting any either.

"I want these guys to have respect when they come out of spring practice," Gilmore said. "To get that, they've got to compete at a higher level."

But so far this spring the receivers, with only one senior-to-be, A.T. Simpson, among them, haven't been catching the ball well. In the first two spring scrimmages there have been so many drops that Purdue coach Joe Tiller has started to get irate. After all, his "basketball on grass" offense relies heavily on the completion of short passes.

But the spring is not over yet, so Seth Morales and the rest of the receivers aren't worried.

"We haven't caught ball well as we should have; we're coming around though," said Morales, who will be a junior in the fall. "I know we're going to catch the ball better.

"We're going to work hard, so we'll be all right."

Not only are the receivers struggling to catch the ball, but they are also struggling to find a deep threat to replace departed senior Vinny Sutherland, who caught 72 passes for 1,014 yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior last season as Drew Brees' primary target.

With players such as Morales, John Standeford, Andre Henderson and Simpson returning, the Boilers have more than enough players to get open in short yardage and catch the ball. However, Purdue needs a deep threat to keep opponents guessing.

Morales caught a 64-yard touchdown pass in Purdue's 31-27 win over Ohio State Oct. 28, a week after catching a 78-yard scoring strike in Purdue's 30-24 overtime win over Wisconsin.

"I think I can get behind some guys, but, in terms of guys who can go deep, we really don't have anyone right now," Morales said. "We haven't come up with a decision on that right now. If it's me, I'm going to try my best to do that."

The 5-foot-10-inch, 170-pound Morales spent the winter working on his routes and his strength, improving his bench press max to 305 pounds.

"This summer I'm going to really focus on my speed and maybe I can become that deep threat," he said.

Taylor Stubblefield, one of two redshirt freshmen who will vie for playing time in the fall, said the Boiler receivers need to get better if Purdue's offense is going to remain one of the nation's most productive.

"There'll never be another Vinny," Stubblefield said. "Vinny was a good player and he made a lot of good plays. We're going to have to pick that slack up."

Stubblefield pulled his hamstring last August — the most important part of the season in terms of learning. Although he will be a key contributor this fall, he doesn't want to have to go deep.

"I prefer the ins and outs," he said. "I like cutting and I like doing the defense wrong and then catching the ball and doing something with it."

Tiller expects Stubblefield and fellow redshirt freshman Gary Heaggans to play a lot in the fall.

"Both guys are going to help us out," Gilmore said. "They'll give us everything, in terms of what we ask them to do."

Gilmore just wants one thing for his receivers before the summer training sessions begin.

"The one theme we had going into spring is we wanted respect," Gilmore said. "It is a young group, and they've got something to prove to themselves as well as their teammates."

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Receivers focus on earning respect, catching ball

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Sports editor:
Paul Trembacki

Assistant sports editor:
Anne McLaren

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