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GoldanDBlack express • volume 24, express 20 • 1 BY BRIAN NEUBERT BNeubert@GoldandBlack.com D arrell Hazell's first full recruiting class at Purdue isn't one that's drawn rave reviews, but the second-year Boilermaker coach will lose no sleep over that fact. "A lot of times guys are out there and they're recruit- ing by ear: 'This guy's a five-star, this guy's a four-star, this guy's a good player.' It's all by ear," Hazell said, when asked about what he learned about recruiting to Purdue in his first year doing it. "You can't do that. If you want to build a team that's really good, you have to do your homework, watch the film over and over again, have checks and bal- ances within the system to evaluate guys. "Our (offer) process is for the area coach, the position coach, the coordinator, then it comes to me, so we don't make a mistake. Whether people say we are or not. We're going to do what we think is right based on what we see, not what we hear." That's what Purdue did with its 2014 signing class, one it hopes will be as mistake-free as can be expected. If you don't count transfer Langston Newton, it's an 18-player class comprised on 17 high school players and one junior college transfer. The class was a moving target from Day 1, as it in- curred an astounding six decommitments, the last of them coming on signing day from junior college offensive tackle Miguel Machado, who signed with Michigan State hours after Purdue announced its signing class. All Boilermaker coaches can do, however, is focus on those players who did sign, their ability, their intangibles and the needs they fill. There were many needs, a common denominator among them being physicality, both up front on offense and all across the board on defense, especially at linebacker. That need, it would appear, was filled. Two of the headliners of the class are linebackers Gelen Robinson and Ja'Whaun Bentley, each of them known for packing a wal- lop above all else. On the offensive line, Purdue could have come away with more, and thought it had. With offensive tackle being a glaring question mark leading into 2014, Purdue hoped to sign two junior col- lege players to come in and compete for starting positions. Of the two it targeted, A.J. Allen and Machado, it got Mach- ado to commit before he opted instead for the Spartans volume 24, eX 20 • feb. 10, 2014 Inside | Mid-year enrollees eager 7-8 | Football notes 9–10 Men fall at Ohio State 13 | Women lose Houser but win 18-23 PURDUE SIGNS 2014 CLASS Hazell believes new class includes physicality, leadership Tom Campbell Darrell Hazell was pleased with the process he and his staff followed to get the 2014 recruiting class. The second-year coach was all smiles on National Signing Day. 11 Different states that comprise Pur- due's 2014 football recruiting class. The Boilermakers have three each from Indiana, Georgia and Texas. THE NumbErs What You Can Expect The good news is teams like Purdue in '14, those that have had recruiting classes ranked at or near the bottom of the Big Ten, have had success four years later. Here's how the bottom three from 2002-09 have fared in the conference standings and in postseason participation when the class reached its senior year (four years later): The Model: Northwestern. The 'Cats have finished near the bottom three six times, but managed to work their way to an upper division finish 50 percent of the time. Finished in upper half of BIG TEN: 33% Played in a Bowl Game: 50%