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GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED OLUME 26, ISSUE 5 52 BY BRIAN NEUBERT BNeubert@GoldandBlack.com P urdue reached into its past for one of its quarterbacks of the future. At the end of March, Griffin Als- tott accepted the scholarship offer made to him weeks earlier by Dar- rell Hazell and his staff. Alstott is the son of Purdue's all-time leading rusher and Super Bowl champion Mike Alstott. "It's a dream come true for our family," said Mike Alstott, his son's coach at Northside Christian in St. Petersburg. "It's unbelievable." Now, though, for Griffin Alstott comes the burden, if you'd call it that, of proving himself on his own merit. Purdue made it clear to the 6-foot-2, 200-pound QB that it recruited him as such. "That was a real big part of (the decision)," Griffin Alstott said. "They've seen the hard work I've put in through the years, followed me this whole process and come to like what I can do on the field. Coach Hazell emphasized that a lot and really believes I can succeed at that level." He understands, though, that his family's name and his father's legacy will follow him at Purdue. "When people ask me about my dad, it's just a blessing to be able to have that sort of mentor in your life and say that that's your father," he said. "But I have to go out on my own limb and create a name for myself, you know?" Alstott held early offers from Troy, Appalachian State, Akron and others, along with early power-con- ference interest from Northwestern, Vanderbilt and Indiana, among others. Legacy Starts 2017 Class MEN'S FOOTBALL RECRUITING HOW MANY SPOTS? Purdue currently has 18 scholarship se- niors, suggesting its 2017 class will probably fall in the vicinity of a 20-man class as of now, figuring some attrition. The Boilermaker coaching staff was ex- pected to sign an inordinately small class in 2016, but wound up maxing out its space and adding 23 signees, several of them in the fi- nal week before signing day and at least one of them (Jackson Anthrop) for a scholarship it couldn't even promise at the time. It still remains to be seen whether Anthrop will be on scholarship this season or begin- ning in the winter of 2017, as were the terms of his offer. — Brian Neubert Purdue's first commitment comes at quarterback Lisa Jones Quarterback and Purdue legacy Griffin Alstott — perhaps you've heard the name — is the Boilermakers' first commitment for the 2017 class.