The incoming transfer wave continues in West Lafayette as former BYU safety Crew Wakley has signed with Purdue.
Wakley visited Purdue at the beginning of the year and the Boilermakers now lock up the veteran defensive back less than a week following that trip.
Wakley reported offers from Iowa State, West Virginia, Memphis, and UNLV while in the portal, ultimately choosing the Boilermakers over those other four programs.
Wakley comes to West Lafayette after a two-year stint in Provo, where he came from Utah State as a walk-on prior to the 2023 season. The 6-foot, 200-pound safety was productive despite having somewhat limited snaps with the Cougars, tallying 103 total tackles, five tackles for loss, three interceptions and seven pass breakups across the last two seasons.
Wakley had a defensive grade of 65.3, while having a 69.3 run defense grade across 360 snaps in 2024 by Pro Football Focus.
Purdue has now added five defensive backs to the secondary this off-season, through the portal, with Wakley joining UNLV cornerback Tony Grimes, Memphis safety Tahj Ra-El, Boston College cornerback Ryan Turner and TCU safety Richard Toney. Wakley figures to slide into contention for the starting role at the strong safety position, where he made a name for himself at BYU.
Barry Odom and company are heating up on the recruiting trail as it relates to the portal, netting their 27th transfer addition of the off-season thus far.
