Purdue football’s already beleaguered 2025 signing class took two more hits Thursday.
West Chester (Ohio) Lakota West linebacker Grant Beerman announced on X.com he was decommitting from the Boilermakers shortly before announcing he had flipped his commitment to Illinois. The four-star, top-500 prospect had been the highest-ranked player remaining in a class already gouged by decommitments.
Later in the day, Kuol Kuol, a three-star 6-5 offensive lineman from Ohio who committed to Purdue in July, announced he’s committing to Iowa State.
Beerman took an official visit to Illinois on Nov. 1. At the time it appeared he was one of several players simply keeping his options open due to the uncertainty of Purdue coach Ryan Walters’ future. The Boilermakers are 1-10 with 10 consecutive losses heading into Saturday’s Old Oaken Bucket game against 10-1 Indiana.
Beerman planned to be a mid-year enrollee, giving him a jump on making an early career contribution for a Boilermaker defense badly in need of help at linebacker. Instead, he’ll now start that course for the Illini — a traditional rival and Walters’ former program.
“After careful consideration, I have made the difficult decision to decommit from Prudue University,” Beerman wrote in his X.com post. “This has been a challenging choice, but I believe it is the best step for my personal and athletic growth at this time.
“I am deeply grateful for the opportunity and support I received from coach Walters and especially coach (Kevin) Kane. I have immense respect for the coaches, staff, and the Purdue community, and this decision was not made lightly.”
Kuol was supposed to supply help for an offensive line that loses at least three starters from this year’s 1-10 team. After seeing Kuol at a camp over the summer, Purdue’s staff wrestled Kuol away from 18 other Division I suitors at the time, seemingly winning a recruiting battle.
Kuol visited Iowa State on Nov. 16, when the Cyclones defeated Cincinnati.
“After much decision and talk with the people most important to me, I have decided to make the very difficult decision to decommit from Purdue University,” Kuol wrote on his X account. “This really has been a conflicting choice, but I feel is what’s best for my academic and athletic development moving forward.”
Beerman and Kuol are the fifth and sixth 2025 commits to rescind their pledge since Sept. 29. He joined Hammond Morton receiver Lebron Hill, four-star Columbus (OH) Marion-Franklin cornerback Dawayne Galloway Jr., Antioch (Tenn.) offensive lineman Ta’Khyian Whitset and Cincinnati Taft defensive lineman Drayden Pavey.
Four-star 2026 quarterback Oscar Rios of Downey, Calif., also decommitted in the same period.
Purdue’s 10-man 2025 class now ranks 86th in the 247Sports national composite — lowest among Power 4 programs. Cleveland Villa Angela-St .Joseph tight end Brian Kotovich, a three-star prospect ranked No. 510 overall, is the highest-ranked player in the group.
The early signing period opens Wednesday. Last year, Purdue signed a top-40 class. Its chances of doing so this year were undercut by a consistent lack of competitiveness starting with a 66-7 loss to Notre Dame in the second game of the season.
Whoever coaches Purdue next season will undertake a massive rebuild. Barring some significant late commitments, it appears they will do so without significant help from this recruiting class.
Journal & Courier reporter Sam King contributed to this story.
