Penn State’s first game of the 2022 season— a Thursday night clash scheduled with Purdue Sept. 1– might be a little easier that anticipated because the Boilermakers’ top returning receiver, Milton Wright, is reportedly no longer with the team.
Purdue receiver Milton Wright has reportedly been ruled academically ineligible and is no longer on the team.
The former four-star recruit was expected to be David Bell’s successor.
More on Wright HERE: https://t.co/G15FmWp3wt pic.twitter.com/mx7OlCdQ0l
— On3 (@On3sports) May 15, 2022
Wright, who caught 57 passes for 732 yards and seven touchdowns this past season, has reportedly failed to meet academic standards, and thus is no more for Purdue.
Purdue, who runs a pass-heavy offense under head coach Jeff Brohm, had already lost Biletnikoff finalist David Bell to the NFL draft. Wright, who would have been a candidate succeed Bell as Purdue’s No. 1 receiver and eclipse 1,000 yards, was a rising junior at Purdue.
A lot of Big Ten fans will be paying attention Sept. 1. Penn State and Purdue will kick off the conference’s 2022 football season with a Thursday Night Primetime game. Purdue is coming off a 9-4 season highlighted by a pair of wins over top five teams.
The Boilers upset No. 2 Iowa in Iowa City, and followed that up three weeks later with a win over No. 3 Michigan state at home. Purdue ended its season with a Music City Bowl win over Tennessee.
Wright did not play in the Music City Bowl because of academics, and also missed the team’s 2022 spring season for the same reason.
Wright came to Purdue as part of its 2019 recruiting class. He was a four-star recruit and ranked as a top 30 receiver nationally. Wright combined for 42 catches and 593 yards over his first two seasons before eclipsing the combined total for both statistics in 2021.
With or without Wright, Purdue will still be expected to throw the ball a lot with quarterback Aiden O’Connell coming back for a sixth year. In a sign of COVID-era college football, both quarterbacks in the Penn State-Purdue game will be sixth-year seniors. Penn State’s Sean Clifford is also entering his sixth season with the Nittany Lions.
