Purdue lands portal commitment from Illinois rush end Calvin 'Trey' Smith
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One of Purdue’s portal needs was a rush end. And, the staff found one in Illinois’ Calvin “Trey” Smith, who committed to the Boilermakers on Tuesday. He entered the portal on April 22.
The 6-4, 230-pound Smith is Purdue’s third portal commitment in the spring cycle, joining long-snapper Nick Levy (William & Mary) and punter Keelan Crimmins (Mississippi State).
Smith played in two games last season as a true freshman at Illinois and will have four years of eligibility.
An Ocoee, Fla., native, Smith committed in 2022 to former Fighting Illini OLB coach Kevin Kane, who is now the defensive coordinator at Purdue. Smith needs to bulk up but is thought to have good up-side.
Smith is the second former Illini player to transfer to West Lafayette this offseason, joining RB Reggie Love. Smith also is the fourth rush end Purdue has added since the end of 2023: Georgia’s C.J. Madden, Boston College’s Shitta Sillah and Franklin College’s Jireh Ojata came aboard this winter and went through spring drills. The anchor of the unit figures to be sophomore Will Heldt.
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Coming out of high school in the Sunshine State, Smith chose the Illini over offers from Pitt, Rutgers, Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Florida Atlantic, Indiana, Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan State and others.
Purdue’s rush end unit saw Nic Scourton transfer to Texas A&M in the offseason. And sidekick Kydran Jenkins has been moved to inside linebacker. Depth was further depleted with early-arriving freshman DJ Allen entered the portal this spring. Smith’s arrival will help augment rush ends coach Joe Dineen’s unit.
