Charlie Jones explains why he transferred from Iowa to Purdue
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Charlie Jones finally has explained why he transferred from Iowa to Purdue in June.
And what he said came as no real surprise.
“It’s pretty simple, I came here for the offense,” Jones said to GoldandBlack.com, which is the Rivals site for Purdue. “The past couple years they’ve shown that being a receiver in this type of offense means a lot of opportunities.”
Jones, a sixth-year senior receiver and return specialist, also has a connection with Purdue quarterback Aidan O’Connell as they grew up near each other in the Chicago suburbs and played youth football together.
“Also, Aiden, we grew up together and played little league together,” said Jones, who was named the Big Ten Return Specialist of the Year last season. “He’s been making big plays since we were in the third grade.
“So, I came here for that kind of connection. But really, just the system. I’m going to be able to fit the skill sets that I have in the system here.”
There has been speculation, and some have assumed since Jones transferred that he made the switch because he wanted to play his final season at the collegiate level in a more productive passing offense that would better showcase his receiving skills.
That assumption was accurate.
Iowa finished ranked 121st nationally in total offense last season, averaging just 303.7 yards per game, including 180.1 passing yards per game.
Purdue, on the other hand, averaged nearly 350 passing yards per game last season as O’Connell threw for 3,712 yards and 28 touchdowns.
Jeff Brohm’s spread offense at Purdue has caused major problems for Iowa’s vaunted defense and is the biggest reason Purdue has won four of the last five games in the series.
O’Connell passed for 375 yards and two touchdowns and zero interceptions during Purdue’s 24-7 victory over Iowa last season at Kinnick Stadium, while Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras threw four interceptions and finished with 195 passing yards in that game.
Jones is taking advantage of his free Covid year and he wants to showcase his receiver skills for NFL scouts before it’s too late.
He was expected to play a key role for Iowa as a receiver and return specialist. But Jones was also listed as the backup behind Nico Ragaini at one of the receiver positions during spring practice.
Jones will be reunited with former Iowa teammate and fellow receiver Tyrone Tracy Jr., who transferred to Purdue shortly after the end of last season.
Tracy, who grew up near Indianapolis, saw his role in the Iowa offense reduced substantially after he was passed on the depth chart midway through last season by then true freshman Keagan Johnson.
The loss of Jones and Tracy, coupled with some current injuries at receiver, has left Iowa with very little proven depth at receiver.
Alec Wick, a redshirt freshman walk-on from Iowa City Regina, already has made the two-deep roster as the backup to Keagan Johnson.
“He can catch a lot of tough balls,” Spencer Petras said of Wick at media day. “He made a diving catch for me today and it was pretty nice.”
And though Wick was excited to see his name on the depth chart, he knows the circumstances are fluid and that depth charts can change in a hurry.
“It’s pre-camp, so a lot of stuff can change,” Wick said. “Everybody is coming out here for every practice and giving their all, full effort. I’m here to do that, too, and to compete and it’s kind of been working out.”
Emotion should be running high when Iowa and Purdue square off on Nov. 5 in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Both teams are considered contenders in the West Division with Iowa the defending champion despite its offensive woes.
Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, who is the son of Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, is under pressure to make the offense better in a hurry.
But that could be a lot more difficult without Jones and Tracy helping at receiver.
Iowa also took a huge hit on special teams with Jones transferring to Purdue. Jones returned both punts and kicks for Iowa last season.
His 100-yard kick return for a touchdown against Illinois came with Iowa trailing 10-0 late in the first quarter and helped to shift the momentum as Iowa came back to win 33-23 at Kinnick Stadium.