Purdue Football: Position Groups – Safety

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Note: I’m using the same intro for all of the articles in this series. Here are the links to the other articles in this series:

Offense

Quarterback

Tight End

Running Back

Offensive Tackle

Interior Offensive Line

Wide Receiver

Defense

Defensive Tackle

Defensive End

Linebacker

Corner / Nickleback

The NCAA announced they are moving forward with a rule change that eliminates redshirts and allows five seasons of eligibility as long as you are enrolled by the time you’re 19. This, in part, was a reaction to the influx of European professionals into college basketball last season. It also clears up the eligibility issues regarding junior college recruits after Diego Pavia received an additional year of eligibility through a court injunction. In theory, these new rules will take effect for any player who enrolls on or after January 1, 2027, while players who enroll before next year will get whichever set of rules is most beneficial for them.

To boil that down to its essence, athletes who played as “true freshmen” under the old system will get an extra year of eligibility, and JuCo players who spend 2 years in JuCo get 3 seasons of eligibility instead of 3 seasons to play 2.

You can read the press release from the NCAA here.

Safety

Eligibility Changes

John Slaughter, Ta’Vari Hampton, D’Mon Marable, and Vi’Naz Cobb will have an extra season of eligibility under the new rules.

Thoughts

One of Purdue’s strengths last season was the back end of its defense, with safety Tahj Ra-El finishing second on the team with tackles (110), which, in retrospect, might not be a good thing. Fellow safety Myles Slusher also chipped in an additional 62 tackles. As far as I know, Tahj Ra-El and Slusher will not return in 2026. Leaving Purdue with another complete back in rebuild.

While it’s always nice to have an experienced (with your defense) player on the backend, safeties are relatively easy to come by in the portal. Coach Odom and Kane brought in two experienced safeties in John Slaughter (via UTenn/Colo) and Jaden Mangham (via UMich/Mich St.) to provide certainty. If Slaughter and Mangham both win starting jobs, Purdue will be perfectly fine at safety, but they’re not the only options.

At 6’2”, 200 pounds, Slaughter is a prototypical strong safety who can play in the box against the run and menace receivers coming over the middle. He’s appeared in 34 games over the last three seasons, but only has three starts under his belt, all of which came last season for Colorado. He’s played a good bit of football, but not all at safety. I’m going to guess a good number of those appearances involved special teams. He’ll be the favorite to grab the starting strong safety job heading into camp. As an added bonus, Slaughter will receive an additional season of eligibility, making him more than a short-term rental.

He’s joined by Big 10 veteran safety Jaden Mangham, who has experienced both sides of the Michigan / Michigan State rivalry and now wants to see what’s going on with Purdue. Mangham is a rangy 6’2”, 195-pound safety who does his best work in the back end of the defense. Starting his career at Michigan State, Mangham was named All-Big 10 Honorable Mention as a sophomore for the Spartans, starting 10 games while putting up 53 tackles, defending 7 passes, and snagging 4 interceptions. He then promptly transferred to Michigan. In 2024, he appeared in only one game for the Wolverines and used his redshirt. Last season, he appeared in 13 games and made 5 starts for…whoever was coaching Michigan at the time. He ended up with 30 tackles, 2 tackles-for-loss, and 2 pass defenses and, I’m sure, some interesting stories. He’s looking to return to his Michigan State form in 2026 and is the favorite to win the starting job heading into camp. In fact, between Slaughter and Mangham, I’d be more surprised if Mangham doesn’t start.

The third transfer looking to crack the starting lineup is former Michigan State safety Justin Denson Jr. Denson Jr. was considered a solid 3* prospect coming out of Providence, Rhode Island, but based on his visit list (Florida, Oklahoma, Alabama, and Texas A&M), Denson Jr. was considered something more by some rather prominent college football coaches. Like Mangham, he’s more of a cover safety. He started off his college career at corner before moving back to safety. He played in 8 games as a true freshman but only appeared in three as a sophomore, due to unspecified circumstances. If someone outside of Mangham and Slaughter starts at safety, the smart bet is Denson Jr. sliding into the free safety spot while Mangham slides down to strong safety. Either way, expect to see Denson Jr. on the field a good bit in 2026, even if he’s not in the starting lineup.

Slaughter, Mangham, and Denson Jr. weren’t the only experienced safeties brought into the Boilermaker fold. Junior College transfers Dax Noles and Ta’Vari Hampton were both brought in to compete for the starting jobs and provide depth. Noles was named NJCAA D1 First Team All-American after his Iowa Western squad won the NJCAA D1 National Championship. At 6’0”, 200 pounds, he’s more of a box safety, and that plays out in his number from Iowa Western, where he was credited with 61 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 4 interceptions, and 2 forced fumbles. Meanwhile, Hampton was putting up crazy numbers at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M with 115 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, four interceptions, and defended 9 passes. He was named Second Team NJCAA All-American for his one season of junior college football. Hampton is a recruit for both the present and the future, with 4 seasons of eligibility remaining.

Safety is another example of Purdue, where Coach Odom has brought in several talented options to compete for the starting jobs in fall camp. This is another position that should be a fierce battle in fall camp. These 5 guys all came to Purdue to play, and in order to do that, they’re going to have to earn the starting job in practice. This is the type of competitive depth that pushes players to improve.

Moving Forward

In addition to bringing in Noles and Hampton in the 2026 class, Purdue also flipped in-state legacy Jett Goldsberry from Ole Miss late. At one point, Goldsberry was considered a 4* prospect, but that changed after he shredded his knee in a state playoff game. He’s a talented player who put up big numbers on both sides of the ball as both a quarterback and safety for Heritage Hills. Purdue can wait on him because they also brought in some immediate help at the position. When his knee returns to full health, Goldsberry is going to be a player to watch.

Goldsberry is joined in the 2026 class by Emoni Smith, who, at 6’1”, 180, could play either safety or corner for Purdue in the future. Smith, like Goldsberry, played on both sides of the ball in high school, as a running back and a defensive back. Don’t let his slender frame fool you; he was a tackling machine in high school, finishing his career with 328 tackles and 29 tackles for loss. Another player to store in your memory banks for future use.

The remaining member of the Boilermakers’ safety-heavy 2026 recruiting class is Dana Greenhow. Greenhow is on the smaller side at 6’0”, 175, and could play either safety or nickelback in the future. He’ll learn behind Smiley Bradford and Mister Clark this season.

Overall, I like how this coaching staff has balanced bringing in instant-impact transfers and juco guys with high school recruiting. Safety should continue to be a strength for Purdue moving forward.

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