Garrick McGee's Familiarity With Jeff Brohm, Big Ten Made Joining Purdue a Simple Choice

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — For assistant coach Garrick McGee, coming to Purdue to oversee the team's wide receivers under head coach Jeff Brohm was an easy decision.

McGee spent the last two seasons with the Florida football program, serving as the quarterbacks coach for the Gators in 2021. But he and Brohm have experience working together going back as far as 10 years ago.

“Because of our head coach, it’s as simple as that," McGee said. "I know him. I know how organized, detailed (he is). I know how passionate he is about winning football. We’ve been in contact a lot before any of this came up just about how things work.”

Brohm spent one season as the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator at UAB back in 2012 when McGee was the head coach of the Dragons' football program. Both coaches also have ties to former Louisville football coach Bobby Petrino.

McGee was the associate head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Cardinals for two seasons during Petrino's second stint with the program between 2014 and 2015. Brohm served Petrino in a variety of roles at Louisville from 2003 to 2008.

Now, Brohm and McGee have reunited for the Boilermakers after the departure of the team's former wide receivers coach JaMarcus Shepphard to the Washington football program.

As McGee prepares for his first football season with Purdue, he brings along with him Big Ten experience. He has made stops in the conference at both Northwestern and Illinois during his coaching career.

“I understand what the Big Ten is,” McGee said.

The Tulsa, Oklahoma, native shared his appreciation for the conference, touting its physicality, especially at the end of the year when temperatures drop and the weather becomes unpredictable.

And with a background in coaching quarterbacks, McGee brings an extra dynamic to his tutelage of the team's wide receivers. He understands just what's going through a passer's head and can break down plays through the eyes of a quarterback.

"Just him having that history helps the receiver up their game a little bit more," Purdue wide receiver Tyrone Tracy said. "Just being a complete receiver, and being a QB's best friend."

During spring practices, McGee has been working with several young players, alongside transfers Tracy (Iowa) and Elijah Canion (Auburn) at wide receiver. Veterans Broc Thompson, Mershawn Rice and TJ Sheffield have all been rehabbing from injuries suffered during the 2021 season, and Milton Wright continues to turn his attention toward regaining academic eligibility.

The more experienced group has still been around the team despite being unable to participate fully in drills, and they have even taken time to catch passes from quarterback Aidan O'Connell after practice.

Once Purdue's wide receivers are back at full strength, it will boast several players that can contribute on any given week. It's a luxury that hasn't often been present within the program in recent years, as the likes of David Bell and Rondale Moore contributed heavily to the offense's success.

“I’ve watched all the film. There’s a bunch of guys in there,” McGee said. “I think it could be different where the last few years, we’ve had one guy that was elite and a bunch of really good players.

“This year, I think we have more really good players than what we’ve had. So the ball could be spread around and give the defense more problems, because we have six or seven guys that are all high-level Big Ten players.”

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