Chubba Purdy creating his own legacy

Junior quarterback Chubba Purdy scrambles for a touchdown on Sept 14, the pumas won that game 70-40 and will take on Chandler for the state championship game Dec. 1.

Annie Brown

Junior quarterback Chubba Purdy scrambles for a touchdown on Sept 14, the pumas won that game 70-40 and will take on Chandler for the state championship game Dec. 1.

Having a sibling can prove to be difficult, but having a sibling who used to dominate in the same playing field is even harder.

The last name “Purdy” is a well-known name across campus due to the impact the name has on the football field. The boys who display the names on their backs are Junior quarterback Chubba Purdy and his brother, Brock Purdy.

Brock graduated last year, allowing Chubba to step up to the throne and make a name for himself.

But it seems like there are still many who label him as simply ‘the little brother.’

“I’m sort of used to it now,” Chubba states. “Brock was the face of the program at Perry, for football, and everything. He really helped them out. I just ignore that and keep doing what I’m doing.”

While the two did share the title of quarterback, their traits are completely separate from one another.

“His [Chubba] size and strength is one thing that he has over some of the other quarterbacks that I’ve coached in the past,” Coach Preston Jones said. “They are two totally separate guys; they share the last name but that’s about the only thing they share in common.”

The combination of speed and accuracy marks him as a 2-way threat. With a total of 21 rush touchdowns this year alone, along with a complete set of 1014 yards, his name increasingly grows larger.

Like everybody else, Chubba continues to improve throughout his years of playing football.

“I think his decision making, reading defenses, knowing what to do, and who to get the ball to has gotten much better. And just overall knowledge of offense,” Jones remarks.

The improvements he continues to make will help guide him through his next oncoming challenge, the final game against Chandler High School.

“I’m just really focused on this game coming up for state, because last year we lost by 7 points to Chandler [in the final],” Chubba said. “This year we’ve really had a success as a team together and I really think that this year we have a shot to beat them.”

Throughout the entire week the team has been preparing during practices, gearing up to be ready for the opponent they fell prey to last year. They have landed themselves in the same spot that they originally stood in.

Chubba showed no signs of being nervous. “We’re used to it. We always play Chandler. I don’t think varsity’s ever beat Chandler before,” he continued. “If we were to beat them in state, that would be awesome because that would be our first time.”

The younger Purdy shoots for gold with every throw and will no doubt speed across the field at ASU to bring home what could be a victory.