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Reports: Shephard leaving to reunite with former WKU boss at Purdue

JaMarcus Shephard
JaMarcus Shephard (USA Today)

Washington State inside receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard came to Pullman in January from Western Kentucky, so when former Hilltoppers coach Jeff Brohm was recently named Purdue head coach, he figured to offer Shephard a job on the Boilermakers staff.

He did, and Shephard accepted the offer.

According to multiple reports, including Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports, Shepard has decided to leave the Washington State staff after one season and head to the Midwest to coach in the Big Ten.

His departure creates the first vacancy for the 2017 WSU staff.

Shephard served two seasons (2014-15) under Brohm as the receivers coach at Western Kentucky. When Brohm was WKU's offensive coordinator and QB coach in 2013 under Bobby Petrino, Shephard was employed as an offensive quality control assistant who worked closely with Brohm on a daily basis.

So, it's no surprise Brohm contacted Shephard after he got the Purdue job.

Another factor in Shephard's decision: he is a native of Fort Wayne, Ind. not far from the Purdue campus in West Lafayette, IN and has spent a significant portion of his life in the Hoosier State. He began his coaching career in 2005 working with wide receivers at Northrop High School in Fort Wayne followed by a year at Broad Ripple High School in Indianapolis, where he worked with receivers and defensive backs. He moved to his alma mater, DePauw University, in 2007.

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