Purdue Football – 2026 Countdown to Kickoff – #94 – Rodney Lora

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ORLANDO, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 06: Rodney Lora #94 of the UCF Knights reaches for a tackle against Shimique Blizzard #9 of the North Carolina A&T Aggies during the game at FBC Mortgage Stadium on September 06, 2025 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Dustin Markland/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Rodney Lora​

*Note: Name links to official Purdue Bio.

BREAKING: UCF transfer DL Rodney Lora has signed with Purdue, @PeteNakos reportshttps://t.co/kSYG7dZ8sRpic.twitter.com/327HqKa4mV

— Transfer Portal (@TransferPortal) January 8, 2026

Bio​

Position: Defensive Tackle

Height: 6’3”

Weight: 310

Hometown: North Arlington, New Jersey

High School: Woodberry Forest

Recruiting Class: 2023

Former Team: UNC / UCF

Eligibility Remaining: Two Seasons

High School Recruiting Rankings: Rating: 3*(86.9) – National Rank: 746 – Position Rank: 78

Transfer Portal Rankings: Rating 3*(86.5) – National Rank: 858 – Position Rank: 86

High School​

• VISAA Division 1 first-team all-state
• First Team All-State discus and shot
• Virginia Gatorade Player of the Year in Track and Field in 2023

High School Highlights​

View Link

College Career​

2023 Season – UNC​

Redshirt

2024 Season – UNC​

• Appeared in 5 games with one start
• Tackles: 2

2025 Season – UCF​

• Appeared in 12 games
• Tackles: 22 – TFLs: 3.5 – Sacks: 1

College Highlights​

2026 – Season Outlook​

Depth / Defensive Tackle Rotation

Thoughts​

Lora should find his way into the defensive tackle rotation at Purdue this season after consistently playing at UCF last season. He was a sought-after defensive tackle prospect in the 2023 class with over 10 high-major offers (including Michigan and Indiana). He ended up at UNC and got caught up in the Belichick weirdness for two seasons before transferring to UCF. Bill wants fully developed players, and Lora wasn’t that when he arrived at UNC.

He stepped up for the Knights and played a key role in the defensive tackle rotation. His transfer hurt UCF because he was in line for a bigger role in 2026. Their loss, Purdue’s gain. Lora has the measurables that high-level D1 programs covet. He’s a big dude with sudden power who can move his feet a little. You can see that in his track achievements from high school. He would be on a college track and field team if he chose that route instead of football, as one of the best prep throwers in his class. That skill set tends to translate well to the defensive line. I’m going to bet Lora has what is referred to as “heavy hands”.

I see this is a 5-man defensive tackle rotation, and Lora will be competing with fellow transfers Curt Neal and Wisdom Simms for a spot on the 2-deep. In fact, it wouldn’t shock me if he worked his way into a starting job in fall camp; he was in line for a starting role at UCF before his transfer. Even if he doesn’t grab a spot on the 2-deep, I expect to see him on the field in what I expect to be more liberal substitutions on the defensive line this season. Purdue lost some talent on the interior defensive line but should have significantly more functional depth at the position in 2026. Hopefully that means fresh defensive tackles late in the game.

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