published on June 04, 2024 in celeb

The best player to wear every jersey number at Purdue since 1952

Chad Austin or Carsen Edwards? Carl Landry or Ryan Cline? Joe Barry Carroll or Cuonzo Martin?

These are just some of the questions you have to answer if you want to determine the best player to wear each jersey number at Purdue.

Recorded history of jersey numbers goes back only so far into Boilermakers lore. The Purdue media guide lists numbers since the 1951-52 season, so John Wooden, Charles Murphy, Paul Hoffman and other greats from the first half of the 20th century are out of the discussion. However, a boatload of great players have come through West Lafayette in the past 70 years, so it still makes for interesting discussions.

Let those debates begin.

0: Willie Deane

Deane was the Boilermakers’ go-to scorer on one of Gene Keady’s last teams, averaging 17.3 points per game to earn third-team All-Big Ten honors in 2001-02 and 17.8 per game to make the first team in 2002-03. The 6-foot-1 native of Schenectady, N.Y., hit 137 3-pointers, dished out 218 assists and had 130 steals in his career, proving he was about more than just buckets. He led Keady to his final NCAA Tournament berth in 2003.

Honorable mention: Terone Johnson, Jon Octeus

1: Anthony Johnson

This number doesn’t even go back 15 years in program history, and it hasn’t produced too much. Johnson averaged 5.4 points and 2.1 rebounds on the 2012 team that won 22 games, including an NCAA Tournament game.

2: David Teague

Matt Painter relied on Teague heavily when he took over the program from Keady, and the two got to an NCAA Tournament in Teague’s senior year. He made second-team All-Big Ten that season, and he averaged double figures in each of his past three seasons and ranks 26th in career scoring in the program with 1,378 points.

3: Carsen Edwards

Edwards authored one of the greatest performances in NCAA Tournament history in 2019, dropping 42 points in a win over Villanova to send Purdue to the Sweet 16, then scoring 42 again on a stingy Virginia defense a week later in a thrilling overtime loss in the Elite Eight. Those two games were just part of a sensational junior season for Edwards in which he averaged 24.3 points per game, hit a school-record 135 3-pointers and earned All-America honors for the second straight season. He left for the NBA after his third season but still finished seventh all-time at Purdue with 1,920 points.

Honorable mention: Chad Austin, Chris Kramer, P.J. Thompson

4: Robbie Hummel

Hummel was the most versatile of the Baby Boilers, who built Painter’s first great teams at Purdue. The 6-8, 215-pounder helped lead the Boilermakers to 25 wins and an NCAA Tournament berth as a freshman and the Sweet 16 as a sophomore and had them ready for a national championship push as a junior when he tore his ACL late in the regular season. He suffered another tear in the preseason of his senior year, redshirted and returned to average 16.4 points per game as a senior. He ranks 10th all-time at Purdue in scoring (1,772 points), fifth in rebounds (862), seventh in 3-pointers (216) and 10th in steals (132).

Honorable mention: Kyle Macy

5: Keaton Grant

Grant arrived at Purdue just before Hummel, E’Twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson, and although he wasn’t as prolific as any of them, he was still a key cog in four NCAA Tournament teams. He averaged 11.2 points per game as a sophomore and finished with 1,031 career points. His 177 3-pointers rank 11th all-time in school history.

10: Rick Mount

Mount is the ultimate Purdue legend. In three seasons, his scoring average never dipped below 28.4 points per game and he cracked 30 as both a junior and senior. Fifty years after he graduated, his career scoring average (32.3 points per game) and career points (2,323) remain school records, even though he played before freshman eligibility and the 3-point line. A three-time All-American and a two-time first-team All-American, Mount led the Boilermakers to their first Final Four in 1969. They’ve been back to just one since.

Honorable mention: Woody Austin

11: Keith Edmonson

As a sophomore, Edmonson stepped up to give Purdue a perimeter scoring threat to go with Joe Barry Carroll and helped lead the Boilermakers to their last Final Four in 1980. After that, he helped usher in the Gene Keady era with 17.3 points per game as a junior and 21.2 points per game as a senior, helping those teams make back-to-back NIT appearances. A third-team All-Big Ten pick in 1981 and a first-teamer in 1982, Edmonson ranks 11th all-time at Purdue with 1,717 points.

Honorable mention: Larry Weatherford, Eugene Parker, Matt Waddell, Austin Parkinson, P.J. Thompson

12: Vincent Edwards

The 6-8, 225-pound Edwards is one of the great stat-sheet stuffers in program history. He’s one of just five players with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 250 assists. He ranks 16th in career scoring (1,638 points), eighth in rebounds (779), 11th in assists (403) and 13th in 3-pointers (173). He helped lead Purdue to 104 wins in his four seasons, four NCAA Tournament berths, two Sweet 16s and the 2017 Big Ten title.

Honorable mention: Matt Painter, Maynard Lewis, Kelsey Barlow

Robinson averaged 30.3 points per game in 1994. (Gary Mook / Getty)

13: Glenn Robinson

The Big Dog’s two seasons were as dominant as any in recent vintage in college basketball. The 6-8 dynamo averaged 27.5 points and 9.7 rebounds per game in his career and averaged 30.3 points and 10.1 rebounds in 1994, when he was named the consensus National Player of the Year and led the Boilermakers to the Elite Eight. He scored 1,706 points in those two seasons; his 1,030 points in 1994 set a school record that still stands.

14: Carl Landry

Painter also relied on Landry heavily in the early phase of his tenure, and the 6-7, 245-pound transfer from Vincennes responded by averaging 18.4 points and 7.1 rebounds per game over three seasons. An ACL tear cost him most of a full season, but he still was named to the All-Big Ten team twice, scoring 1,175 points and grabbing 453 rebounds in just 64 career games.

Honorable mention: Ryan Cline

15: Jim Bullock

The 6-6 wing finally got a full-time starting job as a senior in 1984-85 and used it to average 14.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He finished his career with 938 points and 538 rebounds.

Honorable mention: Alan Eldridge

20: Bruce Parkinson

Parkinson still holds school records for career assists (690), career assists per game (6.16) and single-season assists per game (7.39), in 1975. He also averaged 10.9 points per game for his career and grabbed 476 career rebounds.

Honorable mention: Brian Walker, A.J. Hammons, Kenneth Lowe, Nojel Eastern

21: Everette Stephens

Stephens, one of the Three Amigos, broke into the starting lineup as a junior and helped lead the Boilermakers to back-to-back Big Ten titles in 1987 and ’88. He averaged more than 12 points per game in each of those seasons and finished with 1,044 points to go with 481 assists, a figure that puts him third all-time.

Honorable mention: D.J. Byrd, Ricky Hall

22: Joe Barry Carroll

The 7-foot Carroll carried the Boilermakers to the Final Four in 1980 and a share of the Big Ten title and the NIT final the year before. Coach Lee Rose’s offense focused on getting him the ball. Everyone knew he was getting it, yet he still averaged 22.8 points per game as a junior and 22.3 per game as a senior. He was named an All-American both seasons and a consensus first-teamer as a senior. He is still Purdue’s second all-time leading scorer with 2,175 points and all-time leader in rebounds (1,148) and blocked shots (349). He was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1980 NBA Draft.

Honorable mention: Cuonzo Martin, Jaraan Cornell, Bob Ford

23: Troy Lewis

Lewis, another member of the Three Amigos, is one of the most dynamic guards in Purdue history. He averaged double-figures in all four of his seasons, finishing fifth all-time with 2,038 points, an average of 16.4 points per game. The 3-point line wasn’t instituted until his junior year, but he hit 151 3-pointers in his final two seasons. The 100 3s he hit in 1988 stood as the school record until Carsen Edwards and Ryan Cline broke it in 2019. The two-time first-team All-Big Ten pick also ranks 13th in school history with 398 assists.

Honorable mention: Dennis Blind, William Franklin, Mike Scearce, Porter Roberts, Lewis Jackson

24: Mel Garland

The 6-1 Garland averaged 17.5 points per game over his three-year career, finishing with 1,243 career points. He was a first-team All-Big Ten pick in 1963 when he went off for 21.6 points per game.

Honorable mention: Billy Keller, Jerry Sichting, Mike Robinson, Ryne Smith, Grady Eifert

25: JaJuan Johnson

Johnson starred alongside Hummel and helped carry the Boilermakers in his absence. The 6-10 center averaged double figures in each of his last three seasons and averaged 20.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in 2011 to be named Big Ten Player of the Year and a first-team All-American. He still ranks eighth all-time in scoring (1,919 points), seventh in rebounds (854) and third in blocked shots (263).

Honorable mention: Steve Reid, Tony Jones, Bob Purkhiser

30: Herman Gilliam

Gilliam, a 6-3 wing, averaged 16.0 points and 9.1 rebounds per game over three seasons, posting 29 career double-doubles, and helped Rick Mount lead the Boilermakers to the Final Four in 1969. He was drafted twice, going in the 13th round in 1968 before deciding to return for his senior season. After that, he went No. 8 overall to the Cincinnati Royals in 1969.

Honorable mention: Mark Atkinson

Painter calls Mathias the best passer he has ever coached. (Raj Mehta / USA Today Sports)

31: Dakota Mathias

Painter recruited Mathias because he considered him the best shooter in the Midwest in his class. He became the best passer Painter ever coached and a two-time All-Big Ten defender. Mathias scored 1,140 career points, he ranks second all-time with 250 3-pointers and he shot more than 45 percent from 3-point range as both a junior and senior. He also ranks 10th all-time in assists with 408 and fourth all-time in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.67. He played in four NCAA Tournaments and back-to-back Sweet 16s to end his career.

Honorable mention: Harvey Austin, Drake Morris

32: Jimmy Oliver

The 6-6 wing came off the bench to help the 1990 Boilermakers to the NCAA Tournament, then starred on the 1991 team that also made it to the Big Dance. Oliver averaged 19.2 points per game that season and was named first-team All-Big Ten.

Honorable mention: Henry Ebershoff, Tom Scheffler, Kevin Stallings, Greg McQuay, Matt Haarms

33: E’Twaun Moore

Moore ranks third all-time with 2,136 points and he’s the only Boilermaker with at least 2,000 points, 600 rebounds (611) and 400 assists (400). He averaged double-figures in all four of his seasons and averaged 15.3 points per game in his career. Each of the teams he played on won at least 25 games and at least one NCAA Tournament game. He was named All-Big Ten in all four seasons, first-team as a junior and a senior.

Honorable mention: Robert Fehrman, George Faerber, Drake Morris, Todd Mitchell, Justin Jennings

34: Walter Jordan

A 6-8 forward from Fort Wayne, Ind., Jordan was a double-double machine in the mid-70s, posting 27 of them and averaging 16.6 points and 8.1 rebounds for his career. The two-time first-team All-Big Ten pick is the program’s ninth all-time leading scorer with 1,813 points and its fourth-leading rebounder with 882. He shot 47.9 percent from the field for his career and better than 70 percent from the line, and he managed more than 2.0 assists per game in his career.

Honorable mention: Frank Kendrick

35: Brian Cardinal

Cardinal’s early-onset hairline recession made him the butt of old-age jokes for much of his time at Purdue, but the career of the 6-8, 235-pound Boilermaker remains a testament to his versatility. He could score in the post and on the perimeter, finishing with 1,584 points, hitting 130 3-pointers and shooting 76.1 percent at the line. He could also rebound on both ends (749 rebounds), pass (277 assists) and defend, recording 99 blocks and 259 steals, second all-time. Cardinal helped the Boilers reach three Sweet 16s and the Elite Eight in 2000.

Honorable mention: Carl McNulty, Melvin McCants, Rapheal Davis

40: Russell Cross

The 6-10 Cross stepped into the middle to replace Joe Barry Carroll on Gene Keady’s first team and scored more points than any other freshman in Purdue history, averaging 16.9 points per game. He averaged double figures in all three of his seasons, averaging 16.4 points per game for his career and scoring 1,529 points. He also grabbed 622 rebounds, dished out 100 assists and ranks fourth all-time with 175 blocks. He was the No. 6 pick in the 1983 NBA Draft after being named first-team All-Big Ten that season.

Honorable mention: Donald Beck, Wayne Walls

41: Jim Rowinski

Rowinski never averaged more than 15 minutes per game in his first three seasons, but as a senior in 1984 he was named Big Ten MVP by the Chicago Tribune and a first-team all-conference pick. He helped carry Purdue to a share of the Big Ten title, averaging 15.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

42: Dave Schellhase

Schellhase was a first-team All-Big Ten pick in all three years of eligibility and a two-time All-American in the mid-1960s, finishing with a career double-double with 28.8 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. He ranks fourth all-time in points (2,074) and second behind Mount in scoring average. His 32.5 points per game in the 1965-66 season are the third-highest figure in school history and the highest by anyone other than Mount. The 6-4, 205-pounder is also one of just four Boilermakers to average double-figure rebounds in a career.

Honorable mention: Brandon Brantley, Matt Kiefer

Dischinger was a three-time All-American. (Bettmann Archive / Getty)

43: Terry Dischinger

At 6-7, 190 pounds, Dischinger would be a small forward in modern basketball, but he was the most dominant center in the Big Ten in the early ’60s. A three-time All-American, he never averaged under 26 points or under 13 rebounds per game. He finished with career averages of 28.3 points, which ranks third in program history, and 13.7 rebounds, a school record.

Honorable mention: Willie Merriweather, Carson Cunningham

44: Isaac Haas

The 7-2, 290-pound Haas was the immovable object around which back-to-back Sweet 16 teams were built in 2017 and ’18. A third-team All-Big Ten pick in 2018, Haas finished with 1,555 career points, made 58.9 percent of his field goals and blocked 124 shots to rank eighth all-time.

Honorable mention: Roosevelt Barnes

45: Arnette Hallman

The 6-7, 205-pound Hallman was the springy power forward the Boilermakers put next to Carroll on the 1980 Final Four team. He didn’t shoot much, averaging 8.4 points per game for his career, but he grabbed 5.4 rebounds per game and blocked 49 shots.

Honorable mention: Greg Eifert

50: Caleb Swanigan

A McDonald’s All-American and Indiana Mr. Basketball, “Biggie” arrived with as much hype as any Boilermaker in recent memory and lived up to it in two seasons. As a sophomore he averaged 18.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, dished out 100 assists and knocked down 38 3-pointers on 85 attempts. The 6-9, 250-pounder was named Big Ten Player of the Year and a first-team All-American, carrying the Boilermakers to a Big Ten title and a Sweet 16 before entering the NBA Draft.

Honorable mention: Trevion Williams

51: Bill Jones

Jones had issues with academic eligibility and played in only 33 games in three seasons, but when he played he was extremely effective. The 6-8 big man averaged 9.6 points and 11.4 rebounds in his career, averaging double-digit rebounds in every season.

52: Brad Miller

Miller is the only Boilermaker to wear this number in the last 70 years, but the 6-11, 235-pounder did it proud. The three-time All-Big Ten pick came off the bench for two Big Ten title teams, then started for the 1997-98 team that reached the Sweet 16. He finished with 1,530 points and 862 rebounds, which ties him for fifth with Robbie Hummel on the all-time list.

53: Todd Schoettelkotte

Schottelkotte scored just 21 points in 25 games, but he’s the only Boilermaker to wear No. 53.

54: John Allison

Allison averaged just under 10 points per game in his last two seasons and more than five rebounds per game after getting limited time off the bench in his first two seasons. He made 57 percent of his shots for his career, cracking the 60 percent mark as a senior.

Honorable mention: Craig Riley

55: John Garrett

The 6-11 center was a second-team All-Big Ten pick in 1974 and a first-team selection in 1975, averaging double figures in all three of his seasons and a double-double as a senior. He finished with career averages of 19.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and career totals of 1,620 points and 730 rebounds, putting him in the top 20 in scoring and top 10 in rebounding.

Honorable mention: Stephen Scheffler, Sasha Stefanovic

(Top photo of Rick Mount: Associated Press)

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