Continuing Countdown of Purdue’s Greatest . . . BTN
An underrated aspect of Joe Tiller’s coaching prowess was his ability to shift players into positions that not only would help Purdue football win games but also prepare them in some cases for NFL careers.
That trait shows up in this week’s countdown of the best Boilermakers by number. Of the five Tiller players on this list, all played in the NFL and two were at different positions than when they came to West Lafayette.
This week’s countdown also features one of four Purdue players to have been a three-time first-team All-Big Ten selection.
51
Joe Odom
Odom was an athletic middle linebacker who started alongside Gilbert Gardner and Landon Johnson for the 2000 Big Ten champions. All three, incidentally, played in the NFL.
Odom’s junior year in 2001 was his best statistically with 78 tackles and three interceptions. He went on to play three seasons with the Chicago Bears, who took Odom as a sixth-round pick in 2003.
52
Jack Calcaterra
Calcaterra didn’t play for Tiller but he put the team first before his senior season in 1966, when he agreed to play offensive tackle after starting two seasons at middle guard.
Calcaterra helped shore up an offensive line that protected Bob Griese and opened holes for sophomore fullback Perry Williams and a deep running back corps. The Boilermakers went on to claim the school’s first Rose Bowl berth and finished 9-2 under Jack Mollenkopf.
53
Shaun Phillips
Phillips came to Purdue as a tight end, hoping to catch passes from Drew Brees. Instead, he followed the footsteps of two players in this countdown and became one of Tiller’s most outstanding defensive ends.
Phillips started 49 consecutive games, capped by a senior season in 2003 that saw him record 14.5 sacks. Phillips earned first-team All-Big Ten and second-team All-America honors. He went to the San Diego Chargers in the fourth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. In 11 seasons, Phillips accumulated 81.5 sacks, seven interceptions, three touchdowns and 10 fumble recoveries.
54
Chike Okeafor
Decades before George Karlaftis, Chike Okeafor was the must-have recruit from West Lafayette High School. And like Karlaftis, Okeafor spurned Michigan, among many other offers, to stay home at Purdue.
Joe Tiller suspended Okeafor for the 1997 season, which in hindsight turned out to be best for both the player and the team. Okeafor moved from linebacker to defensive end for his fifth-year senior season in 1998. The rush tandem of Okeafor and Rosevelt Colvin helped the Boilermakers sack opposing quarterbacks 31 times.
Okeafor was credited with three and a half sacks of Kansas State All-American quarterback Michael Bishop during Purdue’s upset of the fourth-ranked Wildcats in the Alamo Bowl. That performance helped Okeafor land in San Francisco as a third-round draft pick of the 49ers. Okeafor played 11 seasons in the NFL and recorded 53 career sacks.
55
Gregg Bingham
Yet another member of the 1969 recruiting class that yielded Otis Armstrong, Darryl Stingley, Dave Butz and four other NFL Draft picks.
Bingham twice was selected first-team All-Big Ten at middle guard and led Purdue with 89 tackles as a senior. Bingham went in the fourth round of the 1973 NFL Draft to the Houston Oilers. In 12 seasons, Bingham started 173 regular season games at linebacker. His career statistics include 21 interceptions and 14 fumble recoveries.
56
Chukky Okobi
Purdue was the only scholarship offer coming out of high school for Okobi, who repaid coach Joe Tiller by becoming a four-year starter at guard and center.
After earning second-team All-Big Ten honors as a sophomore, Okobi moved to center to anchor the 2000 offensive line that would start five future NFL players. Okobi played eight seasons in the NFL, earning a Super Bowl ring with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
57
Ed Flanagan
Flanagan put on 40 pounds between his freshman and sophomore years at Purdue. The future four-time Pro Bowl center for the Detroit Lions built himself into becoming a second-team All-Big Ten performer for the Boilermakers in 1964.
Flanagan would be a starter for 12 NFL seasons, the final two with the San Diego Chargers.
58
Kevin Motts
The second-team All-Big Ten middle linebacker owns one of the oldest records at Purdue, recording 520 tackles from 1976 to 1979.
The next closest Boilermaker to Motts’ record was Fred Strickland, who fell 41 tackles shy.
59
Rosevelt Colvin
Speaking of record holders, Colvin set the Purdue standards for single season sacks (15) as a senior in 1998 and career sacks (35).
Colvin was a three-year starter at defensive end and was selected first-team All-Big Ten as a junior and a senior. He would go on to earn two Super Bowl rings with the New England Patriots during a 10-year NFL career that included stops in Chicago and Houston.
60
Chuck Kyle
Kyle was a first-team All-Big Ten middle guard each of his three varsity seasons from 1966-68.
He closed out his collegiate career with a memorable performance against Indiana. Kyle made 27 tackles, 14 of them solo, to wrap up consensus All-America honors.
Next time: A walk-on turned NFL starter and a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
A tale of two schedules
Only Maryland has a softer Big Ten football schedule than Indiana in 2025, according to Tom Fornelli of CBSSports.com.
Meanwhile, Purdue once again will have one of the league’s most difficult slates, ranking second behind Wisconsin in Fornelli’s opinion.
“I’m not optimistic things will be much better in 2025, even with a new coach and a nearly brand-new roster,” Fornelli writes of the Boilermakers. “The most ‘winnable’ conference games are Minnesota and Northwestern, and they’re both on the road.”
Playing Fornelli’s easiest Big Ten schedule a year ago, Indiana went 11-2 and reached the College Football Playoffs. Old Dominion, Kennesaw State and Indiana State “should be snoozefests,” according to Fornelli. Unlike 2024, the Hoosiers will be tested early at home against Illinois and trips to Iowa and Oregon, albeit with a bye week in between.
Imagine a few years ago any national writer would state that the home Big Ten slate of Michigan State, UCLA and Wisconsin “seems very manageable,” in Fornelli’s opinion.
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti is unapologetic about the Hoosiers’ 2025 non-conference schedule and the school writing a $500,000 check to cancel a future two-game series with Virginia.
The mighty Kennesaw State Owls will replace Virginia on the schedule in 2027, and according to FBSchedules.com, Austin Peay will be paid $400,000 to take the 2028 date.
Meanwhile, Purdue keeps its checkbook closed. Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Indiana State are scheduled for 2026. The Fighting Irish remain on the schedule in 2027 and 2028 as well. North Carolina and Miami (Ohio) are on the 2027 slate, and the 2028 schedule includes a trip to Wake Forest and a tentative opening day game against Western Illinois.
“So we figured we would just adopt SEC scheduling philosophy, you know,” Cignetti said during Big Ten media days, a not so subtle jab at the SEC playing eight conference games unlike the Big Ten’s nine. For example, Alabama welcomes Eastern Illinois to Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa on Nov. 22.
Other notable SEC games that weekend include Mercer at Auburn, Charlotte at Georgia, Western Kentucky at LSU, Coastal Carolina at South Carolina and Samford at Texas A&M.
Purdue and Indiana are enjoying their second bye weeks on Nov. 22 in preparation for the Friday night, Nov. 28 Old Oaken Bucket game at Ross-Ade Stadium.