To help commemorate the 20-year anniversary of Purdue's magical turnaround 1997 season, GoldandBlack.com's staff will break up the rosters and select the best players to wear a Boilermaker uniform since Coach Joe Tiller's first season on the sidelines.
GoldandBlack.com's 20-year Purdue player draft will have 100 players chosen — two picks each weekday over weeks. Boilermakers who were on Purdue rosters between 1997-2017 are eligible for selection. The draft order is Alan Karpick, Stacy Clardie, Kyle Charters and Brian Neubert.
Clardie's 12th-round selection is next.
Draft ticker: No. 1-45
Was set on taking defensive end Ray Edwards at this pick but then talked myself out of it because everyone else already has two DEs, so I'm hoping I can wait while I grab (hopefully) a couple playmakers on offense.
That starts with receiver Greg Orton as my 12th-round selection. This pick moved up because Alan just took Keith Smith and I only had two other receivers I really wanted left on my list. Orton was one of them.
His numbers speak volumes: He's fifth on the all-time receptions list with 203 and sixth in career receiving yards with 2,356.
But, as each of us seems to have talked about at points throughout the draft, there certainly are other elements that play key factors into our selections, whether it's personality or physical build, etc.
I love Orton's size (6-4, 200) on the outside, and his athleticism and strength combo means he can — and did — go up and catch balls over DBs. I feel comfortable he will make plays anywhere on the field for my offense.
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