GoldandBlack.coms top athletes: No. 2
Anationalchampion,aprofessionaldraftpick,All-Americans,All-BigTenselectionsandsomeconferencechampionshighlightourannuallistofPurdue'sathletes-of-the-year.
WecontinueourlistwithKawannShortatNo.2,asGoldandBlack.comtakesasubjectivelookatthetop10Boilermakersfrom2012-13.
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Bio:Dominantdefensivetacklewhoanchoredlineasasenior
Summary:Shortwasfullyawareofhislimitations.
WithhissightssetonbeingahighNFLdraftpick,Shortknewhe'dhavetoshowscoutsandhispotentialbossestherewasahighermotorresidingwithinhis300-plus-poundframe.
Sohewenttoworkintheoffseasonleadingintohissenioryeartogetinbettershape,evenskippingfastfoodmealsandparkinghiscarfartherawaytohavetowalklongdistancestoclasses.
Hiseffortledtodominantperformancesearlyintheseason-hehadfoursacksinthefirstfourgamesandaneight-tacklegameagainstMichiganinWeek5-whileexhibitingarelentlessattack.Healsohadthreeblockedkicksinthatfive-gamespan.
But,then,thosearoundhimonPurdue'sdefensivelinestartedtogethurt.Frequentlyandconsistently.Asaresult,Shortrarelyleftthefield.HisowninjuryknockedhimoutoftheMinnesotagame.
Hestartedtotakeplaysoffagain,tryingtoconserveenergybecausehewasgettingsomanysnaps.
Ultimately,hethinksthatcosthimhearinghisnamecalledintheNFL'sfirstround.Butitdidn'tstophimfromstillhavingastrongseasontofinishhiscareer.
Shortfinishedtheseasonwith15.5tacklesforaloss,includingsevensacks,andwasnamedasecondteamAPAll-American.
"IfeellikeIdidaprettygoodjob,"Shortsaid."Itwasn't100percent.Itwasmorelike93percent.ButIfeltlikeIdidagoodjobandIfeltlikeIchangedalotofideasinpeople'smindasfarasguysIplayedwithandguysoutsidetheroom.Ididalotofpositivethingsthisyear."
Monthslater,ShortwasselectedbytheCarolinaPanthersinthesecondroundofthedraft.
"Noteverybodygetsdrafted,soyou'vegottocherishthat,"Shortsaidathisdraftparty."Thisissomethingthat'salwaysgoingtobepartofme.It'swhatIexpected,asfarasgettingdrafted.Iworkedhardforthis.It'sjustagoodfeeling.
"I'vegotajobnow.There'sstillalotofthingsbehindme.That'sprobablyoneofthereasonsIdidn'tjustgofirstround,justtheinconsistencyandthemotor.Over31teamsskippedme,sogoinginwiththeCarolinaPanthersnowandplayingagainstanyotherteam,I'vegottodestroyit."
Analysis:Short'sfaceisplasteredonabannerinMollenkopfnow,joiningtherestoftheprogram'sAll-Americans.
"Thatwasagoalatthebeginningoftheyear,justtogetmyfacenexttoRyanKerrigan's,mysmilenexttoRyanKerrigan's,"Shortsaid,smiling.
HecertainlycementedhimselfasoneofPurdue'sall-timegreats.
Thoughnoofficialrecordsarekept,Short's50careerstartsarethoughttobeamongtheschool'smost.Hissixfieldgoalblocksaremorethananyplayerinschoolhistory.Healsohastwoextrapointblocks.
His49tacklesforalossrankNo.7alltime.His19.5sacksrankeighthonthecareerlist.
Countdown:
No.10:TeroneJohnson
No.9:DreyMingo
No.8:A.J.Hammons
No.7:DaniBunch
No.6:SamOstarello
No.5:ArielTurner
No.4:GeoffDavis
No.3:PaulaReto
No.2:KawannShort
No.1:Friday
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