No. 1 Purdue receiver: Taylor Stubblefield
BY CLIFF BRUNT
ISL Editor
Taylor Stubblefield left Purdue as college football’s all-time leader with 316 receptions.
He was 6-foot-1 and barely 180 pounds, but he made the most of his gifts.
He became the NCAA all-time leader thanks to Tiller’s pass-happy offense, Doug Griffiths, Indy Sports Legends correspondent and former Gold and Black editor, said.
“To his credit, he wasn’t recruited heavily out of high school primarily due to his size, yet emerged as one of the most prolific receivers college football has ever seen.”
Stubblefield caught nine passes for a Sun Bowl-record 196 yards in 2001. He caught 16 passes in two different games in 2003, then caught 89 passes for 1,095 yards and a school-record 16 touchdowns in 2004 on his way to being named an Associated Press All-American.
“He ran precise routes, had a great pair of hands, and also had the courage to catch the ball over the middle,” Purdue play-by-play man Tim Newton said.
So impressive was his receptions record that it stood until 2011, when Oklahoma’s Ryan Broyles finally caught up.
Stubblefield is perhaps best remembered for his 97-yard touchdown reception from Kyle Orton against Notre Dame in 2004 shown in the clip below. Purdue won the game 41-16. Video from YouTube username KatsTMill.
“Who will ever forget his long TD catch at Notre Dame in front of the Irish sideline as he celebrated en route to the end zone in Purdue’s blowout win?” Griffiths said.
