GBI Express

The Authority on Purdue Athletics volume 22, EX 28 • april 2, 2012 In this issue: What Was And What Might Have Been • Pages 1-4: The Class of 2007 • Pages 11–17: Latest Spring Football News • Page 19: Baseball Wins Series The legacy of Hummel, Johnson and Moore at Purdue is a great — but painful — one BY BRIAN NEUBERT BNeubert@GoldandBlack.com T he moment Robbie Hummel and E'Twaun Moore set foot on the hardwood for Purdue, it was crystal clear the two youngsters were destined for greatness at Purdue. The following season, after a year of development, classmate JaJuan Johnson made the same such statement. Those three didn't comprise the entirety of Matt Painter's 2007 signing class for the Boilermakers, but until the end of time in West Lafayette, the trio can be known as Purdue's "Class of '07." It was a group that transformed the Boilermaker program, a Upcoming GBI EXPRESS publishing schedule EX 29: April 16 EX 30: May 23 Dates subject to change. GBIprint.com GoldandBlack.com collection of highly touted recruits who chose Purdue during some of its darkest days — they committed to Painter's program after Purdue had won only nine games during an injury-wracked 2005-06 season — and went a long way in shepherding it back to its long-standing tradition of winning. Behind David Teague and Carl Landry, Purdue reached the NCAA Tournament in 2007, but could easily have slid backward again had it not been for Hummel, Moore and Johnson and the brilliant careers they'd go on to enjoy. "They were the ones who really started putting Purdue back on the map after a few tough seasons," former teammate Chris Kramer said. "They were the highly touted guys everybody was excited about and they lived up to the hype." Below, Gold & Black Illustrated examines what will be the lasting legacy of what we'll refer to as the Class of 2007 at Purdue. Tom Campbell Statistically, E'Twaun Moore, JaJuan Johnson and Robbie Hummel are among the best players to ever wear a Purdue uniform. They're among program leaders in points, rebounds and victories. But with Hummel's injuries, there's also a "what if" element to the Class of 2007. son all left the program ranking among its all-time finest players, with none standing out above the others. Debating which of the three was the best would be an exercise in futility. Moore is the third-leading scorer in school history, one of just five 2,000-point scorers to have ALL-TIME GREATS played at Purdue, and certainly Hummel, Moore and John- one of the top all-around players the Boilermakers have seen. But Hummel was one of just 18 players ever to be named firstteam All-Big Ten three times. But Johnson was a consensus All-American, one of college basketball's absolute top players as a senior in 2010-11, after which he became only the third player ever to be named both the Big Ten's Player-of-the-Year and its Defensive Player-of-the-Year. Assuming Hummel is named the team's MVP later this week at the program's postseason banquet, all three will have earned the distinction. "They all had their own thing that they were the best at," former teammate and long-time Purdue fan Bobby Riddell said. "In terms of the best overall, I don't think I can answer that. That's why they were so good. One guy would be Gold & Black IllustrateD • volume 22, express 28  •  1

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