Gold and Black is a multi-platform media company that covers Purdue athletics like no one else.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/141859
p u r d u e f o o t b a l l Hall Of Fame Class Spans Three Centuries Nine to be inducted in September BY ALAN KARPICK AKarpick@GoldandBlack.com P urdue's 16th Hall of Fame class, which will be inducted on Sept. 28 following the Homecoming contest with Northern Illinois, spans almost the entire history of Purdue athletics. In a sense, it's a class of pioneers. In the late 19th century, Alpha Jamison helped put Boilermaker athletics on the map, while Dr. Carol Mertler was responsible for ushering in women's athletics in the 1970s. Of course, Joe Tiller's innovative football program changed the face of Big Ten football in the late 1990s. Willie Merriweather was a top player in the Big Ten in the early years of integration, performing with skill and style not seen often in Boilermaker annals. The 2013 class was chosen by a committee of Hall of Fame members, former student-athletes and current university administrators. Here's the breakdown: Tony Butkovich was a hero on and off the field. He was a oneyear sensation on the Boilermakers' undefeated 1943 team, a World War II transfer from the University of Illinois. Butkovich broke a 21-year-old Big Ten scoring record (78 points on 13 touchdowns) in nine games and rushed for 833 yards on 142 attempts, averaging 119 yards per game and 5.9 yards per carry for the season. A member of the U.S. Marine Corps, he was killed in action in Okinawa, Japan, in 1945. Alpha P. Jamison excelled as an athlete and coach and even as a professor in engineering. He was a star halfback and fullback for the football team, which was declared national champions in 1894 with its 9-1 record, running the famed flying wedge offense. He coached GBIprint.com GoldandBlack.com the football team from 1898-1900 and switched over to basketball and became the second head coach in Boilermaker history in 1900 and 1901. From 1895-1914, Jamison was an instructor and professor in engineering as well as an author of several textbooks. In 1915, Jamison was popularly acclaimed as Purdue's all-time greatest athlete to that point in history. He died in 1962. Matt Light was an All-America offensive lineman and two-time All-Big Ten selection, earning second-team honors in 1999 and a first-team selection in 2000. Light was drafted by the New England Patriots in 2001 and was a starter from his rookie year until his retirement in 2012. He was selected for the Pro Bowl in 2007 and 2008, helped the Patriots win three Super Bowls (XXXVI, XXXVII and XXXIX) and created the non-profit Light Foundation that assists youth. In July of 2012, he joined ESPN as an NFL analyst. Stacey Lovelace was a fouryear starter on the women's basketball team from 1993-1996. She holds school records with 13 double-doubles in a season and 27 for her career. Lovelace was a member of the 1994 Women's Final Four in addition to making first team WBCA All-American and Big Ten Player-of-the-Year in 1995. Lovelace played in the WNBA from 20002008 and presently serves as an assistant coach with the league's Tulsa Shock. Willie Merriweather was a three-year basketball letterwinner from 1957-1959. He was an All-American and team Most ValuGold and Black IllustrateD • volume 23, issue 6 • 67