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l a f a y e t t e s a v i n g s p r e s e n t s l a f a y e t t e l e g e n d : b r a n d o n v i l l a r r e a l For The Love Of The Game Villarreal giving back to football every day BY ALAN KARPICK AKarpick@GoldandBlack.com "One thing that was legendary was the way we used to laugh when we were together," Schweigert, Purdue's all-time tu Schweigert gets a chuckle out of the interceptions leaders, recalls about his notion that anything about Brandon relationship with Villarreal. "I remember Villarreal could be considered legendary. us both being laid up with injuries durAfter all, Villarreal was a solid player ing fall camp and lying in our beds at the for the Boilermakers, if not a standout. But Purdue Union and just looking at each legendary, as this feature suggests, that other. Then all of a sudden, we would look might be a bit much for Schweigert's for- at each other and break out in laughter. mer roommate. "We couldn't stop cracking up, and we do that today when we see each other. We still quote lines from the movie 'Billy Madison' when we see each other." Yet, on the football field, Schweigert respected Villarreal for being all business. Villarreal was truly one of the unsung players of the Joe Tiller Era. After arriving at Purdue in 2001 from Allen, Texas, the former defensive lineman took the typical path. He redshirted the first season but worked his way into the rotation as a redshirt freshman in 2002 and '03. But the genesis of his 876Tom Campbell mile journey from Texas to West Brandon Villarreal had several great memories as a Boilermaker from Lafayette came from someone he 2002-05. Four consecutive Old Oaken Bucket victories are on his list had never met. of highlights. S "I was fortunate to be able to get to the field and play behind some great players," Villarreal said. "But it was absolutely Drew Brees that got me interested in Purdue. I started collecting ESPN The Magazine when I was in high school and I remember there was a pullout in the magazine with Drew on it and it was just talk- ing about the kind of guy he was. I read the story and in that story they had other players and they all had black paint on the spot of their face where Drew had the birthmark. I thought that was cool." Like most kids who were raised Catholic, Villarreal grew up wanting to go to David Boudia, Olympic gold medalist EvEry AnglE. E v E r y P o s s i b i l i t y. Mobile banking FroM anywhere Local banking goes global with mobile banking at Lafayette Savings Bank. Their mobile app is perfect for my busy lifestyle—and yours. Check out mobile banking at Lafayette Savings Bank today. www.lsbank.com | 742-1064 GoldanDBlack express • volume 24, express 10 • 31