Clopton Ready to Complete Career

Chris Clopton’s teammates laughed the first time he stepped onto Purdue’s practice field, and that’s understandable. His baby face and a 5-foot-7 frame that carried less than 170 pounds made him look like a lost Boy Scout.

“They were like, ‘Who is this guy?’ I still get that from some of the guys,” he said. “They never thought I’d be where I am. They thought, ‘This kid is going to clean my shoes.’ ”

Instead of cleaning cleats he has shone on the field and today will start his last game at right cornerback for the Boilermakers. “These past four years have gone by real fast,” said Clopton, who ranks second on Purdue’s career kickoff-return yards list with 1,508. “I’d love to stay and be with these guys. They’re going to be a great bunch.”

Purdue Coach Joe Tiller cited the performance of the secondary--Clopton, strong safety Ralph Turner, free safety Stuart Schweigert and left cornerback Ashante Woodyard--as key to the No. 14-ranked Boilermakers’ chances of defeating the fourth-ranked Washington Huskies. So far, Clopton and his teammates have been up to the challenge.

“He’s a tenacious competitor,” Purdue defensive coordinator Brock Spack said, “and that’s how he overcomes his vertical challenge.”

Clopton was a wide receiver before Tiller made him a running back and finally a defensive back. “That’s Coach Tiller’s philosophy,” he said. “He told me, ‘You have a lot of talent, but we have not found the niche for you.’ As I become more confident with myself and the position, he became more confident in me.”

The Huskies’ size could be a problem for the Boilermakers, as could the physicality of quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo. “We know they’re going to make some plays,” Clopton said. “We’re preparing for a close game. Defensively, we’ve just been trying to polish our technique . . . I’ve never seen a quarterback like him before. It’s going to take a lot of great tackling to stop him. He’s not the type of quarterback who slides down.”

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What the Boilermakers lack in size, compared to the Huskies, they hope to make up for in quickness and heart.

“We’re not very big,” Spack said. “The biggest guys on our defense are our inside tackles [6-3, 283-pound Craig Terrill and 6-3, 284-pound Matt Mitrione]. Obviously, it’s a concern when you talk about power football, but we’d rather live and die on speed.”

Some of that has been by necessity, rather than design. Since Tiller arrived in late 1996, he has tried to improve team speed but sometimes has had to make a trade-off.

“I think we can get faster,” Spack said. “We’re still building speed. Toughness and competitiveness are important, and at Purdue, you’ve got to have a guy who can also get it done in the classroom. Sometimes, we give up size for speed.”

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If they were playing golf instead of football, Purdue quarterback Drew Brees wouldn’t hesitate to pick himself over Washington quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo.

The two met last summer at the Elite 11 quarterback camp and went to the race track and a San Diego Charger practice. They also tested themselves on the greens, where Tuiasosopo met his match.

“He tried, but golf is not his best sport,” Brees said. “I’m a pretty calm person on the field, but golf can definitely make you break something.”