Purdue athletics year in review: Top storylines from 2021-22

WEST LAFAYETTE – A victory in the Music City Bowl gave Purdue nine wins for the first time since 2003.

A No. 1 ranking for the men’s basketball program for the first time in school history but also the stunning loss to Saint Peter’s in the NCAA tournament. However, plenty of spectacular Jaden Ivey moments to remember.

The transition to a new women’s basketball coach with former All-American Katie Gearlds taking over.

The end of an era in golf with Devon Brouse retiring but taking the Boilermakers to the NCAA Championships. Sarah Griffith’s remarkable All-American journey in soccer. The baseball’s team historic 15-0 start led to a national ranking. A deep NCAA tournament run by the volleyball team. Another national champion in men’s diving.

“Started really well, continued to be pretty good and tailed off in my estimation,” Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski said, summing up the 2021-22 year. “The next job is to have consistent success across the board.”

Football and men's basketball had moments that put Purdue on the national stage.

"It was a year that definitely shined pretty brightly on us in the high-profile sports. We’ll take all of that we can get," Bobinski said.

In the Learfield Directors’ Cup standings, Purdue was No. 27 nationally after the winter season. Once spring sports results were factored in, the Boilermakers dropped to No. 53 in the final standings as men’s and women’s golf were the only programs to score points.

Let's recap 10 storylines from 2021-22:

Music City Madness

The Boilermakers were short-handed, with George Karlaftis and David Bell opting out to prepare for the NFL Draft. Injuries, COVID-19 and a big academic causality (receiver Milton Wright) put coach Jeff Brohm's team in a bind before kickoff.

But Purdue prevailed in overtime, thanks to receiver Broc Thompson’s MVP performance on two bad knees and Mitchell Fineran’s game-winning field goal in overtime to beat Tennessee and give the program nine wins for the first time in 19 years.

The season also saw the Boilermakers beat a pair of top-five teams - at Iowa and against Michigan State at Ross-Ade Stadium - and finish the year on a three-game winning streak.

Ranked No. 1

After rolling over opponents, including wins against North Carolina and Villanova, the Boilermakers started 8-0 and moved to the top of the AP poll for the first time in program history. It was a moment to celebrate.

However, in the first game at No. 1, Ron Harper Jr. ended the stay atop the polls with a halfcourt buzzer-beater as Rutgers spoiled the party. But the Boilermakers were ranked in the top 10 all season and electrified the Mackey Arena crowd with wins over Illinois, Ohio State, Michigan and Indiana.

The thud

Was the men’s basketball season ending at the hands of upstart Saint Peter’s in the Sweet 16. Certainly, a disappointing finish to a promising season with all the talent assembled.

The Boilermakers were shut out of the Big Ten regular-season title, lost to Iowa in the conference tournament title game, and were bounced by a No. 15 seed in the NCAA tournament. There was no hardware for a team with all makings of hoisting at least one trophy.

No. 1 draft picks

For the first time since 2011, the school had two first-round draft picks in football and men’s basketball. Karlaftis was a first-round selection by the Kansas City Chiefs and Ivey was the fifth overall pick by the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Draft.

And don’t forget about David Bell’s season and career, making the Indianapolis native a third-round selection by the Cleveland Browns after winning the Big Ten Receiver of the Year honor. Zander Horvath was taken in the seventh round by the Los Angeles Chargers.

Plans change

When Gearlds left Marian University and brought a pair of NAIA national championships with her to West Lafayette, the Beech Grove graduate was scheduled to be the head coach in waiting under Sharon Versyp for one season.

Gearlds’ timeline was moved up after Versyp retired in late September, one week before official practices started. An internal investigation into Versyp’s treatment – along with Terry Kix, the program’s director of operations - of players became public. No disciplinary action would’ve been taken against Versyp, but the program’s all-time winningest coach elected to retire, leaving Gearlds to clean up the pieces.

With a less-than-ideal roster, the Boilermakers won 17 games, finished above .500 and advanced to the second round of the WNIT.

"Women’s basketball had a nice transition year," Bobinski said. "I’d like to think we’ll take a step forward and continue taking significant steps down the line. Katie is doing a great job."

Elite Eight run

Volleyball put together another run in the NCAA tournament but was stopped short of advancing to the Final Four. The Boilermakers were ousted by Pittsburgh in the Elite Eight and finished with 26 victories, the most since 2011. It was a season that featured eight wins over top 25 teams, including two against powerhouse Wisconsin, and a pair of thrilling NCAA comebacks against Dayton and Brigham Young.

Great career

For Brouse, the Indianapolis native returned to his alma mater 25 years ago and helped create one of the top college golf complexes in the nation and win a national championship. Brouse guided the women’s team to the 2010 NCAA title, giving cold-weather climate programs a blueprint for success.

Brouse has certainly left his mark on both the men’s and women’s programs and the Birck-Boilermaker Golf Complex, which hosted two national championships during his tenure. This year’s team ended its run at the NCAA Championships, a fitting conclusion to an outstanding career.

Griffith shines

Griffith was one of the nation’s dynamic scorers, earning All-American honors and being named Big Ten Forward of the Year. She produced six game-winning goals and set a program record with 16, leading the Boilermakers into the NCAA tournament and to 15 wins, the second-most in program history.

Griffith battled back from surgery to correct a spinal disorder (Spondylolisthesis) prior to her sophomore season in 2018. The surgery fused her spine together and placed four screws, two rods and a cage in her back. She returned to the playing field in 2019 and began carving out her legacy.

Tyler Downs

Became the program’s fifth diver to claim a national title after winning the platform competition at the NCAA Championships in Atlanta. The then-freshman overcame a 30-point deficit to claim the title.

David Boudia (six from 2009-11), Steele Johnson (five from 2015-18), Casey Matthews (2013) and Brandon Loschiavo (2021) also won NCAA championships. Under diving coach Adam Soldati, the Boilermakers have won 14 total NCAA titles.

Fast start

Greg Goff’s baseball team won a program-record 15 straight games to start the season, moved into the national rankings and tried to use the momentum heading into the Big Ten season.

While the offense was one of the best in the league, the bullpen didn’t hold up its end and teams pounced on the Boilermakers time and time again. They qualified for the Big Ten tournament as the No. 7 seed on the last day of the regular season but posted an 0-2 record and finished with a 29-21 record. Jackson Smeltz, a McCutcheon graduate, was enjoying a solid season on the mound until an injury kept him on the sidelines the last month.

Off the field

► Nancy Cross, a longtime administrator whose career touched six decades, retired. Cross came to Purdue in 1977 as an assistant coach for field hockey and women's basketball and held several titles, including director of the John Purdue Club.

► Name, image and likeness became the hot-button topic on July 1, 2021, and it's been a daily conversation ever since. Purdue athletes generated nearly $180,000 in NIL deals through June 21.

► Phase 1 of the Ross-Ade Stadium renovation project was approved at $45.4 million and work on constructing the tunnel from Rohrman Field to the Kozuch Performance Center, improving the south end zone and adding the nutrition/dining hall will begin after the 2022 season.

► Renovations to the men's and women's basketball locker rooms were also approved and will cost $6.7 million.

► Brohm received a two-year contract extension through 2027, which includes longevity bonuses and an increased salary pool for assistants.

► Former Purdue golfer, Sam Allen, and his wife, Marsha, made a $20 million transformational gift to build a new clubhouse at the Boilermaker-Birck Golf Complex. The clubhouse will be named after Pete Dye, who designed both courses.

► Zack Byrd takes over the women's golf program following Brouse's retirement. Geoff Young is the new men's coach, replacing Pawel Gajdzik, who spent 13 years with the program.

Mike Carmin covers Purdue sports for the Journal & Courier. Email mcarmin@gannett.com and follow on Twitter and Instagram @carmin_jc

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue athletics year in review: Top storylines from 2021-22