Purdue's offense was led by quarterback and Heisman Trophy-finalist Drew Brees. Brees led the Big Ten in completions, attempts, passing yards and passing touchdowns, setting the Big Ten career record for career passing yards with 11,517 passing former Purdue player, Mark Herrmann who had set the mark with 9,946 in 1980. The team had neither a 1,000-yard rusher nor a 1,000-yard receiver. Vinny Sutherland was the leading receiver with 926 receiving yards, and Montrell Lowe led the team in rushing with 919 rushing yards. Drew Brees and offensive tackleMatt Light were the only players on the offensive unit selected as an All-American by Pro Football Weekly.
Ten members of the team were honored as All-Big Ten Conference selections, quarterback Drew Brees was named the Big Ten Offensive of the Year and the Chicago Tribune Silver Football, while safety Stuart Schweigert was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Nineteen members of the 2000 Boilermakers football team went on to play in the NFL. Prior to 2000, the Boilermakers had compiled three consecutive winning seasons and had not won a Big Ten Championship since the 1967 Purdue team.
The 2000 team, which boasted two future Super Bowl winners, was featured in the 2013 Big Ten Network documentary series Big Ten Elite[1] and is still widely regarded by Purdue fans as one of the greatest Boilermakers football teams of all time.[2] The Boilermakers have yet to win the Big Ten championship or reach the Rose Bowl since then.
The season was Drew Brees's final year with the Boilermakers. He left Purdue with Big Ten Conference records in passing yards (11,792), touchdown passes (90), total offensive yards (12,693), completions (1,026), and attempts (1,678). Brees won the Maxwell Award as the nation's outstanding player of 2000 and won the NCAA's Today's Top VIII Award as a member of the Class of 2001. Brees was third in balloting for the Heisman Trophy in 2000. The Boilermakers won all 8 of their games when they scored 30 points or more in 2000.
