Indiana By The Numbers: Who wore it best? No. 11 - IndyStar

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Matthew Glenesk Indianapolis Star

Published 8:40 AM EDT Jun 15, 2020

We've done team-by-team lists of the best players to wear each jersey number before. This  "Who wore it best?" is different. Instead of one team, we're going statewide, all sports, all genders.

We've compiled a list 00 to 99 that we'll reveal later this week. But some numbers were just too close to call. Throughout the week, we'll ask for your help on some of the tougher decisions. And remember, we're only considering achievements while wearing the specific number while playing for an Indiana team. Isiah Thomas doesn't get credit for his exploits as No. 11 in Detroit; only for IU.

Here are your candidates for the best No. 11 in state history.

Cast your vote at bottom of the article:

Brody Boyd, Union (Dugger) boys basketball

Boyd poured in 2,632 points at Union, a number that still ranks No. 5 on the all-time Indiana boys basketball scoring list, sandwiched between Romeo Langford and Rick Mount. By the time he played his freshman season in 1996-97 (the final year of the single-class tournament), Boyd’s name was already known in Sullivan County after averaging more than 15 points a game. 

He kept scoring, and Union kept winning — eventually reaching the 1999-2000 Class A state final Boyd's senior year, thanks to his 32.2-point scoring average. Boyd went out with a bang, scoring 28 points in the second half of the finals, but Union’s comeback attempt fell short in an 82-70 loss to Lafayette Central Catholic.

Jim Everett, Purdue quarterback

Everett's All-Pro career in the NFL may never have occurred had he not won a quarterback duel with former Lafayette Jeff star Doug Downing and Jeff Huber the day before the 1984 season opener against No. 7 Notre Dame.

Everett, then a junior, rewarded coach Leon Burnett's faith with the first of many stellar performances that bowl season. He completed 20 of 28 passes for 255 yards and two touchdowns as the Boilermakers opened the then-Hoosier Dome with a 23-21 victory over the 19-point favorite Fighting Irish. It was only the eighth loss in 95 season openers for Notre Dame.

With Everett leading the way, Purdue went on to defeat Michigan and No. 2 Ohio State during a 7-5 season that ended with a loss to Virginia in the Peach Bowl.

Everett was even better in 1985, though Purdue slipped to a 5-6 record. He led the NCAA in total offense (3,589 yards) and finished sixth in balloting for the Heisman Trophy.

Tony Kanaan, 2013 Indy 500 winner

Shedding the title of most career Indy 500 laps led without a win, Kanaan won in 2013 after making the last of a race-record 68 passes. He and Ryan Hunter-Reay exchanged the lead four times in the final 11 laps. Kanaan was in the lead when a crash behind him on Lap 198 brought out a caution. With so little track time under caution, his 187.433 mph average is a race record.

"This is it, man," he said. "I made it. Finally they're going to put my ugly face on this trophy." 

Antwaan Randle El, IU quarterback

A record-breaking quarterback, Randle El started his senior season at wide receiver, the position most thought fit him best at the professional level. Then-coach Cam Cameron eventually returned Randle El under center, but it wasn't enough to lift IU to bowl eligibility.

A rare talent, Randle El's jaw-dropping elusiveness helped him become the first Division I player to record 2,500 total yards four straight seasons. Once a backup point guard at IU, Randle El also was the first NCAA player to pass and rush for 40 career touchdowns each. He won the 2001 Big Ten's Most Valuable Player for a 5-6 team and was carried off the field in his final home game, a 26-15 win over Kentucky.

Detlef Schrempf, Pacers forward

Schrempf was the eighth overall pick in the 1985 draft by the Dallas Mavericks and provided solid, versatile production off the bench but never got the opportunity to do more. The Pacers gave him that chance. In one of the best deals in franchise history, the Pacers sent aging Herb Williams to Dallas for Schrempf and a second round draft pick that would become Antonio Davis. Schrempf provided immediate dividends, averaging 14.8 points in 32 games in 1988-89 and then continuing to improve, winning Sixth Man of the Year awards in 1990 and '91 and earning an All-Star berth in 1993. 

Isiah Thomas, IU men's basketball

He averaged 14.6 points, 5.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 2.1 steals a game as a freshman, helping the Hoosiers to the 1980 Big Ten title and a Sweet 16 run. A year later, he starred for IU, averaging 16.0 points and 5.8 assists. He guided the team to the 1981 national championship, scoring 23 points in the title game, and was named the NCAA tournament's most outstanding player.

Brianna Turner, Notre Dame women's basketball

The program's all-time leader in blocks (372) and rebounds (1,048), Turner is sixth in scoring (2,017) and joined Ruth Riley as the only player in program history with more than 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. She was the ACC Player of the Year in 2016, but tore her ACL in the second round of the NCAA tournament. She missed the next season — a national title year for the Irish — but returned to capture a third ACC Defensive Player of the Year honor and help lead a return trip to the national title game.

CAST YOUR VOTE

(If poll does not appear, click here.)

IndyStar deputy sports editor Nat Newell, sports reporter Kyle Neddenriep and former Journal and Courier sports editor Ken Thompson contributed to this story.

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