WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Following the conclusion of the 2008 NFL Draft on Sunday, two former Purdue players agreed to free-agent deals.
Wide receiver Dorien Bryant hooked on with the Pittsburgh Steelers, while center Robbie Powell joined the Cleveland Browns.
The 5-foot-10, 169-pound Bryant, a native of Swedesboro, N.J., led the Big Ten Conference in receptions in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Last season, he had 87 catches for 936 yards (10.8 average) and eight touchdowns. Bryant ranked 20th in the country with an average of 28.0 yards per kickoff return (36 returns for a school-record 1,007 yards) and was tied for third with two returns for touchdowns (also eight other players).
Arguably the most-gifted player at Purdue under head coach Joe Tiller, Bryant is the school record-holder with 6,219 all-purpose yards, a total that ranks fourth in Big Ten history. Bryant is the Boilermakers' all-time kickoff return yards leader (2,125), and he ranks second with 292 receptions, third with 3,548 receiving yards and tied for fifth with 21 receiving touchdowns (also Taylor Stubblefield). Bryant caught at least one pass in 49 of 50 career games (all but at Iowa on Nov. 6, 2004). He is tied for seventh on the school career touchdowns list with 30 (also Vinny Sutherland) and tied for ninth with 182 points (also Sutherland).
