After high school, Standeford attended
Purdue University in
West Lafayette, Indiana to play under head coach
Joe Tiller. He graduated holding the
Big Ten's all-time career receptions record with 266 catches and had a career record of 14 catches in a game against
Wisconsin during his senior season. He was teamed with
New Orleans Saints quarterback,
Drew Brees, and both hold the conference record for most touchdown pass connections and following quarterback
Kyle Orton of the
Denver Broncos. He majored in Elementary Education and did his
student teaching at Attica Elementary School in
Attica, Indiana. His brother, Jake, who was also a multiple sports star in high school, was a wide receiver at
Purdue from 2004 to 2007. One season later after becoming the conference career receptions leader, John's teammate,
Taylor Stubblefield, set it as a new NCAA record with 325. John was named a
First-team-All Big Ten selection in 2002, while being a
First-team Academic All-American in 2002 & 2003. ==Professional career==