An All-American baseball player at Calumet High School, Puckett received little attention from baseball scouts, and he took a job installing carpeting in new cars for the Ford Motor Company. After being laid off by Ford, Puckett attended an open tryout hosted by the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB), where he received a college baseball scholarship from Bradley University. During the 1981 season, Puckett led the Bradley Braves with eight home runs, 21 stolen bases, and a .660 slugging percentage, while his .378 batting average was second on the team. His grades suffered following the sudden death of his father, however, and he transferred to Triton College after one year. During the 1982 season at Triton, Puckett batted .472 with 16 home runs and 78 runs batted in (RBI), and he was named the National Junior College Athletic Association Player of the Year.
An All-American baseball player at Calumet High School, Puckett received little attention from baseball scouts, and he took a job installing carpeting in new cars for the Ford Motor Company After being laid off by Ford, Puckett attended an open tryout hosted by the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB), where he received a college baseball scholarship from Bradley University. During the 1981 season, Puckett led the Bradley Braves with eight home runs, 21 stolen bases, and a .660 slugging percentage, while his .378 batting average was second on the team His grades suffered following the sudden death of his father, however, and he transferred to Triton College after one year. During the 1982 season at Triton, Puckett batted .472 with 16 home runs and 78 runs batted in (RBI) and he was named the National Junior College Athletic Association Player of the Year.