Scheffler attended Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, where he played under head coach Gene Keady.

He helped lead the Boilermakers to a Big Ten Conference title, along with seniors Todd Mitchell and Everette Stephens, a sixth-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, making it to the Sweet Sixteen, and onto a 29–4 record after losing to a Mitch Richmond-led Kansas State team.

After coming off his junior season without a postseason, he and Jimmy Oliver led the Boilers to an NCAA Second Round appearance, where they lost to Texas by one point as a number 2 seed.

The 6 ft 9 in, 250-pound center-forward became one of four Boilers to win the conference player of the year honors, along with Jim Rowinski in 1984, Glenn Robinson in 1994 and Caleb Swanigan in 2017.

Scheffler was a member of the Sonics when they reached the 1996 NBA Finals and played briefly in four of the six games against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls as a crowd favorite at KeyArena coming off the bench.

He was embraced as a fan favorite in Seattle for his rare appearances and stellar efforts at scoring in late-game blowout situations.