Who Is Julius Peppers The NFL Star and Is He Married?

Quick Facts

The former NFL big shot Julius Peppers is probably best remembered as the defensive end for Carolina Panthers. Prior to the National Football League, Julius played college football for the North Carolina Tar Heels at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. While there, he was recognized as an All-American athlete among other accolades.

Being the talented player that he was, Julius made the 2002 NFL Draft and was drafted as the second overall pick by the Carolina Panthers. After spending 8 seasons with the Carolina Panthers until 2009, Julius went ahead to play for the Chicago Bears (2010 till 2013) and Green Bay Packers (2014 till 2016). He then returned to Carolina Panthers in 2017 where he finally retired from football in 2018.

A Biographical Synopsis

Julius Frazier Peppers was born on January 18, 1980, in Wilson, North Carolina to George Kearney and Bessie Brinkley. After his parents got separated, Julius’ mother later married Clarence Peppers, with whom she had the athlete’s younger brother, Stephone. After Bessie’s marriage with Clarence also ended, she moved with her kids to the small town of Bailey where she raised them. It is safe to say that Julius would not be where he is today without the support of his mother who was strict but also loving. She taught her children to treat everyone with respect and love.

For his first and second high school years, Julius Peppers attended Hunt High School. He later transferred to Southern Nash High School. Because of his impressive stature (standing at the height of 6 ft 7 in or 2.01 m and weighing 295 lb or 134 kg), the school’s football coach recruited him, hoping he would be an asset to the team despite the fact that Julius had never played football before. Luckily, he was a natural and became one of the most formidable defensive linemen in the state.

While in high school, Julius Peppers also played basketball and competed in track events – winning Nash High School their first-ever track state championship. He also won the state championship as a sprinter. Even more, he competed in the Long jump, thus proving himself a versatile sportsman.

So, it came as little surprise that, by his senior year, Julius Peppers was recognized by Parade Magazine for his all-purpose sports talent. The North Carolina High School Athletic Association also named him as their Male Athlete of the Year during his senior year.

Among his numerous career highlights, Peppers has been named to the Pro Bowl a whopping nine times. In his 2002 rookie year, the athlete was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year after recording an interception, five forced fumbles, and 12 sacks – all in only 12 games. He was also named the Defensive Player of the Year in 2004 and on the 31st of January, 2010 he was named to the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team (for 2000-2010). The players named to the all-decade team were largely considered the most outstanding players of the decade.

Is Julius Peppers Married? Who Is His Wife Or Girlfriend?

Julius Peppers is currently unmarried but he is engaged to Claudia Sampedro, a reality television personality who starred on the E! reality series WAGS Miami between 2016 and 2017 before the show was canceled. In case you do not know, ‘WAGS’ is an acronym that stands for ‘Wives and Girlfriends of Sportsmen’. It is a show that focuses on the romantic partners of noted athletes. So, it was Claudia’s relationship with Julius Peppers that got her a place in WAGS Miami after the couple’s relationship began sometime in 2004.

However, prior to coming in contact with the athlete, Claudia Sampedro – who was born in Cuba in 1990 – worked as a glamor model. For her great beauty and shapely figure, Claudia has been described as ‘Cuban Kim Kardashian’ in some sections of the media. She has earned this description though, not only as a result of having similar shapes with Kim but also because of other similarities that they share. For instance, both models were born in the same month, which is October. Also, both of them share one ex in the former NFL running back Reggie Bush.

Julius Peppers and Claudia Sampedro share a kid and each has a kid from a previous relationship. As for when the couple will be legalizing their union by means of a wedding, no one seems to know. In one episode of WAGS Miami, Claudia once brought up the question of them getting married someday, but Julius did not seem too impressed about that.

Also Read: Top 10 Richest People in the world with full biography and details.