Former Tribe Standout To Participate In NFL’s Pro Bowl on Sunday

Darren Sharper '97 To Make Fourth Pro Bowl Appearance

02/08/08 4:57PM

WILLIAMSBURG - Darren Sharper, a former William and Mary All-American and current member of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings, will make his fourth career Pro Bowl appearance this Sunday afternoon as the starting strong safety for the National Football Conference in a game that will be televised from Aloha Stadium, in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Fox (4:30 pm EST).

Sharper, in his 11th NFL season, has firmly established himself as one the league’s premier defensive backs. With four interceptions this season, he now has recorded four, or more, in each of the last eight years. For his career, he had appeared in 167 games, with 151 starts. In addition to the four picks, Sharper earned the starting nod in this year’s Pro Bowl by recording 63 total tackles (49 solo), eight pass break ups (PBUs) and a forced fumble for a Vikings squad that turned in an 8-8 record on the season.

Sharper enters Sunday’s action as the NFL’s active leader in career interceptions with 53. He has amassed a total of 10 defensive touchdowns (eight interception returns and two fumble returns) and has 112 PBU to his credit.

In his time at the College, Sharper was a four-year letterman who graduated with a school and league record 24-career interceptions. He earned a pair of All-American honors (1995 and 1996) and was a three-time first-team All-Conference selection (1994-96). In 1996, Sharper was named as the league’s Defensive Player of the Year and helped the squad to a 10-3 record and a quarterfinal appearance in the I-AA Playoffs. The Richmond, Va., native will be inducted into the College of William and Mary’s Athletics Hall of Fame this coming April.