Darren Sharper

He also tied the franchises record for most defensive touchdowns that was set by Herb Adderley in 1964.

Darren Mallory Sharper (born November 3, 1975) is an American convicted serial rapist and a former football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons.

Sharper graduated from Hermitage in 1993.

Following the rape allegations being substantiated, Hermitage removed all Sharper memorabilia from its school grounds.

Sharper attended the College of William and Mary, where he played for the William & Mary Tribe football team.

In high school, Sharper primarily played quarterback.

He wanted to be a quarterback at William & Mary, as well.

The college coach, Jimmye Laycock, hinted to him that, as an alternative, Sharper might join the NFL (as a defensive back).

During his college career, he earned All-America honors twice and was named first-team All-Yankee Conference selection three times.

As a senior in 1996, he was the Yankee Conference Defensive Player of the Year after intercepting 10 passes for a season.

He finished his college career with a school record 24 career interceptions and a I-AA record 468 career interception return yards.

He also set the school record with 1,027 career punt return yards.

He played college football at William & Mary and was selected in the second round of the 1997 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, where he spent eight seasons.

Sharper played his next four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, while his final two seasons were as a member of the New Orleans Saints.

The Green Bay Packers selected Sharper in the second round (60th overall) of the 1997 NFL Draft.

Sharper was the fifth safety drafted in 1997 and his brother, Jamie Sharper, was also selected in the second round (34th overall).

During training camp, Sharper competed to be the starting free safety against veteran Eugene Robinson.

Head coach Mike Holmgren officially named Sharper the backup free safety, behind Eugene Robinson, to begin the regular season.

He made his professional regular season debut in the Green Bay Packers' season-opening 38–24 win against the Chicago Bears.

On September 21, 1997, Sharper made his first career tackle during a 38–32 win against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 4.

On November 2, 1997, Sharper made one tackle and returned his first career interception for his first touchdown during a 20–10 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 10.

Sharper made his first career interception off a pass by Lions' quarterback Scott Mitchell and returned it for a 50-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

In Week 13, he recorded a season-high two combined tackles and returned a fumble recovery for a 34-yard touchdown during a 45–17 win against the Dallas Cowboys.

On December 30, 1997, Sharper made two combined tackles, forced a fumble, and returned an interception for his third defensive touchdown of the season as the Packers defeated the Buffalo Bills 31–21 in Week 17.

Sharper intercepted a pass by Buffalo Bills' quarterback Alex Van Pelt and returned it for a 20-yard touchdown to seal the Packers' victory in the fourth quarter.

Sharper broke the Green Bay Packers franchise record for most defensive touchdowns by a rookie which stood for 64 years.

He finished his rookie season in 1997 with three defensive touchdowns, two interceptions and a fumble recovery in 14 games and zero starts.

The Green Bay Packers finished first in the NFC Central with a 13–3 record and earned a first round bye.

Recognized as one of the league's top defensive backs during his career, Sharper was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and a two-time first-team All-Pro, along with being named to the second-team of the 2000s All-Decade Team.

He ranks sixth in interceptions and is tied with Charles Woodson and Rod Woodson for the most defensive touchdowns.

Following Sharper's 2010 retirement, allegations surfaced that he drugged and raped several women across various states, leading to him being charged in 2014.

Sharper pled guilty to the rape and drug-related charges and was sentenced in 2016 to 20 years in prison.

As a result of his guilty plea, he was removed from the College of William & Mary Athletics Hall of Fame.

Debate has loomed over whether his Pro Football Hall of Fame eligibility should be disqualified; Sharper ended up being nominated, with officials saying they were not allowed to disallow nominations because of off-the-field actions.

Sharper has an older sister, Monica, and an older brother, Jamie.

The Sharpers attended Hermitage High School in Henrico County, Virginia.

Jamie played for the high school football team as a linebacker.

Darren played for the varsity football and basketball teams.

He was named to the honor roll, had perfect attendance in three of his four years, and was active in the foreign language club and student council.

Hermitage honored Sharper with a display on their "Wall of Fame".