50 – Brad Culpepper
John Broward “Brad” Culpepper of Tallahassee, Florida anchored a defensive line from 1988 to 1991 that led to the Florida Gators first SEC championship. Brad’s father, was a center on the ’60 to ’62 Gators squad that won the ’62 Gator Bowl. His uncle, Blair, was a fullback for the Gators in ’57 and ’58. His grandfather was also a Florida alumnus, and former chancellor for the State University System of Florida. As for Brad, he was team co-captain, 1st team All-SEC, and consensus All-American in his senior year, the ’91 season where the Gators won their first conference championship. Brad finished his career with 18 sacks, 47.5 TFL. It turns out that Brad, like the prominent members of his family, was pretty smart. He was on the SEC Academic Honor Roll all four years, was an Academic All-American, and winner of the Draddy Trophy for excellence as a scholar-athlete. After graduating with a bachelor’s in history his junior year, he enrolled in a master’s program. After completing his NFL career with the Vikings, Buccaneers, and Bears in 2001, Brad returned to Florida and completed his master’s in law. That same year he was named a Gator Great by the University of Florida Athletic association.
