Daniel Sepulveda

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Daniel Sepulveda
Sepulveda while he was at a training camp with the Steelers in his rookie season
Sepulveda with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2007
No. 9
PositionPunter
Personal information
Born (1984-01-12) January 12, 1984 (age 42)
Austin, Texas, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight229 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High schoolHighland Park (University Park, Texas)
CollegeBaylor (2002–2006)
NFL draft2007: 4th round, 112th overall pick
Career history
Awards and highlights
Career NFL statistics
Punts221
Punting yards9,657
Punting average43.7
Longest punt66
Inside 2081
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Daniel Wade Sepulveda (born January 12, 1984) is an American former professional football player who was a punter for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL), all with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football for the Baylor Bears, where he won twice the Ray Guy Award and earned All-American honors. He was selected by the Steelers in the fourth round of the 2007 NFL draft.

Early life

Sepulveda, who is of Mexican–American descent, was born in Austin, Texas. He attended Highland Park High School in metropolitan Dallas, Texas. Sepulveda was a fourth-string punter at Highland Park behind Ryan Wolcott (the kicker), Jason Wood (the backup), and Trey Warren (the starter). He never made it into a game as a punter.

College career

Sepulveda attended Baylor University, where he played for the Baylor Bears football team from 2002 to 2006. He was a walk-on to the football team as a linebacker, and after a redshirt freshman season (despite not having punted since junior high) became the Bears' starting punter, earning a scholarship after the 2003 season. He won the Ray Guy Award tapping him as the best college punter in 2004 and 2006, and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 2004 and a unanimous first-team All-American in 2006. He, Ryan Allen and Tom Hackett are the only players to win the Ray Guy Award twice.

As of the end of the 2017 season, Sepulveda holds the NCAA FBS record for career punting average and career punts of 50+ yards.[1]

Professional career

Sepulveda was selected in the fourth round (112th pick) by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2007 NFL draft.[2] After the release of former starter Chris Gardocki, Sepulveda successfully bested Mike Barr for the starting job. Sepulveda signed a three-year contract for $1.46 million with the Steelers on May 31, 2007.

In the first quarter of a December 20 game against the St. Louis Rams, in his rookie season, Sepulveda completed a 32-yard pass to running back Najeh Davenport on a fake punt play.

On July 29, 2008, Sepulveda tore the ACL in his right leg for the second time.[3][4] He had surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament on August 6.[5] He was placed on injured reserve by the Steelers after the surgery,[6][7] officially ending his season.[8]

On December 5, 2010, he again injured his right knee in a game against the Baltimore Ravens.[9] Jeremy Kapinos was signed to replace Sepulveda. On July 31, 2011, the Steelers re-signed Sepulveda to a 1-year deal.[10]

In the second quarter of an October 9, 2011, game against the Tennessee Titans Sepulveda completed his second career pass for a first down, a 33-yard pass to Ryan Mundy on a fake punt play. Sepulveda finished his career with a completion percentage of 100%: 2 for 2.[11][12]

It was announced on April 4, 2012, that Sepulveda would not return to the Steelers for the 2012 season.[13]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season

Year Team Punting
GPPuntsYdsNet YdsLngAvgNet AvgBlkIns20TB
2007PIT 16682,8802,5745942.437.90282
2009PIT 16723,0742,6696042.737.10294
2010PIT 12562,5502,1926245.539.10168
2011PIT 8251,1531,0166646.139.1185
Career522219,6578,4516643.738.118119

Playoffs

Year Team Punting
GPPuntsYdsNet YdsLngAvgNet AvgBlkIns20TB
2007PIT 141771464844.336.5010
Career141771464844.336.5010

Post-football career

Sepulveda enrolled at the SMU Dedman School of Law as part of its 2019 graduating class.[14]

In 2023, he joined as an attorney the brand new, Dallas-based law firm Campbell Miller Payne as a charter member.[15][16] He previously worked as a corporate finance lawyer for Norton Rose Fulbright.[17]

References

  1. ↑ "Football Bowl Subdivision Records" (PDF). NCAA.
  2. ↑ "2007 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Steelers' Sepulveda likely lost for the season". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. July 29, 2008. Archived from the original on July 30, 2008. Retrieved July 30, 2008.
  4. ↑ Bouchette, Ed (July 30, 2008). "Torn ACL in right knee will keep left-footed punter out entire season". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved August 1, 2008.
  5. ↑ "Sepulveda's Knee Surgery Scheduled For August". Steelers. KDKA. Associated Press. July 31, 2008. Archived from the original on August 5, 2008. Retrieved August 1, 2008.
  6. ↑ Fittipaldo, Ray (August 25, 2008). "Steelers name Hartwig starting center, make first cuts". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved August 25, 2008.
  7. ↑ Brown, Scott (August 25, 2008). "Steelers cut Bloom, place Sepulveda on IR". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved August 25, 2008.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)Category:CS1 maint: deprecated archival service
  8. ↑ "Steelers place P Sepulveda om IR". Yahoo! Sports. August 25, 2008. Retrieved August 25, 2008.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)Category:CS1 maint: deprecated archival service
  9. ↑ "Steelers Sign Kapinos; Place Sepulveda on IR". Steelers.com. December 7, 2010. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
  10. ↑ Bryan, Dave (July 31, 2011). "Steelers Agree To Terms With P Daniel Sepulveda". Steelers Depot. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Exclusive with Former Steelers Punter Daniel Sepulveda, 2007-2011 – Welcome to Steelers Takeaways!". July 11, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Daniel Sepulveda Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  13. ↑ Bouchette, Ed (April 4, 2012). "Burned Steelers' coach visits team; punter Sepulveda won't return - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  14. ↑ "Daniel Sepulveda, Class of 2019 | SMU Dedman School of Law | Dallas Texas". Archived from the original on November 18, 2018. Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Campbell Miller Payne". December 14, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Daniel Sepulveda". National Review.
  17. ↑ "Exclusive with Former Steelers Punter Daniel Sepulveda, 2007-2011". Steelers Takeaways. July 11, 2021. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
Category:1984 births Category:Living people Category:All-American college football players Category:American football punters Category:Baylor Bears football players Category:Pittsburgh Steelers players Category:Players of American football from Austin, Texas Category:American people of Mexican descent Category:Sportspeople of Mexican descent Category:Hispanic and Latino American players of American football
Category:1984 births Category:All-American college football players Category:All Wikipedia articles written in American English Category:American football punters Category:American people of Mexican descent Category:Articles with short description Category:Baylor Bears football players Category:CS1 maint: deprecated archival service Category:Hispanic and Latino American players of American football Category:Living people Category:Pittsburgh Steelers players Category:Players of American football from Austin, Texas Category:Short description is different from Wikidata Category:Sportspeople of Mexican descent Category:Use American English from September 2024 Category:Use mdy dates from March 2024