Wrestling: Merrillville’s Peppers has sights on state finals

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Merrillville senior Darryl Peppers takes a brief break during wrestling practice at Merrillville (Ind.) High School Tuesday January 24, 2012. Peppers wrestles at the 170-pound weight class, as well as, played running back and linebacker positions on the Pirates football team. | Stephanie Dowell~Sun-Times Media

Updated: February 29, 2012 8:07AM

Opponents of Darryl Peppers can blame Kourtney Berry.

It was Berry who convinced Peppers in sixth grade to come out for the wrestling team.

Several years later, Peppers, a Merrillville senior, is one of the area’s top 170-pounders who has his sights set on making an appearance at the individual state meet.

“Kourtney and I were on the same football team when we were kids,” Peppers said. “His mom and my mom, they were talking, and Kourtney and I were talking. They brought up wrestling. So I decided to do it, and just stuck with it.”

So when opposing wrestlers line up for the weigh-in and see the stocky but chiseled Peppers waiting his turn, they can thank Berry, a state-champion hopeful himself for the Pirates at 195, for that bit of intimidation.

“We say it all the time; sometimes guys win matches just at the weigh-in,” Merrillville coach David Maldonado said. “He takes off his shirt and gets on the scale, and they’re like, ‘Oh, man, I’ve got to wrestle that kid?’ ”

Appearances notwithstanding, Peppers is a force on the mat. He takes a 26-5 record into Saturday’s Calumet Sectional. He’s coming off an impressive run to the 170-pound title at the Duneland Conference meet two weeks ago.

At 5-foot-5, Peppers, a running back on the football team, is shorter than most of his opponents, but he’s also stronger than most.

“It’s hard to get to his legs,” Maldonado said. “Even if you get to his legs, he’s such an athlete that he can wiggle his way out or get his weight back just by sheer will.”

Said Peppers: “It’s been working so far.”

Peppers missed out on a chance to wrestle at the individual state meet last year when he lost in the ticket round of the Merrillville Semistate. Still, it was his first season-long opportunity on the varsity mat for the Pirates. And Peppers’ commitment to the sport has impressed Maldonado.

“Wrestling is a sport that not only builds character but also reveals the character you have,” Maldonado said. “Darryl is one of those kids that stuck with us and stuck with the program.”

Peppers admits that football is his primary focus, but wrestling has become a close second.

“It really helps me with football,” Peppers said. “I stay conditioned, and it just really has a lot of benefits. Plus, I learn a lot of life lessons.”

And one of those lessons is to not give up — whether it’s while waiting your turn to wrestle varsity or after coming one victory shy of making it to the state meet.

“I’ve been working hard all season,” Peppers said. “(Getting to state) is a big goal. I really wish I would have gotten there last year. It’s my senior year, so I’ve got to get there now.”