Danny Wuerffel lives his life in service to others. Following a career in professional football,  Wuerffel leads as the Executive Director of Desire Street Ministries and the President of the  Wuerffel Foundation, where he seeks to inspire greater service in others, with a focus on under resourced neighborhoods.  

A University of Florida quarterback legend, Danny led the Gators to four SEC Championships and  Florida’s first national championship. Racking up 17 NCAA and UF records, Wuerffel was  ultimately named the 1996 Heisman Trophy winner and the Campbell Award for the nation’s top  scholar-athlete. He graduated with honors with a B.A. in Public Relations.  Wuerffel was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in 1997, and he played for the Green Bay  Packers, Chicago Bears and Washington Redskins before retiring from the NFL in 2004. He won  the World Bowl Championship for NFL’s European League, Rhein Fire, in 2000. Since 2005, Danny  has been the namesake for the Allstate Wuerffel Trophy, the premier community service award for  collegiate football players. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013.   

Danny became the Executive Director of Desire Street Ministries in 2006. Desire Street provides vital partnerships with leaders working in under-resourced neighborhoods to create thriving and  sustainable ministries in cities throughout the southeast. In 2020, the Wuerffel Foundation was  created to inspire greater service and unity in the world by leveraging the brand, experiences and   

relationships of Danny Wuerffel to honor and develop community service leaders.  

A competitive pickleball player in the National Pickleball League, Danny was drafted by the  Denver Iconics for the 2024 season. He is a partial owner of the Major League Pickleball team, the  Orlando Squeeze. In 2022, he hosted the first annual PickleBowl, the premier charity celebrity  pro-am pickleball tournament.   

Danny often returns to the Swamp where his bronze statue stands outside the stadium to cheer  on the Gators. He enjoys speaking to corporate and non-profit groups across the country, sharing  inspirational stories woven from his football and professional experiences. He and his wife,  Jessica, live in Atlanta, Georgia and have three children.