BFC Bellator Fighting Championships 5 | 01 May 09 | |||||
David John Herman (born October 3, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist, who competed in the Heavyweight division of Titan FC, UFC, Bellator, EliteXC, World Victory Road, ShoXC, and Shark Fights. His nickname "Pee-Wee" is a reference of the character Pee-Wee Herman, created and portrayed by American comedian Paul Reubens.
Herman was born in Columbia City, Indiana, and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana, attending Concordia Lutheran High School. At Concordia, Herman participated in various sports including football, track and field, and cross country. He also competed in wrestling for one month in his sophomore year before being expelled from the school. After taking his GED as a junior and spending a year at IPFW, Herman transferred to Indiana University at Bloomington, which has a Division I wrestling program. Despite having basically no high school wrestling experience, Herman competed for Indiana as a walk-on and excelled, competing for three full years and part of a fourth year. He red-shirted his first season which was from 2003 to 2004 and held an impressive 28–9 record in his second season. He then claimed the exclusive starting role in his third season, holding a 28–16 record and qualifying for the NCAA tournament, in which he went 2–2. In a 2006 pre-season ranking, Herman was placed as high as eighth in the nation. In his fourth season Herman started off the season flawlessly, winning a tournament in November, but left a week later with no explanation for his departure, and later graduated from the university with a degree in general studies. Herman began training in mixed martial arts after watching one of his former college teammates train in the rising sport.
Herman married Madeleine Atchley in March 2014. They live on a farm and have a son, Leo.
On January 19, 2015, Herman was arrested in the early morning in Indiana, allegedly after leading police on a chase. Herman faces three felony charges, including resisting law enforcement with a vehicle and battery against law enforcement, and a misdemeanor charge of child neglect. His infant child was in the vehicle when he pulled over in the closest safe well lit area.
According to an incident report issued by the Dekalb County Sheriff Department, Herman was speeding on I-69 with no headlights or taillights on. When officers attempted to pull him over, Herman initially refused to pull over before stopping at a gas station, the report states.
According to the report: “David exited his vehicle and approached Officers in an aggressive manner. David was given multiple warnings to get on the ground and failed to comply. David had to be tased in order to be taken into custody. An infant and adult female were also present in the vehicle.”
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