If you are a sports enthusiast, you must be familiar with the name Russell Wilson. He is a quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks, who is a professional American football team.
Russell is known for being one of the most talented athletes of his time and one of the highest-paid!
Russell’s most remarkable thing is that he has also proved his excellency at baseball and basketball, along with being a football star. This inspiring persona has earned him many fans all around the world.
Russell is married to American pop star Ciara. His impressive performances at games and his family with Ciara both are frequently the talk of the town.
Russell’s life is truly a remarkable one. He comes from a family of athletes, and not surprisingly, he started playing when he was super young.
Maybe it was a birth skill for Russell, which along with his abundance of practice and dedication, gave him the superstar status that he enjoys now.
In this article, we will explore Russell’s early life, his career, and his family. Let’s start with some quick facts about him:
Quick Facts:
| Full Name | Russell Carrington Wilson |
| Birth Date | November 29, 1988 |
| Birth Place | Cincinnati, Ohio |
| Nick Name | N/A |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | African American; English descents |
| Education | Collegiate School, University of Wisconsin |
| Zodiac Sign | Virgo |
| Father’s Name | Harrison Benjamin Wilson III |
| Mother’s Name | Tammy Wilson ( Turner) |
| Siblings | 1 older brother, 1 younger sister |
| Age | 35 Years Old |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 centimeters) |
| Weight | 215 lb (98 kg) |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Dark brown |
| Shoe Size | 12(US) |
| Married | Yes |
| Wife | Ciara since 2015 |
| Children | Three : Daughter-1, son-1, Step son-1 |
| Profession | Football player, Entrepreneur |
| Current Team | Seattle Seahawks |
| Position | Quarterback |
| Net Worth | $150 million |
| Affiliations | ‘Why not you’ foundation |
| Social Media | Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube |
| Brand | The Good Man clothing line |
| Merch | Funko Pop, Jersey, Football Card, Rookie Card |
| Last Update | April, 2024 |
Early Life, Family, and Education
Russell was born in Richmond, Virginia, on November 29, 1988. He is the second son of Harrison Benjamin Wilson II, a lawyer, and Tammy Wilson, a nurse director.
Russell comes from a family of accomplished, educated, and athletic people. His great paternal grandfather was a freed slave and insisted that his children get a proper education.
Similarly, Wilson’s paternal grandfather played football and basketball at Kentucky state university and later served more than 2 decades as Norfolk university president.
Russell’s maternal grandfather is A.B Jackson, a well-known painter. His father, Harrington, was an athlete during his time too.
He was a wide receiver for the San Diego chargers during college and also played baseball.
He had a law degree from the University of Virginia and worked as a lawyer for most of his life until he died of diabetes complications in 2010.
Later on, his brother also played football and baseball at the University of Richmond, and his sister anna played basketball for Stanford University.
So it won’t be a mistake to say that sports run in Wilson’s bloodline. He used to play with his father and brother starting from when he was only four years old.
Likewise, he was interested in football, baseball, and basketball. They used to take trips to local matches, and his father used to quiz him on their way back home.
Career Summary
Growing up in Virginia, he attended Collegiate school and was an all-district, all-region, all-state player.
He was twice named player of the year by the Richmond times-dispatch. During his senior year, he was named conference player of the year.
His performance and glorious win in the state championship game got him featured in the sports illustrated magazine. He was also associated with the Collegiate baseball and basketball team.
After he graduated high school in 2006, he was selected by the Baltimore Orioles, a professional baseball team, with a hefty sum of money as a signing bonus.
He didn’t give up his education yet and went to attend North Carolina State university instead.
About this choice, he said, “I was leaning towards [entering the draft], but a college education is something you’ll always have.”
NFL
Wilson started training for the NFL scouting combine in 2012. It was estimated that Wilson would be held back by his short height.
The Seattle Seahawks selected him in the 2012 NFL draft, and then he signed a four-year contract with the seahawks for $2.99 million.
He earned the NFL rookie of the year honor that season and helped the Seahawks win 11 of their first 12 games.
In July 2015, his contract was extended by four years for $87.6 million, making him the second-highest-paid player in the NFL at that time, just behind LA Rams’ Aaron Rodgers and slightly ahead of Pittsburgh Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger.
On April 16, 2019, he signed a $140 million contract with the Seahawks, confirming that he’ll be with them for four more years. This contract makes him the highest-paid player in NFL.
He has made multiple records and won several awards during his career, which will require another article to be explained!
However, the Hawks recently traded their star player to the Denver Broncos for a bunch of picks and players. Wilson expressed his gratitude towards the Seattle team with a tweet that said, “SEATTLE, I Love You. Forever Grateful. #3.”
His last game as a Hawks was on January 10, 2022, against the Cardinals. The Hawks won the match 38-30.
Highlights and Achievements
- Super Bowl title winner in 2013
- Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year winner in 2020
- Named to the Second-team All-Pro in 2019
- Nine-time Pro Bowl from 2012 to 2015 and from 2017 to 2021
- NFL passer rating leader in 2015
- NFL passing touchdowns leader in 2017
- Winner of the Bart Starr Award in 2022
Summary Career Stats
| Summary | G | AV | QBrec | Cmp% | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | FantPt |
| 2021 | 2 | – | 1-1-0 | 74.1 | 597 | 11.1 | 6 | 0 | 50.4 |
| Career | 146 | 147 | 99-46-1 | 65.2 | 34543 | 7.9 | 273 | 81 | 2866.9 |
Body Measurement and Fitness
Wilson has a height of 5 feet 11 inches which is a great height for commoners like us, but it was considered his drawback during his initial days.
Everyone was skeptical about his performance as a quarterback, but he proved everyone wrong. He makes up his lack of height with his strength, agility, speed, and techniques.
“My height doesn’t define my skill set. To be a great quarterback, you have to have great leadership, great attention to detail, and relentless competitive nature. I try to bring that on a daily basis.”
He has a 48 inches chest, 38 inches waist, and biceps of 16.5 inches. His weight is currently 98kgs.
Fitness
Russell has to take care of his body and health religiously as a star athlete. He has a professional chef, personal trainer, and food coach to stay fit and agile.
Russell follows a gluten-free, dairy-free diet with 9 meals per day. He consumes 4800 calories a day and drinks plenty of water.
Russell avoids junk food at all costs and prefers organic, whole-nutrition foods. In addition, he follows a daily and weekly workout routine and is fond of yoga.
About his diet, he said, “I’m trying to eat organic, whole nutrition-type foods to help me fuel and repair. That’s really critical for me.”
He takes protein powder, vitamin D, fish oil, and probiotics as supplements.
Russell believes that a good night’s sleep is key for excellent performance on the field and tries to get 9-10 hours of sleep on the weekends.
He used a particular molecule mattress for sound sleep. Their mental wellness also defines an athlete’s performance, and for that purpose, Russell has a mindset coach who helps him perfect his mental edge.
He also says giving back to society helps him stay grounded and content.
Relationships, Family Life, and Kids
First Marriage
Russell Wilson met his first wife, Ashton Meem, briefly when both were in high school and started dating soon after.
Their long-distance relationship began when he enrolled in North Carolina state university and joined the University of Georgia.
Later, Meem transferred to North Carolina state to be closer to him. They tied knots on January 14, 2012.
They announced that they were getting divorced in April 2014 for unknown reasons. Soon the rumors started to fly that the real reason behind this divorce was her affair with Golden Tate, Wilson’s then-teammate.
As expected, all the parties denied the news. Tate claimed the news was “laughable” and “anyone who circulated that rumor was just plain irresponsible.”
It was rumored that he was dating bikini model Samantha Hoopes after both were spotted cruising in a rolls Royce though any party did not confirm the news.
Dating Ciara
Russell started dating his now-wife, Ciara, in early 2015. She is a famous R&B singer and a model. Before dating Russell, Ciara was engaged to singer/Rapper future and had a son with him.
It is not clear exactly how Russell and Ciara met for the first time. They were spotted together in April 2015, first during an NBC party and second during a Seattle Mariners game.
Similarly, they made their first public appearance as a couple in a white house state dinner for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
An interesting fact is that Russell had asked Ciara to remain celibate until their marriage. In an interview with The Rock Church, he said that Ciara happily agreed and said: “They could love each other without that.”
Along with Ciara, Russell also embraced her son Future Zahir Wilburn without any double thoughts. The pop diva has said that he has been an incredible father since day one.
Marriage and Kids
Russell proposed Ciara while on a march 2016 vacation to Seychelles. They made the news public via Instagram, with Ciara showing off her 5-carat diamond ring.
The couple got married soon after, the following July, in a super private ceremony at Peckforton Castle in Cheshire, England.
Ciara announced their first pregnancy via Instagram in October 2016. Likewise, they welcomed a baby girl to the world on April 29, 2017, and named her Sienna Princess Wilson.
Russell and Ciara never hesitate to display their affection on social media. On their third anniversary, Russell posted a video with Ciara where he expressed his desire to have “many more years of love, fun, and joy and kids.”
Not so long after that, they announced their second pregnancy, this time via Twitter.
Ciara posted a gender reveal video on Twitter in April that year, announcing that they were expecting a boy. Their son Win Harrison Wilson was born on July 23.
Faith
Russell Wilson is a devout Christian and a believer in god. He frequently tweets ‘Bible Verses of the day’ #BVD and his Twitter.
He also often credits divine intervention on his wins and losses. His Twitter bio reads, “I want to Love like Jesus!“. He chose the number 3 jersey to respect the Holy Trinity.
In interviews, he remembers that he used to be the ‘bad kid’ who went to church only to look at the cute girl paper writers.
But slowly, church influenced him. Ever since that, he says his life has changed for the better.
Charity
Wilson has come a long way to make his name and an immense fortune, but he has not forgotten his roots and loves giving back to society.
He visits sick children at Seattle children’s hospital every week, sometimes along with his teammates and other celebrity friends. There he spends time talking to children and their families, uplifting their spirits.
Russell has supported charities like Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Elton John AIDS Foundation, Autism Speaks, and the Make-A-Wish foundation.
In the offseason, he hosts a youth football camp. Proceeds of this camp go to charities he supports. Wilson founded the ‘Why not you’ foundation in 2014.
It is a non-profit dedicated to children’s education, health, fighting poverty, and youth empowerment.
Why Not You Foundation donated more than $1 million to Seattle Children’s hospital in 2016 for its strong against cancer initiative.
During the 2020 pandemic, Russell and Sierra pledged to donate one million meals to needy Seattle families.
Russell Wilson | Net Worth, Salary, and Endorsements
Russell is one of the highest-paid players in the league, and his wife Ciara is also one of the most successful musicians of our times. Together they live a luxurious life in Washington with their children.
Russell Wilson’s home is a seven-bedroom mansion situated in the Meydenbauer Bay area. He bought it in 2015 for 6.7M.
He owns many cars, but the one he’s mostly seen with is a customized Mercedes Benz G-Class, which costs around $135K.
Russell has millions worth of football contracts and regularly collaborates with big companies for brand endorsements.
He has been a face of big names such as Pepsi, Duracell, Nike, Microsoft, and more.
Russell has also invested in many companies such as ‘at the ball,” a European bread company, ”Juice Press,” molecule.” He also has his clothing line, The Good Man Brand.
Social Media Presence:
Russell is an enthusiastic social media user who frequently posts and tweets his pictures and updates. As a result, he has amassed quite a following across all his social media accounts.
Russell gives his honest opinion on sports entertainment in his podcast DangerTalk, which he co-hosts with comedian Jeff Dye.
DDangertalk’s2020 series is produced by ESPN in video format and can be watched on YouTube.
Instagram: 4.9m followers
Twitter: 5.5m followers
Facebook: 2.3m followers
Youtube: 108K subscribers
Some FAQs:
Who is Russell Wilson’s wife?
Russell Wilson is currently married to American Singer Ciara. Ciara Princess Wilson (nee Harris) is a Grammy winner singer/songwriter, model, and dancer.
They married in 2016 and have two kids together. Ciara also has a son from her ex-fiance, Future, the rapper.
Is Russell Wilson Vegan?
No, Russell is not a vegan. He follows a no dairy, no gluten diet but eats meat and meat-based products. He avoids junk food and prefers to eat whole nutrients.
Is Russell Wilson retiring?
Russell Wilson is at his career peak right now and is not planning on retiring soon. As of 2024, he is only 35 years old and plans on playing till he is 45.
What team does Russell Wilson currently plays for?
Russell Wilson currently plays for the professional football team Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League(NFL).
What injury is Russell Wilson recovering from?
The athlete is recovering from a finger injury in a game against the Los Angeles Rams.
How many Super Bowl rings does Russell Wilson have?
Russell Wilson has won one Super Bowl ring winning Super Bowl champion (XLVIII).
Who is Russel Wilson’s agent?
The NFL player’s agent is Mark Rodgers. Rodgers and Wilson are currently observing Aaron Rodgers’ contract with the Green Bay Packers that assures Rodgers $153 million.
The assurance is the largest amount of cash guaranteed to a player in NFL history.
Does Russell Wilson have a brand logo?
Yes, Russell Wilson has a brand logo for his signature clothing Line, 3Brand. Russell mentioned in one of his interviews that his logo 3BRAND represents the mind, body, and soul.
Moreover, Russell Wilson also officially has his own logo with Nike. His logo features a combination of his initials and his jersey number.
Did Russell Wilson swap his jersey with Kyler Murray?
Yes, Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray swap their jerseys after the Seahawks win during a game against Seattle Seahawks Vs. Arizona Cardinals on September 29, 2019, in Glendale, Ariz.
