Who is Ashley Thompson, wife of legendary NFL quarterback Peyton Manning?
Peyton Manning's quarterback days may be behind him, but there was a time when he was making headlines at just 17 for being an up-and-coming star in American football. He not only led his high-school football team to the play-offs every year; he was also named National Player of the Year by Gatorade for 1993–1994, when he was a senior at Isidore Newman School, New Orleans. And he had a name to live up to, since both his father and older brother were football players.
Through his long career in American football, one person never left Manning's side: Ashley Thompson, whom he met the summer before his first year at the University of Tennessee. 'With all her qualities, I think what pleased me most about Ashley, though, was that she liked me for who I was, not what I was,' he admitted in his book, written with his father Archie, Manning: A Father, His Sons and A Football Legacy .
But just who is Ashley Thompson, Manning's long-time wife? How did Peyton Manning meet his wife, Ashley Thompson? Peyton Manning playing for the Denver Broncos in 2012. Photo: AFP/Getty Images
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Thompson, 50, was a student at the University of Virginia when she met Manning. Back home in Tennessee for the summer of 1993, she was introduced to him by her parents' next-door neighbour.
'It was in August, at one of the few fraternity parties I went to,' Manning, 48, recalled in his book. 'We were introduced and only talked a little while. I didn't make a big first impression (she said later my pastel shirt was a turn-off), but I was certainly impressed.'
When Thompson returned to Virginia, the couple dated long-distance. Manning mentioned her time at UVA during a speech at the university's Class of 2014 graduation ceremony.
'While dating my wife, Ashley, a 1997 UVA grad, I spent a good amount of time here in Charlottesville,' Manning said, as reported by People. 'My wife, Ashley, is the smartest person I know and I know a lot of that has to do with her four years here at UVA.' She's a businesswoman
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