Located in sunny Malibu, CA, Pepperdine University is home to those who love the beach and sun! Did you know that Pepperdine wasn’t always located in Malibu? Or that Willy the Wave wasn’t always their mascot? Check out these 10 fun facts about Pepperdine to learn more!
1. Pepperdine University was named after George Pepperdine. He was the founder and president of the Western Auto Supply Company.
2. Remember the ABC Series “Battle of the Network Stars”, hosted by Howard Cosell? It was filmed on Pepperdine’s campus from 1976 to 1988.
3. Eric Christian Olsen, from NCIS: LA , went to Pepperdine University to study child psychology with the hopes of studying medicine before he got into acting.
4. Pepperdine’s first mascot was Roland the Wave!
5. XOXO, Gossip Girl here. Word has it our favorite, Chase Crawford, attended Pepperdine to study broadcast journalism and marketing in 2003. He dropped a few semesters later.
6. The university tried to introduce a new mascot, Joe the Pelican, but didn’t last long because of the expense of caring for a live pelican.
7. Did you know Pepperdine doesn’t have a football team? They had a team from 1946 to 1961 but ended the program.
8. The current Pepperdine mascot, Willy the Wave, was actually going to be renamed as King Neptune in 1996, but it never took off.
9. Pepperdine has 11 NCAA Division I Team Championships in Baseball, Men’s Golf, Men’s Tennis, Men’s Volleyball, Water Polo and Women’s Beach Volleyball.
10. Major league pitcher, Jon Mascot, pitched for the Pepperdine baseball team in 2012 and 2012 until he was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds!
Are you looking to apply to Pepperdine or just starting to build out your college list? Make sure to search through profiles of students accepted to see essays, stats, and advice. See how they got in, and how you can too!
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