Julius Peppers

As a rookie, Peppers helped the Panthers boast the only defensive unit since the NFL merger in 1970 to improve from last in the league in total defense to second in one season.

Peppers finished his rookie season with 29 solo tackles, seven assisted tackles, 12 sacks, five forced fumbles, one interception, and five passes defensed.

Julius Frazier Peppers (born January 18, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end and linebacker in the National Football League (NFL).

Peppers' second three-sack outing of the year tied the NFL rookie record for three-sack games in a season, set by Leslie O'Neal of the San Diego Chargers in 1986.

During his senior year (1997–98), he was named to the Parade magazine high school All-America team in football as an all-purpose talent and was named Male Athlete of the Year by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association.

In 1998, Southern Nash won the state championship in track for the first time in the school's history.

Peppers contributed as a sprinter, winning the state championship in the 4×400 meter team relay (3:23.10 minutes) and finishing second as a triple jumper (14.05 meters).

Peppers attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he played defensive end for the Tar Heels from 1998 to 2001.

As a true freshman in 1998, he was redshirted.

He was a reserve on the 1999–2000 Tar Heels team that made it to the Final Four.

He was named to the 2000s and NFL 2010s All-Decade Teams.

In 2024, Peppers was selected for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Peppers was born in Wilson, North Carolina, and raised in nearby Bailey.

He attended Bailey Elementary School, Southern Nash Middle School, and Southern Nash High School where he played football for Coach Ray Davis.

By the time he was a senior at Southern Nash High School, Peppers had grown to 6 ft, 225 lb. When Peppers arrived at Southern Nash his freshman year, Davis felt that Peppers would be an asset on the gridiron for the Firebirds, despite the fact that Peppers had never played football before.

During his high school career, Peppers played running back and defensive lineman, finished his career with 3,501 rushing yards and 46 touchdowns, and was one of the most dangerous defensive linemen in the state.

Peppers lettered in basketball and was voted all-conference as a power forward for four consecutive years.

Peppers led the nation with 15 quarterback sacks during his sophomore season (2000), and earned first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and second-team All-American honors.

Peppers was a reserve on the 2000–01 men's basketball team.

In the NCAA Tournament, Peppers scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in a loss to Penn State in the second round.

After the season, Peppers decided to focus solely on football and did not play basketball in his final season.

Following his junior season in 2001, he was a first-team All-ACC selection and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American.

He won the Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation's top defensive player and the Lombardi Award as the best collegiate lineman and the Bill Willis Trophy as the nation's best defensive lineman.

He finished tenth in Heisman Trophy voting in 2001.

In the three seasons at North Carolina, Peppers started 33 of the 34 games in which he played.

He is currently ranked second all-time in UNC history with 30.5 sacks.

He accumulated 53 stops behind the line of scrimmage, 167 tackles, five interceptions, two fumble recoveries, five forced fumbles, 13 passes deflected, and 42 quarterback pressures (hurries) and returned two interceptions and one fumble recovery for touchdowns.

While at the University of North Carolina, Peppers was a walk-on member of the men's basketball team.

The North Carolina football coach, Carl Torbush, said he could play football and then be a walk-on for Bill Guthridge on the North Carolina men's basketball team.

He played college football for the North Carolina Tar Heels, where he was recognized as a unanimous All-American, and was selected by the Carolina Panthers second overall in the 2002 NFL draft, and also played for the Chicago Bears from 2010 through 2013 and the Green Bay Packers from 2014 to 2016.

In his rookie season, he was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2002, where he recorded 12 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, and an interception, all while playing in only 12 games.

Peppers was a highly regarded prospect coming into the 2002 NFL draft earning comparisons to Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor for his ability to dominate a football game.

Peppers was selected in the first round with the second overall pick in the draft by the Carolina Panthers.

On September 8, 2002, against the Baltimore Ravens, Peppers played in his first career NFL game, in which he made an impact by deflecting A Pass by Ravens quarterback Chris Redman that was intercepted by linebacker Dan Morgan, who proceeded to race 22 yards down field with under two minutes remaining in the game to preserve the victory; the Panthers won the game by a score of 10–7.

In Peppers' second career NFL game, which came on September 15, against the Detroit Lions, he lived up to his billing with three sacks and a forced fumble for Carolina.

Peppers had five tackles including one for a loss, and a deflected pass in the 31–7 victory.

Later that season, in a 14–13 loss against the Dallas Cowboys in week 6, Peppers produced three tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble, one pass defensed, and an interception of Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter that he returned 21 yards, before lateralling the ball to linebacker Mark Fields, who gained an additional 30 yards.

In 2005, Peppers was named by the Rocky Mount Telegram newspaper as one of the 50 Greatest Athletes from the Twin County (Nash and Edgecombe) area.

After rejoining the Panthers for the 2017 season, he retired after the 2018 NFL season.

Peppers was named to the Pro Bowl nine times, and both the first and second All-Pro teams three times each.