University of North Carolina Athletics
Peppers Agrees To Terms With Panthers
July 23, 2002 | Football
July 23, 2002
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - The Carolina Panthers agreed to terms Monday with defensive end Julius Peppers, the second overall pick in this year's NFL draft.
Terms were not immediately available.
Peppers' signing came days before he reports to his first NFL training camp. The Panthers open camp Friday and new coach John Fox is relieved he'll be there from the start.
"Julius is a player we are obviously counting on and it is important for him as well as all the new players to be in training camp because the learning proceeds at an accelerated pace," Fox said. "We were very pleased with Julius in the mini-camps and are excited about working with him at camp."
Peppers, an All-American at North Carolina, is expected to start at left defensive end for the Panthers.
Peppers played three seasons for the Tar Heels and ranked second in school history with 30.5 sacks. As a sophomore in 2000, he led the nation with 15 sacks - just one shy of Lawrence Taylor's school record set in 1980.
Last year he had 63 tackles, 9.5 sacks and had three interceptions while winning the Bednarik and Lombardi Awards as the nation's top lineman.
The Panthers have yet to reach deals with running back DeShaun Foster, drafted second, and quarterback Randy Fasani, the fifth-round pick. Both are expected to come to terms before the start of camp.
