Always stronger.

Always faster.

He went to a Final Four with North Carolina and played his way into the second overall spot in the 2002 NFL draft.

Even his rookie baptism was a breeze for Peppers, who tore through opposing offensive lines at a sack-per-game pace.

Then came December 2002, when the NFL suspended Peppers for the final four games of the season for using a banned diet drug.

Then came this season, when other teams weren't fooled by Peppers the way they had been when he was a rookie for the Carolina Panthers. Double-teamed and attentively watched, he had only three sacks in the first 12 games.

What Peppers, a 6-foot-6, 283-pound Bailey native and UNC product, expected to be another season of dominance turned into a season of frustration and education. He took trips to the film room instead of being selected for a trip to the Pro Bowl along with defensive linemates Mike Rucker and Kris Jenkins.

The early returns are promising. After his slow start, Peppers had sacks in five of the final six regular-season games.

The Panthers' defensive line is a big reason they are playing New England in Super Bowl XXXVIII today. How effective defensive ends Peppers and Rucker are at pressuring Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will have plenty to say about whether the Panthers can win.

The future awaits Peppers -- when he is ready to take hold of it.

"He has a unique opportunity to be one of the elite players who has played his position," said Carl Carey, who was Peppers' academic adviser at UNC and now manages his business affairs.

"I think he recognizes that. Now, what I see is the willingness to do the work."

'The lowest I have been'

As a rookie, Peppers had 12 sacks in 12 games against teams unprepared for his speed and size. It was a stunning debut, one that heralded the emergence of a star on the NFL scene.

But in November, the NFL notified Peppers that a September drug test had come back positive. Without consulting with the team's trainers, he had taken the diet drug phentermine, which is banned under the league's stimulant policy.

"I have had some highs and lows in my short career," Peppers said. "That was the lowest that I have been."

Although he missed the last four games of the season, Peppers was still voted defensive rookie of the year. But he admits the talk that surrounded the suspension bothered him, and those around him say the award didn't dull the sting of the stimulant stigma.

"That's not him," Carolina defensive coordinator Mike Trgovac said. "I mean, he doesn't drink. Here's a guy who doesn't do a whole lot on the outside; he's kind of a quiet guy.

"For that type of suspension to be tagged on him, that hurt him personally, and he was a little bit embarrassed by it. He's such a nice guy, and I don't think that label has ever been on him before."

The expectations placed on Peppers as the second overall pick, by his home-state team no less, made matters worse. Peppers knew the Panthers had gambled on him with the pick. Oregon quarterback Joey Harrington was still available, and this was long before anyone outside of Louisiana had heard of Jake Delhomme.

Peppers believes now that if the Panthers hadn't picked him, he would have fallen to fifth or sixth, perhaps lower. But the Panthers had no hesitation then and certainly no regrets now.

"We researched Julius Peppers more than any player I've ever been associated with in my 15 years in the league," Panthers general manager Marty Hurney said. "We just got a real confident feeling with him. ... It certainly looks like it was a good decision for us."

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