He played college football for the South Carolina Gamecocks and was selected by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 2002 NFL draft.
During his sophomore year, he started every game at defensive end, recording 64 tackles and five sacks, earning an All-American selection.
During his junior year, he moved to linebacker and finished third on the team in tackles with 74 and tied for the lead in sacks with seven.
He also earned All-American third-team selection by the Associated Press and was a consensus All-Southeastern Conference first-team choice.
During his senior year, he played both linebacker and defensive end and was a semifinalist for both the Lombardi Trophy and Butkus Award after finishing the season with 79 tackles and 3.5 sacks.