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New Bern Sun Journal, NC
Run Date: 09/07/2003
Peete knows more than just football
By Steve Reed/Freedom News Service

Carolina QB gives back to community

CHARLOTTE -- Drop the name of a Hollywood actor on Rodney Peete and chances are he's had dinner with him or at least
has made their acquaintance.

Michael J. Fox? Peete knows him well.

Tom Arnold? Ditto.

Arnold Schwarzenegger? They aren't close friends, but Peete has met him several times.

How about Denzel Washington?

"C'mon, that's an easy one," Peete replies with a smile. "Challenge me. Of course I know him."

The list goes on an on like a who's who of Hollywood, ranging from the obscure like Lou Ferrigno of the Incredible Hulk
to Todd Bridges of Different Strokes fame, to the more acclaimed actors of our generation like Tom Cruise and Jack
Nicholson.

But then, that's the way it is when you live in Bel Air, Calif., and you're wife's a Hollywood actress.

Holly Robinson Peete is a former star of "21 Jumpstreet," "Hanging with Mr. Cooper" and "For your Love," and will be
the star of an upcoming series on WB called "Family Life."

Along with being the mother of three and an accomplished actress, Holly also has a pretty good voice and will sing the
National Anthem at today's regular season opener between the Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars at Ericsson
Stadium.

While some NFL players may know a few famous Hollywood people, few, if any, know as many as Peete.

Together, the Peetes run the HollyRod Foundation which provides financial, physical and emotional support to
Parkinson's patients and their families and caregivers. Holly's father, Matthew J. Robinson, was afflicted with the
disease for years and died last August.

Through those fund-raising campaigns and being on more than a few Hollywood film sets, Peete has met numerous
celebrities.

Given his own line of work, he attracts a fair amount of attention from actors and actresses, many of whom are big NFL
fans.

Even for fellow NFL quarterback Jake Delhomme, it's a little amazing the names on Peete mental Rolodex.

When asked earlier this week who's the most famous person he knows, Delhomme laughed and said, "Rodney Peete."

Seriously?

"The biggest celebrity I know? Wow. I guess you can say she's a celebrity - the Doritos girl, Allie Landry," Delhomme
said. "She's from my hometown. She was Miss USA, but if I say that nobody knows who she is. If I say the Doritos girl
then everybody knows who I'm talking about."

That's pretty good.

Well there you go, Delhomme has one up on Peete there, huh?

"Oh no. God, he knows her, too," Delhomme said. "He met her at one of his wife's functions. I tell you man, he's
amazing. He knows everybody."

But Peete insists it's not all parties and social functions, and admits having his wife working thousands of miles away
in Hollywood is not easy.

During the NFL season, Holly spends three weeks working on the set and then has 10 days off. During that time, she and
the couple's three children - 5-year old twins, Rodney Jackson and Ryan Elizabeth, and a 1-year old son Robinson James -
- fly to Charlotte to be with Rodney.

"It's really tough being without them for a long period of time," Peete said. "Two of my kids are older now and it's
tough because they're starting to understand when I go away and knowing that daddy is going to be gone for awhile. So
yeah, that's hard."

When his family is out of town, Peete can be found pouring over game film at Ericsson Stadium.

"I'm a gym rat, basically," Peete said. "When there's nothing to go home to, I just really stick around the stadium."

But Peete admits sometimes that can be more of a detriment than a benefit, and that it's important to get away and get
your mind straight.

"When you leave here you like to leave football behind and go home and see your family and get into that world. So it's
great when they're here. It's more relaxing when they're here. When they're not here I go home and I'll sit and think
about, 'OK, what are we going to do this week and what plays are we going to run?" Peete said.

The Peetes own a high-rise condominium in an wealthy part of downtown Charlotte. In fact, he's neighbors with NASCAR
driver Jeff Gordon.

Peete said it's the first time since 1993 that he's bought a home in the city where he plays football. In Philadelphia,
Washington and Oakland, he rented a place, unwilling to commit given his uncertain roster status.

But he feels like he wants to be a part of the community in Charlotte even after he's gone. He's gotten involved in
several charities and met a variety of businessmen through his connections with the team.

"I will always try to have some presence here in the community and with the Panthers," Peete said.

Peete, who'll start the season opener for the second straight season today, admits he didn't expect things to go this
well when he signed a one-year deal here on March 28, 2002.

He came in as the most unpublicized free agent quarterback signing in team history given the fact many viewed him as a
washed up 36-year old backup who might not even make the 53-man roster.

"When I got here I thought I would be here to help Chris (Weinke) get ready," Peete said. "That was going to be the
deal. I wanted to try to do that as long as I could and as long as they would have me."

Things changed when the coaching staff lost confidence in Weinke and benched him seven days before the start of the
2002 season.

It's been Peete's team ever since.

"In this business things change and as a player your situation changes all of the time and that in turns changes your
mindset," Peete said. "You always want to play. That's the bottom line. Regardless of if your role has been as a
backup, the reason you keep doing this is to reach that light at the end of the tunnel. You hold on to that glimmer of
hope that you will get a chance to play again."

SOURCE: New Bern Sun Journal, NC
http://www.newbernsunjournal.com/Details.cfm?StoryID=10962

* * *New Bern Sun Journal, NC
Run Date: 09/07/2003
Peete knows more than just football
By Steve Reed/Freedom News Service