The former Southern California high school standout linebacker who served five years in prison for a rape he did not commit has signed with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons.
Watch: Hidden-Camera Confession That Led to Exoneration
Linebacker Brian Banks, 27, worked out with the Falcons -- the 2012 NFC South champions -- last year. The team continued to watch Banks' progress as he played for the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League.
"We are pleased to have Brian join our team," Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said in a statement. "We had a chance to work him out last year and have been monitoring his progress since then. He has worked extremely hard for this chance over the last year and he has shown us that he is prepared for this opportunity. We are happy that Brian will have a chance to live out his dream of playing in the NFL and we look forward to seeing him on the field."
Terms of the deal were not immediately available. More details are expected during a Wednesday conference call.
"I feel good this morning," Banks tweeted Wednesday.
He was wearing a sweatshirt with "XONR8" (exonerate) in a California license plate graphic when he signed the contract (view image).
Banks was a highly touted athlete at Long Beach Polytechnic High School who was recruited by several big-name college football programs, including USC. Banks was 16 when a girl he had known since childhood accused him of rape. He was arrested and, on advice of counsel, pleaded no contest to rape and an enhancement of kidnapping in order to avoid a possible life sentence if tried by a jury.
Banks spent five years in prison, but a hidden-camera confession by his accuser led to his exoneration. Banks' conviction was thrown out in May 2012.
His second-chance road to the NFL first gained momentum when Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, who recruited Banks as the Trojans' coach, offered him an opportunity to work out with the team not long after his exoneration. He worked out with several other NFL teams before joined the United Football League.
Photo Credit: AP