McClover Loves to Bark

Panthers.com has a great article about Carolina Panthers defensive end Stanley McClover and his patented “bark.”  McClover claims he has had the bark with him for a long time, though some of his teammates claim to have never heard it before this season.  McClover, who stands six feet, two inches tall and weighs almost 270 pounds, can be quite intimidating when he’s stalking the field, barking at the top of his lungs after every tackle.  It seems the barking also helps to motivate and pump up his teammates.

With the retirement of Panthers career tackle leader and defensive anchor Mike Minter, the Panthers will certainly need other players to step up and provide that defensive spark and leadership that Minter brought to the locker room.  Until a new veteran leader emerges in the locker room, the defensive will most likely fill Minter’s shoes by committee.  Keep your eyes on McClover, who could certainly become one of the new leaders on the Panthers defensive squad.

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Notes from Panthers Camp

The Gaston Gazette has posted an article detailing some notes from Panthers camp.  Among the notes are second year player Stanley McClover taking the field for many more plays with the first team in camp, not to mention his development of a habit of barking like a dog after every single good defensive play he makes.  Also of note, temperatures at camp are topping three digits in Spartanburg, South Carolina, making conditions at camp somewhat hazardous.  Precautions are being taken to prevent overheating and dehydration.

The Panthers seem to be having a blast at camp, and spirits are high going into this season, along with team expectations for improvement on last year’s 8-8 record.  The Panthers may be facing an uphill battle, but they appear to believe they are more than up to the task.  I expect the Panthers to make some serious noise in the NFL in the upcoming 2007 season.

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Peppers Now Called Upon to Lead

In an article today in the Gaston Gazette online, is is being reported that Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has called upon Panthers defensive veteran Julius Peppers to step up and become the leader of the defense in the wake of safety Mike Minter’s retirement.  Peppers will now be the ranking defensive veteran superstar and will be expected to become even more vocal in the locker room.

This article perfectly illustrates just exactly how losing Minter really affects the Panthers.  They haven’t just lost a player.  They have lost their leader and defensive compass.  Minter was vocal in the locker room as a leader and also led by example on the field.  The Panthers will need a player to step into that position to keep the defense together and push them the way Minter did.  Minter provided tons of intangibles to the Panthers, both on and off the field.  No one will truly the know the true impact of his retirement on the Panthers until the season starts.

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Panthers Career Tackle Leader Retires

According to ESPN.com, Carolina Panthers career tackle leader Mike Minter is retiring after 10 seasons with the team.  Minter blamed his failing knees for his retirement.  At age 33, Minter is retiring one year ahead of schedule, due to injury.  The Panthers will most certainly feel the effects of losing a leader like Minter in the 2007 season.  Team owner Jerry Richardson was reported to be fighting back tears as he stood by while Minter made the announcement.  Minter was not only a great player on the field, but a team leader in the locker room, and a role model in the community.

It’s rare in the world of sports these days to see a player go through his entire career with one team in professional sports.  Minter was drafted by the Panthers in 1997.  The second-round pick went on to quickly win over Carolina fans, coaches, and teammates alike with his toughness, leadership, and character.  Minter has logged 141 starts, 94 of them consecutive.  He also has 467 more tackles than the next closest Panther to his total.  He was a great Panther and will be sorely missed this season.

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Morgan Returning to Action with Panthers

If you are an ESPN Insider, then you are privy to some of the hottest gossip and rumblings from around the league in the “Whispers from Around the NFL” section. It’s a good cross section of the current situation that faces players one pretty much every team in the league. If there was on thing that might make this story better, it might be to organize it more efficiently. That way, if you were trying to get some news about just one team (say, the Carolina Panthers) then you could do so much quicker. Oh, well. You are lucky that you have me to sort through it all so that you can get the nuggets of information without digging too far.

One thing of note from the “Whispers” section is that middle linebacker Dan Morgan will be returning to play for the Panthers this year. He missed over a dozen games because he was knocked unconscious twice in a month last year. He will be wearing a more protective helmet and brace, and will not be participating in the hard drills in preseason practice. He is also not likely to be part of the preseason exhibition games.

But the good news is that you will probably get to see Morgan in uniform again by getting Carolina Panthers tickets at StubHub.com.

Carolina Panthers Acquire Harris

The Carolina Panthers gained Chris Harris from the Chicago Bears yestserday for a fifth-round draft pick and neither the team nor Harris could possibly be happier about it. Harris, who is entering his third season is quite excited. Additionally, this new teammate has a lot to bring to the Panthers as he started in both safety poisitons with the Chicago Bears and he has five interceptions to his name, all made within the last two seasons. This is a pretty impresive feat for Harris so it should be easy to tell why the Carolina Panthers were so eager to get him on their team.

Believed to be an instinctive player, the scouts and coaches for the Carolina Panthers are quite excited at the prospect of what Harris can bring to the team, Regardless of the details, all the whos-who of thsi team are confident that Harris cane come into the game with the Panthers and compete, and that is all that fans of the Carolina Panthers want to hear! To see the Panthesr play live, get tickets at stubhub.com today!

NFC South Predictions

Since the time to get NFL tickets is fast approaching, you will want to see how the Panthers are going to stack up against the rest of their division. The NFC South is one of the most interesting divisions in the NFL, and picking how the season will shake out is going to be a tall order. You could probably predict that the New Orleans Saints will be the cream of the NFC South crop, but after that, the future gets a little bit fuzzier. This is one division where the NFL experts don’t all agree about what the end result of the regular season will look like.

The safest bet for a team to get second in the NFC South is the Carolina Panthers. This time last year people were thinking that the Panthers would be a team in the NFC Championship game, but some very unfortunate string of events stopped that from happening. We expect the Panthers to have an improved season this year. How that happens, precisely, could be because of the play of Delhomme or Carr.

But you will have to get Carolina Panthers tickets at StubHub.com to find that out first-hand.

Panthers Player Still Dealing with Tragedy

In a switch from your everyday run-of-the-mill NFL story, today we have a story about Panthers back up tight end Jeff King’s work with his alma mater Virginia Tech, as the school struggles to return things to something resembling “normal,” in their first full school term after the awful and tragic shootings on campus.  As everyone is most likely well-aware, the Virginia Tech shooting last year claimed the lives of 32 students last April.  As it would be for any of us if this tragedy had happened in a place we had always thought of as a safe haven, the shootings have shaken the Hokies to the core.

King has been very active in attempting to help in any way possible as the Hokie community attempts to return things to normal on campus.  He has also been very active in training camp, taking many of the first team reps at tight end so far, and looking like the most likely starter at the position for the beginning of the season, even over veteran Michael Gaines.

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Beason Still Holding Out

According to an AP report, Carolina Panthers first round draft pick Jon Beason is still holding out, with the two sides apparently very far from actually closing a deal any time soon.  Beason, the 25th pick in the draft, has publicly stated that he would like to be at camp, practicing with his teammates and learning all the nuances of playing linebacker for the Carolina Panthers.  However, some very intricate and exasperating contractual details seem to be holding up the process.

The crux of the problem seems to be in second year options, something the Panthers are vehemently against, for some reason I cannot surmise, being that I am not an accountant or NFL contract expert.  However, from what I can gather, the Panthers seem to be muscling their rookie a bit in an effort to create a team precedent.  I’m not sure how much longer they can hold out, as they’ve had a few preseason injury troubles at linebacker and may need Beason sooner rather than later, thus giving them less leverage.

You can buy all your Carolina Panthers tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Panthers Suspend Bridges

According to reports, the Carolina Panthers have suspended offensive lineman Jeremy Bridges for the first two games of the regular season for his arrest on misdemeanor assault charges. Bridges was arrested Thursday in Charlotte, N.C., after a woman who works at a strip club accused Bridges of pointing a gun at her in the parking lot of the club. He was released on $3,000 bond.  He will still be allowed to practice with the team. The suspension was leveled by the Panthers, not the NFL.

This marks the first negative off-field news story the Panthers have had to deal with in some time.  In an offseason during which the Panthers were fairly quiet as an entire organization, this should come as at least a slight surprise to those who have been following the Panthers this offseason. The NFL could still impose a penalty on Bridges as well.  Perhaps the NFL should simply institute a “no strip clubs” policy, as many of their players’ problems seem to stem from nights out at strip joints.

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