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Shout
Out So, you think you can play a little ball? If so, you might want to send your tapes to the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals, just to name a few NFL teams in dire need of some quarterback help. The news this week of Jake Delhomme being lost for the season has Marty Hurney and John Fox looking for immediate help. The Panthers are a shaky 3-2, following another early Christmas gift in the Big Easy. Despite their chances to go 4-2 this week in the Arizona desert, you get the feeling around here that the sky is falling in Carolina. I'll cut right to the chase on this one: if the Panthers have to rely on finding a semi-retired, forty-something, has-been QB to backup David Carr, then the season might as well be over. Fox and Hurney made one plunge into the off-season, and that was the acquisition of David Carr. Despite getting pounded by the Saints this past weekend, Carr is an absolute upgrade over Chris Weinke....the bigger question is whether he can play and produce as a starter? If the answer is "yes", then Fox/Hurney can beat their chests and play the "it is what it is" game. If the answer is "no", then Fox/Hurney have put another foot into the grave. Carr needs to lead the Panthers and keep them respectable in the putrid NFC South. When you think about it, 9 wins should be the right number to win this division, and the Panthers already have three. It needs to be mentioned that there is a reason that Carr started the season behind Delhomme on the depth chart...Jake is a better QB than Carr. But the Panthers' brain trust also made it known in the off-season that they were confident that by returning the core of their squad and not dabbling in free agency, they would return to the playoffs.....well, for their sake, I hope they're right. The Old Ball Coach returns to Tobacco Road this weekend to face the Tar Heels. It should be quite a scene at Kenan Stadium. Gamecock fans claim they will have upwards of 30,000 fans looking to fill the Aluminum Jungle. I'm curious to see what the breakdown of fans will be on Saturday...however, UNC fans are pumped for this one, too. The Tar Heel fans have been chirping about this one since March Madness ended, and Gamecock fans are feeling great about their Top 10 program under the direction of Darth Visor. All week on my radio show, UNC and USC fans have been ripping each other....on Saturday, we put the talking to rest. One thing is absolutely certain: this game should be played every year, regardless of location...Chapel Hill, Columbia or even Charlotte. The next time these two teams meet will be 2010 in Columbia...and there is no doubt that Butch Davis will have a better squad on the sidelines than the one he will bring to the party this weekend. It should also be pointed out, the same will hold true for Spurrier, too. I think it's great that the state of North Carolina is getting fired up for a big matchup in October. I never worry about the Palmetto state...they get it. Between Clemson, USC, Furman, Wofford...the whole state understands the football mentality. The state of North Carolina has a long way to go...despite the success in Boone and the current ACC champion in Winston-Salem. The Sun Drop Southern Fried Football™ Tour will be setting up shop at the Undergraduate Library Lot across from the Bell Tower. I've got to tell you, after our visit to LSU's Tiger Stadium last week, I'm not sure there is another venue on the planet that can match the tailgating, partying, intensity and the game that we witnessed last week when LSU rallied to beat Florida. In the ten years of traveling on the Tour, that was our best visit ever....but we'll see what kind of show "Carolina" puts on this weekend. New York is out. Chicago is out. Los Angeles is out. Philadelphia is out. I'm sure Major League Baseball is thrilled to watch all the major markets get eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Not only are they out, but the series were boring sweeps for the most part. To make matters worse, we have to wait nearly a week for the playoffs to resume. Bud Selig is a genius. Since the Yankees have been eliminated, it leads to all kinds of speculation about the futures of Joe Torre, Roger Clemens and even A-Rod. It also lends this question...Do Yankee fans turn off the tube and forget about the short October run, or do they root for whomever is playing the Red Sox? If it turns out that Boston wins it all again this year, the Yankee fans' claims about the ineptitude of Red Sox Nation will certainly seem shallow. Under this scenario, the Red Sox will have won two World Series titles and be the current AL East Champs since the Yankees' last triumph. Back to the Panthers' weekend trip to Arizona....on Monday's show, I asked the question "Which 4:00 game will the Charlotte TV market watch on Sunday...Panthers at Arizona, or the unbeaten Patriots against the unbeaten Dallas Cowboys?" I think those numbers might be closer than you think....it will certainly be a fun sidebar story to keep track of next week. I have a couple of wandering thoughts from some of the items that have taken place this week in sports: I noticed that Reverend Jackson and Reverend Sharpton have been amazingly quiet since the verdict was announced that the MSG network, the Knicks and Isiah Thomas were found guilty of sexual harassment to a former female employee. I wonder why? Michael Vick is out $20 million after an arbitrator ruled he needs to turn back some of the bonus money from his last Atlanta Falcons contract. Arthur Blank is no fool; that's the reason he kept Vick on the active roster following his ridiculously stupid dogfighting decisions. I wonder if the Falcons will ever see a dime of that money? NASCAR found a way to make Talladega boring....congrats. I know the drivers claim to be safer in the "Car of Tomorrow", but the racing has been a snooze fest and the ratings are proving that point. The Cup boys are headed to Charlotte this weekend, and hopefully they can get back to rubbing a bit more...otherwise, I'll catch the final few laps or even the highlights....assuming that there are any highlights from the new "follow the leader" racing in NASCAR. I wonder if Tommy Bowden will decide to get a special teams coach before he has to find a new job? Did you know that the Bobcats started playing preseason games this week? I didn't think so. |
Packman
on Sports Commentary
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