Smash and Dash

Last night in Charlotte the Carolina Panthers shocked the NFL with their mind boggling rundown of the Buccaneers. The panthers offense was phenomenal with two small hiccups, two bad pick that Jake threw. Even though the Bucs turned the Panthers mishaps into 10 points, which did not stop the explosive Williams who had 9.8 yds. carry and Stewart who also had more than 6 yds. a carry, the Panthers still took care of business at home. The 1-2 punch of these running backs both had over 100 yards for the 2nd time this season; the first time was against the Lions, who are now 0-13. The Panthers defense also stopped the Bucs on the Goal line to prevent them from scoring a touchdown, and the Panthers D also blocked an extra point. The game was almost over until DeAngelo William and Stewart ran the ball in for the last touchdown of the game, and that sealed the deal. The panthers would have had 3 more 1 o’clock games, but too accommodate Denver fans the Panthers will play host to Denver at 4:15 on Sunday. If the Panthers win on Sunday then they will have gone undefeated at home this year and in years past they have not always done that great at home. In two weeks the Panthers will now play on NBC’s Sunday Night Football hosted by Al Michaels and John Madden, this announcement comes today after the Panthers showed how they can handle the pressure of the national spotlight. The Panthers last game of the season still stands as the 1 o’clock game in the Superdome in south Louisiana.

Monday Night Football

Tonight is the Panthers biggest game of the season so far. If the Panthers win out from here on out, they will have a number on seed in the NFC, which has the perks of home field advantage throughout the playoffs, but winning from here on out stats with the Buccaneers tonight in Charlotte. The Bucs are a 9-3 squad who have already beaten, no whooped, the 9-3 Panthers. The Panthers also have an afternoon date with Broncos next Sunday, and Denver has beaten the Bucs, as well as the Jets, who had just come off their win against Tennessee. Then the Panthers finish at the New York Football Giants, and we all know what the G-Men are capable of, well when they had Plaxico. Then in week 17 Carolina finish in Nawlens . The Saints just took out the Falcons yesterday in the Superdome.

That is what the Panthers have on their plate right now, but let’s analyze tonights NFC South Show Down. The Panthers are streaking right now, right through downtown Charlotte. They have not lost at Bank of America Stadium all year and are coming off an impressive win from back-to back-to-back plays that won the game in Green Bay. The Bucs-Panthers rivalry is now living up to what is was thought to be. “Both teams respect each other,” Steve Smith, these teams might respect each other, but I fully expect to see physical game from both teams. The Bucs are known to be a defensive team, and that showed back October 12th when the teams hooked up in Tampa (Car-3 TB-27), as well as the Panthers, even though Jon Beason and company gave up 35 to the Packers and 45 to the Falcons. Carolina has something that Tampa Bay doesn’t have, Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams. These diverse backs, along with Steve Smith and Musin Muhammad, can allow Carolina to have the one two punch of running backs as well as the option to go for the deep ball to either Smith or Muhammad. William can allow the Panthers have the real long run, such as his 69-yard TD run in Oakland, and Stewart can be the pound it up the I to get the first down.

Tonight I can’t wait to watch the Panthers and Bucs on Monday Night Football.

TAMPA BAY @ CAROLINA 8:30 PM

Watch: ESPN HD
Listen: Voice of the Panthers Mick Mixon, on 101.5 FM WZTK Burlington
Boomer Esiason on Westwood One on 99.9 FM WCMC ESPN Radio

ACC Continues to Dominate in Challenge

For the first time in the last decade the big ten actually made this a “challenge.” With many of the game coming down to the wire on Monday and Tuesday, this made it all the more exciting on Wednesday. Maryland and Penn State were the only two close games, while Wake and North Carolina stomped their opponents. Duke, “put on a clinic for Purdue,” (Dickey V) while the key to the MSU loss was their turnovers and Carolinas ability to punish them when they were committed. The record was 6-4 (ACC-Big Ten) which is the closest it has been in history. In the past ten years of this conference, it has shown me one thing. The Big Ten, well is not ten teams, is not a good match for the ACC. NC State was the odd dog out this year in case you were wondering, because they finished last in the ACC last year, and were picked to finish 3rd. The worst part about last night’s MSU game was that UNC knows how to play: on a raised floor, but the worst is they are a team and anything short of blowing their opponent out in the title game would be a lost season for them. It just so happens that the 2009 Final Four is in Ford Field, Detroit. Roy Williams is a smart guy and he knew exactly what he was doing when he agreed to play at Ford Field on Wednesday night.

99.9 FM The Fan ESPN Radio

The Insiders 

"You Gotta Listen Cause You Never Know What Your Gonna Hear!"

Mark Thomas and Scott Jackson

Hurricanes Make the Move

So today is a better sweet day in the history of the Carolina Hurricanes. Today the Canes made a change that will shake up the team for the good (we hope). Although Laviolette was a fan favorite here in the Carolinas, it was time to see a guard, even if that meant bringing in an old face to the franchise, Paul Maurice. Maurice coached the Canes from 1995-2003, when they were there the Hartfod Whalers, and when they had a small fan base in Greensboro. Maurice was the Maple leafs head coach for the 06-07 and 07-08 season, earning a 76-66 -22 record, but his Leafs missed the playoffs both years.

My question is will this motivate the fans of Raleigh to travel to the RBC Center to watch or will the continue listen over the air and watch on TV?

Hurricanes

Hey what with the Hurricanes dropping their 3rd straight loss at home?  

The RBC Center is one the NHL's loudest arenas, when full, and the only way this stadium will fill up is when the Canes start winning.  When Anaheim travels from west to east, the Canes have no excuse for losing the game.  When will the Canes turn the corner and play the way we expect them to?

My 1st Blog

So I will get better at this blogging stuff I hope, but for my first blog...

...Bucs @ Panthers, on Monday, December 8.  

Will this game tell us who is the 2nd best in the NFC?