Make your peace.

[run-run-pass-punt]

Sport (and life) is cyclical. Change is a constant and inevitable. The Panthers as we knew them under Jerry Richardson were an entity that had its own life - its own positives and negatives. There was stability. There was loyalty - granted, to a fault at times. There was a culture of family. There were some exciting times and seasons with four conference title game appearances while making it to the Super Bowl twice. We've had some exciting players - some who are surely HOFers. Maybe things weren't always great, but we had quite a few days in the sun.

There was also inconsistency. The Panthers of old couldn't maintain any sort of sustained success for a variety of reasons. There was a conservative-to-a-fault nature to our team much of the time. There were personal tragedies like that of Rae Carruth and Fred Lane. There were some crushing seasons of losing with 2001 and 2010 being particularly rough. But overall, we've been about a .500 team with a 195-204-1 record. But to be as objective as possible, we do have a better all-time franchise regular season record than all of our division rivals.

But all that is born must die. And it is time to say goodbye to the Panthers we knew. Gone are the ways of old, and with that is born a hope that the new ways might just be better. I know we all develop attachment to players and it can be hard to say goodbye and to let go of the familiar, but new life requires death, and it is time for us to all make our peace and let go of what is gone. So my fellow Panther fans, I make a call to surrender the ghost and a plea to be born again. New life can be fragile and uncertain, but with the right nurturing development, patience and guidance, growth into a strong and confident entity is possible. Here's to a hope for brighter days.

[Asurfaholic]

[Mr. Scot]

I'm not gonna be ready to say we're free of Jerry Richardson until Marty Hurney is gone.

[4Corners]

[Move the Panthers to Raleigh]

I will be glad when we finally break the curse of no back-to-back winning seasons.

[mc52beast]

[4Corners]

SHES MUH QUEEN

 

[jbland]

9 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

I'm not gonna be ready to say we're free of Jerry Richardson until Marty Hurney is gone.

And statue. 

[Anybodyhome]

2 minutes ago, jbland said:

And statue. 

That statue will be up for auction when BOA gets renovated for the soccer team and the new football stadium in SC opens.

[Mr. Scot]

4 minutes ago, Anybodyhome said:

That statue will be up for auction when BOA gets renovated for the soccer team and the new football stadium in SC opens.

The image of a statue of Richardson (holding a football and flanked by Panthers) standing outside a soccer stadium is kind of amusing.

[sr20nc]

[jbland]

8 minutes ago, Anybodyhome said:

That statue will be up for auction when BOA gets renovated for the soccer team and the new football stadium in SC opens.

That’s the second time today I’ve read something about the panthers moving south. Do you have information or speculation?

[Waldo]

Right now is like trying to asses the damage from a hurricane while sitting in the eye-wall. JR and Ron are gone but their ghost live on. Cam is probably done, at least here. Luke is retired. Hurney is still here killing hope of a better team. The new owner is still a wild card and could be great or a unmitigated disaster and anything in between. And there is no winning in sight yet. This storm has some damage left to do and there is absolutely no guarantee that we are a better team on the other side. I sure hope we are but damn, there are reasons to severely temper hope. 

[run-run-pass-punt]

13 minutes ago, Waldo said:

Right now is like trying to asses the damage from a hurricane while sitting in the eye-wall. JR and Ron are gone but their ghost live on. Cam is probably done, at least here. Luke is retired. Hurney is still here killing hope of a better team. The new owner is still a wild card and could be great or a unmitigated disaster and anything in between. And there is no winning in sight yet. This storm has some damage left to do and there is absolutely no guarantee that we are a better team on the other side. I sure hope we are but damn, there are reasons to severely temper hope. 

I suppose I'm an optimist at heart. When faced with the unknown, I tend to believe in the best, to hope, until proven otherwise. Whether things are better or not ultimately, at least it's nice to dream for a while.

At least drastic change brings the possibility of a wonderful new day.