Vick is NOT a Panther, thankfully

Looks like Michael Vick will take his circus on the road to Philadelphia, where ESPN.com is reporting that he will sign to serve as a backup to Donovan McNabb.

Now that makes sense -- the Eagles' backup QB just got hurt. So you can see why they are doing this.

But unlike my colleague and friend Tom Sorensen, who wrote in today's paper that he would like to see Carolina sign Vick, I have never advocated this. I will repeat a bit of what I said on this blog several weeks ago (a blog that drew a personal record of 186 comments, so people obviously care about this issue).

From my previous blog:

"There are many questions about Vick, but here, I believe, are the two biggest:

1) Can he stay out of trouble?
2) Can he still play at anywhere near the same level?

Vick is only 29, but his promising career was derailed by his involvement with (and subsequent jail time for) an illegal dogfighting enterprise.

Now, should the Panthers sign him?

NO. Let's just consider Vick just as a football player for the moment. He doesn't fit what the Panthers like to do. John Fox doesn't care about his quarterback running much. He does care about accuracy -- always Vick's weakness as a thrower. Jake Delhomme is well-set here as the starter. Vick at best would be a backup and while certainly an interesting alternative to Josh McCown (No.2) and Matt Moore (No.3), it's not a good fit overall.

Carolina doesn't need the circus Vick will bring with him, and Vick needs a team that didn't win 12 games last year and is more willing to take a risk by bringing him aboard. That team should be warned, however: You just can't count on that athleticism that used to set Vick apart, and without that, he's an average NFL quarterback at best.

Still, I hope Vick resurrects himself in the NFL somewhere. He has served his time. He's got Tony Dungy on his side now as a mentor, and that's a good thing.

Vick deserves another chance."

Today, I still believe all of that. And the ones of you out there who are just sure Vick would take the Panthers to the Super Bowl... we'll just have to agree to disagree on that one.

(In the meantime, if you're reading this post before Friday, Aug.14 at 7 p.m., check out the next post down if you want a chance at a "Rabid Goldfish" T-shirt). And no, that name doesn't have anything to do with Vick.

The Panthers' "Rabid Goldfish" (and a free T-shirt)

Now you can't make this stuff up, so I won't try. (Aug.14 UPDATE on contest -- I posted the winners in the 40th comment on this blog post. Thanks, everyone for playing, and thanks to Jamie Spittler for providing the free T-shirts to the winners... Scott).

I keep finding out more things about DT George Hypolite, the Panthers' unknown but quite interesting reserve that I wrote about in today's paper.

Here's the latest: They called Hypolite "The Rabid Goldfish" at Colorado. And here's why: A couple of Colorado alums created "South Park" -- the offbeat, off-color, animated satire that was such a huge hit a few years ago.

Those CU alums got one of their characters -- Eric Cartman -- to introduce the Colorado defense for a televised football game awhile back. It makes for a funny "YouTube" bit even now -- watch it here, it only takes about 45 seconds.

In this TV bit, for no reason, Cartman calls Hypolite "The Rabid Goldfish." It stuck. People made T-shirts of this nickname for Hypolite, as a reader (and the T-shirt co-creator, Jamie Spittler of Colorado) pointed out to me today.

So there you go. For now, at least until the first round of cuts, the Panthers have a Rabid Goldfish on their hands.

In the meantime, I am going to acquire a T-shirt of the "Rabid Goldfish" via my main man Jamie Spittler and give it away to a reader of this blog.

All YOU have to do to win the "Rabid Goldfish" T-shirt is leave the funniest comment below -- YOU MUST give me a nickname for another Panther defensive player that is totally weird (but funny and clean) and I'll award the T-shirt to you.

You must leave your comment//nickname suggestion by Friday, Aug.14, at 7 p.m., about 24 hours from when I am posting this.Good luck!

How will Panthers' defense do?

While lots of attention will be focused on Carolina's offense when the Panthers open the 2009 preseason at the New York Giants on "Monday Night Football," I'm more interested in what their defense looks like.

The Panthers have a new defensive coordinator, a new emphasis on running to the ball at all costs and will be playing (at least for awhile) a Giants team that dismantled Carolina last season on the ground. As LB Na'il Diggs said Thursday: "It's kind of like a new car. I'm getting ready to drive my new car out on the street and see how it performs."

Diggs says the Panthers defense will be more "explosive" than last year. We'll see about that, but this will be a nice first test.

Meanwhile, I wrote about reserve DT George Hypolite today, who jokes that "I'm a football player first, so I must be a meathead." If you read a little more about Hypolite, you'll realize that's far from true.

And a reminder that I've just begun posting to Twitter if you're one of those who tweet: Twitter.com/scott_fowler

Pitino no longer 'Slick Rick'

Twenty years ago, I was a 24-year-old reporter for The Louisville Courier-Journal. My assignment was to cover Rick Pitino's first basketball team at the University of Kentucky.

(Pitino, of course, is in the news right now for his role in a soap-opera sex-and-extortion scandal -- the latest story is here).

That was an awesome assignment for a 24-year-old, and I knew it. I lived in Lexington, Ky., and was around Pitino almost every day for that first season, as he took a team absolutely decimated by NCAA penalties and transfers and cobbled together something respectable.

You could see Pitino's genius on and off the court -- Lord, his mind was quick and so was his tongue. Plus, he was a charismatic and handsome devil -- by then, the nickname "Slick Rick" had already stuck to him.

Twenty years later, it's time to peel that nickname away. I thought Pitino would be smarter than this, but his still-undetermined role in this sex scandal will now also be part of his legacy.

I just thought Pitino would be smarter than to get involved in something like this. Of course it's natural he would be appealing to other women -- he's always looked 10 years younger than his actual age, and he's a millionaire many times over, and he is thoughtful and quick-witted (and a reporter's dream because he's so quotable).

But Pitino admits consensual sex with the woman, and he gave her $3,000 later (his lawyer says for insurance, she says for an abortion).

It's a sordid affair, undoubtedly. And however it comes out, I'm disappointed with Pitino -- who was so fun to get to know 20 years ago, so admirable, and yet, like all of us, ultimately so flawed.

Don't play Smith in preseason

Steve Smith hurt his shoulder Monday night during practice at Panther training camp. And if that doesn't send a shudder through you, you're certainly not a Panther fan.

X-rays were negative, the Panthers said, which is good news. UPDATE: Smith said Tuesday that the injury occurred when he hit the ground and wouldn't project when he would be back, although several high-profile teammates opined that he would be ready for the regular-season opener. Smith's agent, Derrick Fox, said Tuesday morning that Smith would be out a minimum of two weeks.

If I were the Panthers, I'd shut Smith down for the entire month of August. No preseason games. No more contact work. Just meetings and non-contact workouts and stuff like that. That's it.

Imagining a 2009 Panther offense without Smith is difficult. Who would be the No.1 receiver then -- Muhsin Muhammad? And Dwayne Jarrett becomes a starter?! Wow. That would change things all right. Other teams would stack 8 on the line all day long, every day, daring the Panthers to just try and beat them deep.

Yes, Carolina went 2-0 without Smith last season while he was suspended for breaking Ken Lucas's nose in a training-camp skirmish. But you don't want to have to do that again if you can possibly help it.

Whether Smith is ready to go by Week 3-4 of the preseason or not, I wouldn't put him out there. For that matter, I wouldn't put DeAngelo Williams out there much, or Jake Delhomme, or Jonathan Stewart.

As my loyal readers may remember, I've campaigned for the preseason to be shortened from 4 to 2 games for years. Four games is a waste. And for veterans like Smith, it's really a waste -- just another chance to get hurt, really. So sit No.89 down and let him get welcomed back Sept.13 in the home opener vs. Philly -- nothing matters much until then, anyway.

Time for Panthers to Gamble

Here's a small preview of my next column about the Carolina Panthers from their training camp in Spartanburg, which will be in the paper sometime in the next 1-3 days. The basic premise: It's time to let Chris Gamble do what you pay him to do, and that is to guard the other team's best receiver far more often.

Gamble signed a six-year contract extension in November, but the Panthers don't get full benefit from him because he so frequently stays on the left side of the field and simply guards whoever comes into his area.

Gamble would like to guard the other team's No.1 threat more often. When I asked him about this, he said it's a challenge he looked forward to and something he wanted to do more of.

"Hopefully they'll want me to do that," Gamble said. "I'm ready for that challenge."

The Panthers' tweeting craze

After visiting more than a dozen Panther training camps here in Spartanburg, where I'm writing this at the moment, most things feel close to the same every year. But the new social networking Web site "Twitter" and the Panthers who are doing it -- that's definitely new.

I'll explore this in more depth in a column for Friday's paper -- now posted here -- but basically more Panthers seem to be "Twitter-ing" now -- and more often -- than ever blogged.

I think this is because a blog requires more time. A Twitter is only 140 characters long -- just a text-message, basically, but sent out to hundreds of people instead of just one.

"I've got a blog, too," said Panthers' kickoff specialist Rhys Lloyd. "But this is just easier. A blog is paragraphs. In this, you only have 140 characters. I don't have the time to sit there and write essays... This is just like sending a text message."

Lloyd (RhysJLloyd on Twitter.com) is the early MVP in the clubhouse among the Panthers who Twitter (at least eight of them at last count).

Incidentally, I've joined up on Twitter, too -- you can follow me at Twitter.com/scott_fowler. But if you prefer this blog (or the newspaper), don't worry -- I'll still be writing just as much for both of them.