http://www.thechar1ottepost.c»m
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Section
Cliarlotte
SPORTS
THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2006
Business 8C
Bear essentials
QB play
key for
underdog
Carolina
C. Jemal
Horton
It all depends on Jake.
If the Carolina Panthers have
any chance of beating Chicago
this weekend in
their second-
round NFC play
off game at
Soldier Field,
their quarterback,
Jake Christopher
Delhomme, must
be the difference.
Not Julius
Peppers - or any
body else on that
highly touted defensive line.
Not head coach John Fox.
Not even the only All-Pro play
er on the Panthers’ roster, wide
receiver Steve Smith.
It’s all about Jake this Sunday
He can’t play as poorly as he
did on Nov 20, when the
Panthers went to Chicago and
got handled, 13-3.
He has to be better this time.
As he goes, so will the
Panthers.
Is that entirely fair, since foot
ball is supposed to be a team
game and all?
Of course, it’s fair.
Remember that Super Bowl
run the Panthers put together
two years ago? Guess who got all
the credit when he replaced an
aging Rodney Peete in the sea
son-opener and went on to lead
Carolina within minutes of a
world championship?
Yep, it was Jake - the
Louisiana boy most of us in the
media portrayed as the poor soul
who simply couldn't get any love
when he played for the New
Orleans Saints and had to come
all the way to Charlotte to get
his just due.
Unless you’re Trent Differ,
when a team excels, the quarter
back visually gets all the credit. I
mean, there’s a reason that,
despite all those strong players
who helped make that Super
Bowl trip possible, it was Jake
who landed the now-famous
Bojangle’s commercial deal.
So now, as the Panthers’ most
important game in two years is
upon them, we shouldn’t be
aff aid to put ev^y oimce of the
pressure to win this game on
Jake. If he doesn’t play well, the
Panthers don’t win Simday
It really is that simple.
You might remember that
November game against
Chicago: The Panthers’ defense
was pretty stellar.
And they still lost.
Smith set a franchise record
for single-game receiving that
day
And they still lost.
The one Panther who was visi
bly horrible that day? It was
Jake. He wound up throwing for
235 yards, but he had zero
^uchdowns and two intercep
tions. He reverted back to those
occasional ugly moments of his,
when he is off-balance and out of
the pocket and on the run and
his intended receiver is in triple
coverage - yet he still throws the
ball up there, hoping something
good will happen.
That’s why the Panthers lost to
Chicago back then.
Look, I know those are the
chances you take with Jake.
Most of the time, those sloppy
throws (ff his are going to hit
their target, and they’re going to
be clutch. At times, it is a mag
nificent thing to watch because,
hey. playmakers aren’t always
aesthetically appealing when
they’re doing their thing (see:
Favre, Brett).
See CAROLINA’S/3C
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO/JULIE JACOBSON
Carolina receiver Steve Smith (center) is congratulated by quarterback Jake Delhomme (17) and
running back Nick Goings after Smith caught Delhomme’s 22-yard touchdown pass in the Panthers’
23-0 win over the New York Giants last Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J. Carolina plays Chicago
Sunday in the divisional playoff round at Soldier Field.
Chicago has Panthers’ attention for playoff rematch
By C. Jamal Horton
FOR IJIE CttARLOTTE POST
Sure, they were celebrating.
Make no mistake about that.
It had been about 15 minutes
since the Carolina Panthers
had beaten the New York
Giants 23-0 in their first-round
playoff game and stormed into
the Giants Stadium locker
room smiling widely exchang
ing high-fives as if they were
going out of stjie.
But there was no overabun
dance of Panthers patting
themselves on the back, either.
Every Panther seemed to
imdCTstand what it meant that,
despite how impressive they
looked in that annihilation of
New York, the CTiicago Bears
await Sunday (4:30 p.m.).
“We have a lot of pride in our
selves,” Carolina running back
Nick Goings
said, taking a
look aroimd the
room. “We work
hard, and we
believe we can
achieve our goal
if we just take it
one game at a
time. But (this)
week with
CTiicago is going to be a battle.”
No Panther has forgotten how
the Beai^ shut down the
Goings
Carolina running game - and
dominated in most other facets
— during a 13-3 loss on Nov. 20.
In addition, this game, too,
will be at CTiicago’s storied
Soldier Field. In the first meet
ing, the game-time tempera
ture was 45 degrees. This week,
the forecast calls for weather in
the mid-30s.
And, well, the stakes, obvious
ly, will be higher this time
arovind.
“There’s not a trick about it -
you don’t have the luxury of
being at your own house and
being in your own bed, so you
have to deal with the elements
See PANTHERS/2C
No offense? Defense eounting on it
PHOTO/WADE NASH
Panthers comerback Ken Lucas returns an inter
ception against New York.
By C. Jamal Horton
FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST
The last time the Carolina Panthers faced the
dhicago Bears, R«c Grossman didn’t even play
With Grossman away nursing what was con
sidered to be a season-ending knee injury con
servative rookie Kyle Orton was the Bears’ start
ing quarteihack. Even thoiogh the Bears won 13-
3, the Pmthers limited Orton to a pedestrian 136
passing yards and fdt they knew the answer to
stopping the neophyte.
Seven weeks later, guess who will be the Bears’
starting quarterback when the Panthers return
to Chicago on Sunday for an NFC divisional play
off game: Grossman, the third-year “gunslinger”
who excelled while executing Steve Spurrier’s
See NO OFFENSE/2C
PHOTO/CALVIN FERGUSON
Johnson C. Smith guard Jerome Givens dri
ves past Virginia Union’s Darius Hargrove in
the Golden Bulls’ 87-77 win last Saturday.
JCSU is No. 18 in this week’s NABC poll.
JjC. Smith
uauNs
MoD-l
rankings
Golden Bulls (10-3)
No. 18 in NABC poll
By Herbert L, White
herb .whiie&: ihecharlottepo.'it com
Johnson C. Smith has risen to Division 11
basketball’s elite.
The Golden Bulls are No. 18 in this week’s
NABC poU, the best showing by Smith since
the 2(X)1-01 season. The Bulls (10-3, 3-0 CIAA)
knocked off top-ranked Virginia Union 87-77 at
Brayboy Gym Saturday, and St. Paul’s 95-91
TViesday in Lawrenceville, Va.
Smith never trailed Va. Union in
the rematch of their Dec. 28
game in Los Angeles, which the
Panthers won. Union dropped to
No. 8 in the poll, giving the
CTAA two teams in the rank
ings. Barton and Moimt Olive
give North Carolina three teams
in the polls, the most of any
state.
‘T thou^t we saw some good things in Los
Angeles that we brou^t home to CTiarlotte,”
Smith (»ach Steve Joyner said. “We thou^t
we were gelling as a team and you certainly
need a team effort to beat \Trginia Union, and
that’s what you saw.”
The Bulls are playing better as a team since
Los Angeles. Charles Clark has scored 62
points in the last two games, including a
career-best 36 against St. Paul’s and forward
John Pulton has shaken off an early slump to
regain his role of offensive leader. After a sub-
par effort against Union in the first game,
Fulton boimced back with 20 points, 10
See GOLDEN/2C
Bobcat finds a groove
Bobcats guard/forward ‘ ’
Gerald Wallace has been
on a tear going into ^'
Joyner
Friday’s NBA game ^
against Milwaukee. /
Avg. last 4 gms
Points 15.3
Rebounds 8.5
Blocks