Washington DC :: Carolina Panthers Fans

Sunday, 22 January 2006

As the season started, so it ends. That season opener/heartbreaker to the Saints popped it and now the loss in Seattle caps it. But the 17 games between those two were so very exciting! Hey -- the season ended three weeks after the regular season did, and the Panthers are watching 2 and 3 fewer games than many of their opponents this season. Here are a few more of the Panthers "highlights" I remember from this year.

The DC Area Panthers Fans gather outside Kitty O'Shea's during the Panthers/Seahawks game.
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Our Carolina Panthers took us farther than many were saying we could go toward the end of our regular season run. We defied the odds by shutting out the Giants and handing Chicago the biggest upset of their season.

What to say from here? This is what: "Thank You."

Thank you to: Rick, Kent, Bob, Meredith, Steve, Rob, Valerie and your friends, Hao, Eddie and your wife, Thomas, Brian, Sarah, Kendall, Michael and Tim. If you showed up and I left you out, please accept my forgiveness. Tell me and I'll fix it.

A big, big, big thank you to:

Danny McFadden - For allowing us to host the DC Panthers Fans at his establishment, Kitty O'Shea's in Arlington.
Maggie, Eric, Tim, Ian, Emily and Byrd - The bartenders at Kitty O'Shea's who put up with us while we watched our Panthers claw their way to the NFC Championship.
Steve B - For your work with the NFL and with kids who may not have the opportunities you presented them. Oh - and for getting Jake's autograph.
Steve, Carl and all of the other supporters of the teams that the Panthers defeated this season. Thank you for taking my ribbing with humility.

Even though you never showed up physically at any of our meetings, I would still like to say thank you to:

Jake Delhomme: For taking the team to the NFC Championship and being a class act. Thank you for the autographed printout of DC Panthers Fans. (And yes, my wife's name is spelled A-M-Y)
Steve Smith: For putting the magic into the Panthers. You helped us believe.
Kyle Ritchie - Director of PantherVision for making sure that my scoreboard message showed up, even after the Panthers site was shut down because of too much traffic (because of a certian scandal in Tampa)
Ken Lucas - Because your mom is just so cool and fun; you should be going to the Pro Bowl, too. "Number twenty-threeee - Lil' Kenny Lucas!"
Scott Dodd - For your most awesome blog on Charlotte.com and for featuring our "Panthers Pug."
The rest of the Carolina Panthers and Coach Fox: Thank you for being a class act. In a day where professional athletes get loads of media attention for being a jerk, you are a team and a coach that I am proud of supporting. In Redskins territory (and near lots of Eagles fans), when I wear my Panthers clothing in public, I am proud to say that I am a Panthers fan.

Lastly, I would like to thank my wife, Amy. For putting up with all of the demands that this season put upon us. She stuck by while I formed our little club, tolerated me sitting on the laptop for hours creating and updating the site (like now), and she listened to me blabbering on and on about things she really had no interest in. Thank you, honey.

Football season isn'tover!

There's still the Super Bowl where we can either choose to cheer for the NFC to take the trophy or we can cheer against the team that bettered us. I'm pulling for the NFC, myself. It's their time. Either way, we hope to see you at Kitty O'Shea's on Feb. 5th!

What to take away from this season...

This season can't be put away without a little reminiscing. It was not at all a loss! Look at what the 2005 season brought us:

The D.C. Panthers fans found each other and a forum in which to get together - thank you again everyone!
The Panthers made it to the NFC Championship game!
They shut out the Giants on the road - our second shut out in team history!
The Panthers put up more points on Chicago in one game than any other opponents did all season!
We learned more about Steve Smith than we ever thought we would. Plus! we got to see some great celebrations including: changing the ball's diaper, getting a drink from the ball, fencing with the ball and - lest we forget - the "rowboat" celebration at the Vikings game.
We found out that Top Cats know how to PARTY. They look after each other, don't take any crap and can kick some ass.
We beat the Falcons TWICE in one season and completely shut down Vick.
We got to see Chris Weinke shine in Detroit after Jake was K.O.'d (thank you, Chris!)
The Panthers beat the Patriots in our house!
We overcame the loss of Stephen Davis only to lose DeShaun Foster as well and Nick Goings in Seattle. But our running game flourished. (Is this the Curse of Biakabutuka?)
Amy and I got to meet Ken Lucas' mom at the team store. Seeing her jump up and down, so proud of her son while she was gleefully smiling saying,"Lil' Kenny Lucas! Lil' Kenny Lucas!" made me proud to be a Panther's fan.
And let's not forget that we got to see Jake's left butt cheek in Atlanta

All in all, 2005 can be closed out as a pretty darn good season. The best part of it was meeting everyone who took the time to come to Kitty O'Shea's and enjoy the games with us. Thank you, DC Panthers Fans.

Keep Pounding!

--Keith