The Year of the Cat

In Year of the Cat, award-winning journalists Scott Fowler and Charles Chandler go behind the scenes to explore Carolina's successful second season, and in doing so paint a vivid portrait of the players, the coaches, and the personalities that gave the team its identity and its first shot at winning an NFC championship: franchise player Kerry Collins, the Generation X, hard-throwing, hard-partying quarterback whose off-the-field behavior sparked controversy at a team meeting that turned the Panthers' season around; Kevin Greene and Lamar Lathon - "Salt & Pepper" - two ornery All-Pro linebackers whose distinct differences off the field translated into immediate success on it; Bill Polian, the fiery GM whose hard-nosed negotiations and astute football knowledge helped piece together a winning combination in the Carolinas; Wesley Walls, the good ol' southern boy from Pontotoc, Mississippi, whose lilting drawl and exciting play gave Carolina fans something to root for; Eric Davis and Sam Mills, the perceptive veterans and locker-room leaders whose defensive performances sparked many to emulate their inspired play; and Dom Capers, the meticulous, obsessive coach whose game strategy and leadership brought the fledgling franchise to the brink of the Super Bowl. Like any team and any franchise, the Carolina Panthers had their ups and downs: from the Reverend Billy Graham's inspiring dedication of Ericsson Stadium to the suspension of center Curtis Whitley for a drug-abuse problem that was never fully revealed until now, Fowler and Chandler chronicle the ins and outs of the Panthers' second season.