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January 28, 2004
Panthers Notebook
Willig says he feels fortunate to be along for Super ride
COMPILED BY JOE MENZER AND JOHN DELONG
• Tackle Matt Willig was out of football when training camp started, waiting for his agent to work a deal with someone.
He got a call from the Panthers during two-a-days when Melvin Tuten was lost for the season with a torn anterior-cruciate knee ligament, and has been with the Panthers ever since in a backup role.
"I kinda go with the idea that I'm the reason we're here," a laughing Willig said yesterday.
On a more serious note, he said he's still pinching himself over the way this season has turned out.
"How fortunate am I?" he said. "I mean, I was traveling up the (Pacific) coast in an RV with my wife and kid and I get a call saying the Panthers want to sign me tomorrow. It was hectic at the time, and when I got here I wasn't sure how it would turn out. But it's been a great experience. I've gotten along great with the offensive-line coach, and I'm in a system that is compatible with me, so I couldn't ask for anything more. I'd love to come back next season now."
Willig won a Super Bowl ring as a member of the St. Louis Rams in 1999.
• Defensive tackle Kris Jenkins wants to have his 2-year-old son, Kris Jr., at the Super Bowl with him. But Jenkins is locked in a bitter custody battle with the boy's mother, a former girlfriend who no longer is dating Jenkins and denied his request to let Kris Jr. attend.
Looking haggard yesterday, Jenkins said he has found the situation exasperating as the biggest game of his life approaches.
"I'll find a way for my son to be here. I'll find a way," Jenkins said. "It is what it is. I can't change it. I've got to accept it. But if I can find a way for my son to be here, you know I'll find that way."
Pressed for details on the situation, Jenkins replied: "You can talk to my attorney. I'm sure she can answer any questions about it. I just don't know how far I can go in talking about it, you know?"
His attorney, Tamela Wallace of Charlotte, didn't return a phone message yesterday.
• There was this exchange between one reporter and running back Stephen Davis of the Panthers during Super Bowl Media Day at Reliant Stadium yesterday.
Reporter: "Who would you rather be tackled by, Clay Aiken or Celine Dion?"
Davis: "Celine Dion."
"Are you afraid of Clay Aiken?"
"No, I get tackled by dudes all day."
"Last question then. When you pull your helmet on, do you get worried about messing up your hair? I know I would!"
"No, I wear a bald head."
• There was at least one other reference to helmets, hair and lack of it yesterday. It came during an exchange between a supposed member of the media who was dressed in some sort of superhero outfit, complete with tights, cape and mask, and third-string quarterback Chris Weinke of the Panthers.
When asked if the Panthers could use such a superhero on their team, Weinke replied: "Maybe we could use you on special teams."
"I don't know," the superhero said in return. "You see that I have long flowing locks of hair. I wouldn't want to mess up my hair by putting on a helmet."
Weinke, who has been known to take some ribbing from teammates about his own thinning hair, smiled and added: "Well, I don't have to worry about that."
• Even Coach John Fox wasn't immune to the inane questions of some who pushed the envelope at yesterday's Media Day. As evidence we offer the following exchange.
Reporter: "Viagra or Levitra?"
Fox: "I don't know enough about either to comment."
• Super Bowl officials have yet to decide if the retractable roof over Reliant Stadium will be open or closed for Sunday's game.
One guy hoping it will be closed is punter Todd Sauerbrun.
"I would prefer it's closed," Sauerbrun said. "The wind won't be a factor either way. But if it's cold and they have it open, it'll be cold on the field."
Sauerbrun averaged 49 yards on three punts when the Panthers lost to the Hou-ston Texans on Nov. 2, when the roof was open and the temperature was in the 80s.
"I kicked well here the last time," he said. "But that means nothing as far as Sunday."
• Wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad said that it doesn't matter that the Panthers have never been to the Super Bowl before this year. He said that because the Patriots won the Super Bowl two years ago, that places all the pressure on them and leaves the Panthers to play loose and confidently.
"Each game is a game," Muhammad said. "You can look at it as an advantage or a disadvantage. They've got a lot of pressure on them to win this thing, and I don't think we have as much pressure on us.
"I know the Rams had a lot of Super Bowl and playoff experience, and so did the Eagles. So I think people kind of overplay that. It's a ballgame. And the team that plays the best on that day is the team that's going to win."