As I was leaving the media tent and headed for our post-practice press conference with Matt Rhule, a fan jokingly asked me for my media pass so he can meet the players. I told him I couldn’t do that, but it was what he told me after that, that made me pause my brisk walk across the field.
“I drove all the way here from New Mexico,” the man decked out in Panthers gear said. I was stunned.
Victor Tenorio has been a Panthers fan since the beginning…1995 to be exact. Before watching the Hall of Fame game with his brother during the team’s inaugural season, Victor picked Carolina to beat Jacksonville. They did and a fan was born.
Up until a few years ago, Victor told me he would travel annually from New Mexico to Spartanburg. He even said after one of those trips he found out he and his girlfriend, at the time, were having a baby. They named him Kuechly after Carolina’s All-Pro linebacker.
Victor told me they’ll be in town for the final practice of training camp and hopefully get a few autographs and pictures with players from the team.
There are fans and then there are super fans. Victor is a super fan with one message for Panthers Nation “Let’s Do It!”