Team Coverage: Panthers fans react to Frank Reich's firing
BREAKING RIGHT NOW AT NEW IT IS THE END OF A VERY SHORT ERA FOR THE CAROLINA PANTHERS. THE TEAM ANNOUNCING THIS MORNING AND IT IS PARTING WAYS WITH HEAD COACH FRANK IN JUST 11 GAMES IN HIS FIRST SEASON WITH THE TEAM. FRUSTRATIONS REALLY BOILING OVER AFTER YESTERDAY’S TOUGH LOSS TO THE TITANS IN TENNESSEE, THE PANTHERS FELL TO ONE IN 10 ON THE SEASON. RIGHT PLAYED WITH THE BLACK AND BLUE DURING THEIR INAUGURAL SEASON AS A QUARTERBACK AND WAS SUPPOSED TO COME IN AND CHANGE THE ENTIRE DIRECTION OF THE FRANCHISE. QUEEN CITY NEWS HAS CREWS ALL
AROUND CHARLOTTE THIS AFTERNOON COVERING THIS STORY FROM ALL ANGLES WHEN CITY NEWS REPORTER CASEY JONES IS LIVE OUTSIDE UPTOWN SPEAKING WITH FANS. BUT FIRST, CHARLOTTE SPORTS LIVES AND KATE MACDONALD JOINS US LIVE FROM BANK OF AMERICA STADIUM. SO GAVE WHAT THE TEAM SAYING ABOUT THIS MAJOR DECISION. SO BASICALLY, FRANK IS OUT AFTER 11 GAMES. IS THE SHORTEST TENURE FOR A HEAD COACH WITH THE TEAM SINCE 1978 THE FORTY-NINERS FIRE PEOPLE. KELLY, AFTER JUST 9 GAMES. AND FRANK RIGHT NOW HAS BEEN FIRED IN BACK-TO-BACK SEASONS. AND YESTERDAY REALLY SEEMED TO BE THE LAST STRAW WAS A
REPORT THAT DAVID TEPPER WAS VERY, VERY VISIBLY FRUSTRATED, FEELING A FOUR-LETTER WORD THAT I CANNOT REPEAT ON THE AIR RIGHT NOW. BUT HE WAS VERY FRUSTRATED AND THAT SEEMED
TEAMS COORDINATOR, A BIT OF AN INTERESTING MOVE GIVEN THAT YOU THE DEFENSE FOR NADER AND THOMAS BROWN WERE BOTH IN CONTENTION IN BOTH HAD INTERVIEWS HERE FOR THE HEAD COACHING JOB EARLIER THIS YEAR. SO NOW CHRIS TABOR, GUY WHO DEALS WITH EVERYBODY ON BOTH SIDES, THE BALL AND SPECIAL TEAMS WILL TAKE OVER FOR THE FINAL 6 GAMES. BUT FRANK RIGHT CAME IN. THEY WERE LOOKING TO REALLY REIGNITE THE OFFENSE, ESPECIALLY TRADING UP TO GET BY SELLING. AND NOW THROUGH THESE 10 GAMES ARE ONLY AVERAGING 265 YARDS PER GAME THIS SEASON. THAT IS 30TH IN THE
NFL. ONLY 15 POINTS PER GAME. SO THE OFFENSE DEFINITE DOING WHAT THEY EXPECTED. FRANK RIGHT NOW OUT AFTER 11 GAMES. AND IN JUST A SOMBER, YOU KNOW, PRETTY SUMMER TODAY AROUND HERE IN THE BANK FOR HEARD SOME REPORTS AS WELL THAT A LOT OF THE PLAYERS FOUND OUT THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA EARLIER THIS MORNING. SO THAT’S, YOU KNOW, JUST HOW THINGS HAVE GONE SO FAR. TODAY, DAVID TEPPER SET AT 10:30AM. WELL, AND GAVE ME LIKE YOU SAID THIS IS KIND OF LIKE A GROUNDHOG DAY SITUATION FOR PANTHERS FANS. IT’S REALLY TOO EARLY TO SPECULATE. WE HAVE
A PRESS CONFERENCE TOMORROW. BUT WHO DOES THE TEAM NEED TO BRING IN NOW? TO BUILD THAT HC SPA. WHO IS THAT PERSON AND WHAT DO THEY NEED TO TO THINK ABOUT? YOU’RE REALLY LOOKING AT SOMEBODY THAT CAN READ THIS. GIVE THIS LIVE IS REALLY WHAT IT’S NOT. I MEAN, THAT’S THE WAY THE LEAGUE IS GOING OUT. AN OFFENSIVE LEAGUE. YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO PUT UP POINTS AND YOU WANT TO LOOK AT POSSIBLY A YOUNG OFFENSIVE LINE TO REALLY COME IN AND BRING IN A SPARK AND SOMEBODY TO REALLY GET THE BEST OUT OF
QB ONE RIGHT SHOWING YOU MADE THAT TRADE TO GO GET HIM EARLIER IN THIS YEAR’S DRAFT. YOU FEEL LIKE HE’S YOUR GUY, THE QUARTERBACK OF THE FUTURE. YOU WANT TO KIND OF MARRY HIM MINDSET. WHAT’S REALLY TAKE THIS OFFICE, THE NEXT LEVEL, WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT, YOU KNOW, UNFORTUNATELY, FRANK NOT DO IN HIS 11 GAME 10 YEARS. I THINK THAT’S PROBABLY THE MAIN FOCUS RIGHT NOW. BUT YOU OBVIOUSLY MAKE THIS DECISION MORE TIME TO MAKE THAT THAT THAT SEARCH OBVIOUSLY FOR THE HEAD COACH. BUT DAVID TEPPER AND NOW HE’S FIRED. COACH. 3 COACHES NOW FIRED
RON RIVERA IN 2019 MATT RHULE LAST SEASON. AND NOW FRANK IS ACTUALLY FIRED. 4 COACHES IN 18 MONTHS BETWEEN CHARLOTTE FC AND THE CAROLINA PANTHERS. SO YOU WANT TO GET THIS NEXT HIRE RIGHT? IN ORDER TO GET THIS FRANCHISE BACK TO WHERE ALL THESE FANS AND REALLY THE PLAYERS WANT TO BE IN IT. AND IT’S A PROCESS THAT WE’RE GOING TO START ALL OVER AGAIN. GAME OF DONALD REPORTING FOR US LIVE FROM BANK OF AMERICA. THANK YOU. WE’LL CHECK IN WITH YOU LATER. PANTHERS FANS HAVE PLENTY TO SAY ABOUT RIGHT SPY RING. WE TO NEWS
REPORTER CASEY JONES IS LIVE FROM UPTOWN. SO, CASEY, WHAT ARE THEY SAYING ABOUT ALL THIS? WELL, ANY 11 GAMES INTO THE SEASON AND THE CAROLINA PANTHERS HAVE THE WORST RECORD IN THE LEAGUE. SO FANS SAY THEY KNEW CHANGE WAS ON THE HORIZON. IT WAS A MATTER OF WHEN AND NOT IF NOW, FRANK WAS WELCOMED WITH POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE OF THE CAROLINA PANTHERS BACK IN LATER AND HE IS FIRED WITH THE SOCIAL MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT. THE FANS WE SPOKE TO SAY THEY ARE NOT SHOCKED THAT RIGHT WAS FIRED AFTER HIS ONE IN 10 STREAK THIS SEASON, EVEN
WITH HIS HISTORY PLAYING FOR THE PANTHERS. FANS SAY THE EXPECTATIONS AND ODDS WERE STACKED AGAINST HIM WHEN IT COMES TO TURNING THINGS AROUND. FANS SAY OWNER DAVID TEPPER MUST MAKE BETTER DECISIONS. CAN THE TEAM FOR THE SEASON? I DON’T THINK SO. I THINK THEY CAN. THEY’RE GOING TO HAVE TO START FROM SCRATCH. A PLEA TEMPER GOES OUT AND FIND SOMEONE TO PLAY THE SOUTH UP TO PLAY AND MAYBE FEDERER GOING AS WELL. WITH FRANK OUT CAROLINA HOPE THAT THE NEXT MOVE FOR THE PANTHERS WILL BE THEIR BEST MOVE FOR. IN THE MEANTIME, FANS WILL BE
WATCHING THAT GAME ON DOWN TO TAMPA TO TAKE ON THE BUCANEERS. THAT WILL BE THE FIRST GAME WITH INTERIM HEAD COACH CHRIS TABOR REPORTING
