CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- It was a cold, overcast Friday in January 2004 when coach John Fox gathered the Carolina Panthers on the far practice field near Bank of America Stadium. In 24 hours, the team would begin its fairy-tale run to Super Bowl XXXVIII with a wild-card playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Sam Mills wanted to speak.
So players went to one knee and gathered tightly around their linebackers coach, with the skyline of Charlotte as his backdrop.
Mills began sharing his story of how a 5-foot-9 middle linebacker whom no NFL team wanted coming out of Montclair State went on to become a five-time Pro Bowl player after a three-year stint in the United States Football League.