CHARLOTTE — He came to the Panthers as a nickname but quickly made a name for himself here.
And in the process, Rod Smart left as many smiles as defenders in his wake.
The former running back and kick returner, who kept things moving and kept things light during the team's first Super Bowl run, will be back Sunday as the Legend of the Game, and will hit the Keep Pounding drum before the start of the fourth quarter.
Smart joined the Panthers in 2002 after his stint in the XFL — where he gained fame as "He Hate Me" — and quickly made his mark on special teams. He led the team in special teams tackles in 2002, became the kick returner in 2003, and had a 100-yarder for a touchdown against the Saints.
And along with his frequent partner in hijinks, Jarrod Cooper, he kept the laughs going in those years, entertaining fans and teammates alike.
Panthers.com caught up with Smart last week to reminisce about his days here:
Q: The XFL was a huge part of your story in more ways than one. Did you realize what that league would mean for you at the time?
Smart: "Back when I was in college at Western Kentucky University under Jack Harbaugh, we were a I-AA (program), so we weren't even big yet, and we didn't run a pro-style offense, so I knew there was going to be some point where it was going to be my stepping stone. And that's what the XFL was, to be able to get in a pro-style system, work with some professional coaches, and kind of get me ready for the next level, which was the NFL. Coming straight from Western, and I am not saying I couldn't have done it because I still could have done it on special teams and stuff, but just being able to correlate myself in a pro system all around the board was good. I knew there was going to be a stepping stone at some point, whether I was going to be on a practice squad or something in NFL or whatnot. But it just so happened the XFL came at the right time, and I was able to use that as my stepping stone."
Q: Of course, the other thing that came out of the XFL was the nickname. What was your initial thought when they told you that you could put whatever you wanted on the back of your jersey?
Smart: "Well, I've always been a creative genius with everything. So, it was a chance with my other buddies on the team to have some fun and play with that. I didn't know it was going to blow up the way it did. But it definitely helped me at the end. It was definitely a good choice for myself to use that name instead of anything else that could have come to mind, no doubt."
Q: And when (former announcer) Bill Rosinski dropped the "He Hate Me, We Love You," that was as good as it gets, right?
Smart: (Laughs) "Yeah, that's classic, baby. That's classic."
Q: When you think back to coming here in 2002 (claimed off waivers from the Eagles in September), when did you realize that team was on the cusp of something?
Smart: "At that point in that year, you look back, a lot of those guys was from the '01 team that went 1-15. So those guys lived through that, and then you got the '02 guys, which I was a part of that was when I came in and some guys came from winning teams, some guys came from losing teams. But you had the core guys that were there from the '01 team like Steve Smith and Jarrod Cooper, you know, they were all rookies that year coming in together in '01. Then you got the guys that came in 2000 like Deon Grant and those guys and then you got the older guys that were there that had been there for a little bit like Muhsin Muhammad and whatnot.
"So, for me, I think it was mostly the camaraderie of the guys, how we came together and played together and once we kind of gelled, it was a beauty, it became a beautiful thing.
"Then we brought other guys in and stuff, Julius Peppers, Deshaun Foster, and those guys in the draft, and then we end up bringing in Stephen Davis, Ricky Prohel, and Jake Delhomme. It was a great group of guys that knew how to work together as a team, and we were all good friends, especially in the locker room and even outside the locker room. A lot of us would hang out and stuff together, and we were very close. So, that camaraderie this has got to be the closest that I've ever had with any team I've been on."
Q: Was there anyone on that team who could compete with you and Cooper for mischief?
Smart: "I think Coop and myself took the cake for that one. Me and Coop, just all day, every day, just keeping the team laughing and having fun because that's what brings guys closer together when you have fun together. There were so many things that there was no one particular thing that stood out because we were always standing out. It was a lot."
Q: I remember you guys turning it up a notch when you got to Houston for the Super Bowl, too. Did you guys feel responsible for keeping everyone loose there?
Smart: "I mean, we've got to stay loose then because a lot of times when it is the Super Bowl, you tend to tighten up a bit. So me and Cooper were just being me and Coop. We just continued to be ourselves and that kept us where we needed to be. It ended up being a great game, it's one of the best Super Bowls ever played, if you go back and watch it. And I still, to this day, I feel like we should have won that game because we got the momentum at the and then we lost it. But, at the end of the day, Tom Brady got another ring from that.
Q: You mentioned that camaraderie, but at what point did you look around and realize there were so many great players like Julius Peppers and Steve Smith, and when did you realize how good that team actually was?
Smart: "I mean, when I got here from the Eagles, I knew it did because of just how hard we worked as a team. Everybody played hard and came to practice and practiced hard, and everybody was in the film room watching film. So I saw it building before my eyes, so I kind of knew in '02 and '03 showed it. It was just a matter in '03, everything came together, but it was being built in '02, and came together in '03."
Q: You also had the chance to be around Sam Mills that year and hear the Keep Pounding speech in person; what do you remember about that time and the impact he had, and what does it mean to come back and hit the Keep Pounding drum this weekend?
Smart: "Well, Sam Mills was always an idol of mine, just being an undersized linebacker and that's why he was a big idol for me because I always felt like I was an undersized running back. So just to see him do the things he did when he was in the league and then was able to be a part of the coaching staff that I was under. It made a big difference then, and it's still relevant today.
"Just the fact that he's no longer here, it gives something back to him, something he created and started and it was a big part of. And so it's a special moment, in the history of the game and in the history of the Panthers."
