INDIANAPOLIS — Miami pass-rushers Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor are among the top pass-rushers in this year's class, and the Panthers are obviously studying both of them very closely.

But they have a little insight into the Panthers' process for other reasons. Namely, they were standing there at halftime of their game against Stanford last season when Panthers general manager Dan Morgan was inducted into the Hurricanes' Ring of Honor.

So knowing one of their own has the potential to make them one of his own, that matters.

"It means a lot because he knows my mindset," Bain said Wednesday at the combine. "He knows how I'm bred because he went through the same mindset and went through the same as me. He knows what it takes for me to get the job done in Miami, how much we care for the game at our school.

"So I feel like if I were to come across his decision-making, I feel like, yeah, it'd be a no-brainer for him because we're both bred the same way."

Of course, Bain's projected to be a top-10 pick, so it might be a no-brainer for a few reasons.

Bain was born in Miami, but joked that he was more of a Heat fan growing up. And if he doesn't have a ton of background on Morgan's days at The U, he at least has the excuse of being born three years into Morgan's NFL career (Sept. 8, 2004, the fall after Morgan had 18 tackles in Super Bowl XXXVIII).

Mesidor, on the other hand, was born two and a half weeks before Morgan was taken 11th overall by the team he now generally manages (April 5, 2001).

But, he was also born in Ottawa, Ontario, and didn't have the classic football background. That left him a little surprised when someone told him his position coach at Miami, Jason Taylor, also happened to be a Pro Football Hall of Famer.

So Morgan's career was initially a mystery to him.

"Growing up, I didn't really play a ton of, I didn't really watch a ton of football," Mesidor said Wednesday. "I've played a lot of the video game, as a kid. I didn't know a ton. Even my defensive line coach, Jason Taylor, coming into Miami, I didn't know much about him until I looked him up on YouTube."

But it didn't take long to be indoctrinated into what Taylor did and what Morgan did as he walked the halls at Miami and kept seeing images of the All-American linebacker. And knowing that a fellow Cane might be in charge of his NFL future made him light up.

"It was awesome," Mesidor said. "Yeah, we heard his name all the time. His name is up in the indoor practice facility, but, you know, go Canes, and hopefully he picks me up."

Mesidor could be in their range, as he had 12.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss last year, but he's also turning 25 before the draft. That isn't a positive in a league with short career spans (the average NFL player has a four-year career). Still, that kind of production can't be discounted, considering the Panthers were tied for 28th in the league with just 30.0 sacks last year.

Bain had 9.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss for the Hurricanes last season and 20.5 in three years at Miami, which is why he's expected to be gone before the Panthers pick at No. 19.

And having someone with that "Hurricane DNA" in the general manager's chair clearly caught his attention when he met Morgan last fall.

"It was a great opportunity because they brought everybody back down and to see it firsthand, and for us to see somebody that done it in our shoes at the same university, same address as us, it was an opportunity second to none," Bain said. "Because we know that greatness is instilled in us from history that's been way behind us."