August 16, 2024 • 8 mins
Celebrate 30 seasons of Carolina Panthers football with Jim Szoke. Join him as he sits down with the key figures who shaped the past 29 seasons, reminiscing on the moments that made Panther history. This week's guest is former Panthers defensive lineman, Al Wallace.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
The first of the two Super Bowl appearances by the
Panthers occurred just over twenty years ago, Super Bowl thirty
eight in February of two thousand and four against Tom Brady,
Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots, in a game
that featured one of the most exciting finishes to a
Super Bowl of all time. Defensive end Al Wallace was
a big contributor to that team and shared a position
group with now Hall of Fame defensive end Julius Peppers.
(00:23):
We catch up with Big Owl's. We take a look
back at three decades of Carolina Panthers football.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Thirty Seasons of Panther Football, a celebration of the players, coaches,
and other key figures have contributed to the organizational success.
All right, Al Wallas.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Great to catch up with one of the great path
of defensive ends. I see you now with the college
football they shot out of forty nine ers. Of course,
doing the radio shows that you do and so forth.
But when you think back to being with these guys
and playing with this team, what does it mean for you?
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Oh man, it meant everything to me. I was kind
of kicked around the NFL and found myself in the
trade from the Dolphins to Carolina. Had to drive from
West Palm Beach, Florida to Spartanburg, South Carolina, had never
been in my life. So to get the opportunity for
John Fox and Mike Turgervak and those guys to say, hey,
we're going to give you a fair shot to make
(01:17):
this football team, and to find that brotherhood with that
defensive line that turned out, in my opinion to be
the greatest defensive line in the history of this football
team was such a blissing man. And when I look
back on it now being included in events like this
as part of the thirtieth year anniversary, I just couldn't
be more fortunate and more excited to come to a
franchise that absolutely has from start to finish, felt like family.
(01:40):
And that's what it feels like today.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
I say, from a competition standpoint, in a position that's
the toughest line up to crack. Maybe you said best
defensive line in Panthers history. I don't know if there's
a better position group in thirty years of football here,
I don't think. So.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
You look at Mike Rucker, who was a pro bowler,
Julius Pepper's going into the Hall of Fame, and I
was fortunate enough to be the swing for both of
those legends of this position. So yeah, I when I
look about at it, of course you have Mario Addison,
Charles Johnson, some of the great burns is gonna be
mentioned in there from his time here at the Carolina Panthers.
But to be able to come in, get a fair shot,
(02:16):
injury free, and approve what I can do as a
defensive end, it was great. It was great, and they
made me feel like home. They never once considered that
I was an undrafted free agent rookie. They found me
a way to play and they said it for work hard,
and I did what I was supposed to do. I
could play. So it's just great filling a part of
that unit. And it turned out to be, you know,
the greatest stretch of my career.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
You're you're a big part of the success of this organization.
Peppers of course, hall of Famer. But people are asking all,
you know, what was it like playing with him? What
was the relationship as far as being a teammate with him, Like,
what are some of the things that come to mind
for you?
Speaker 3 (02:50):
So he was a quiet guy, so it wasn't a
lot of conversations. It wasn't a lot of discussions, but
he always invited us to his home. We would go
over there. Mat was big for us and he was
a huge man guy, so we would go there and
play Madden for hours. Even on the road, we would
all carry our PlayStations and play the game. But just
being in awe of a guy that I met when
(03:12):
he was twenty years old his rookie season coming out
of Carolina that from the day he stepped on the
football field, he was a bigger, better athlete, not just
the defensive linement, but everyone on that field, all fifty
two other guys heading shoulders, he was the best athlete.
So to watch him do a job that I was
also hired to do at such a high level was incredible.
(03:32):
It just came with ease. And I know at the
beginning of its career that was a huge criticism. Was
he playing hard? Did he love the game? The answer
was yeah, It was just so easy for him because
he was so much better than the rest of us,
so much more gifted athletically. So to watch his progression
through Chicago, through Green Bay and then back as a
Carolina Panther was amazing. Not only did he grow as
(03:54):
a player, but as a leader. He became more vocal,
he grew up and became a man, and was just
so proud and so honored to have taken the field
into at one point swapped out with him when he
needed a break. So that's a huge, huge deal for me.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
You mentioned how quiet he was, and then you see
him he goes to Chicago Hills that press conference and
it's like, you know, his confidence came and just like
became a business guy after his career and all that,
He's grown a lot. Got to go back to that
Super Bowl season though, super Bowl thirty eight, and when
you look at that game, it was like there's so
many ebbs and flows and everything that happened with that game.
(04:28):
It was just amazing how slow it started and the
Panthers make that big comeback and so forth. But disappointing
for his franchise they couldn't get it done. But it
was really one of the best, most entertaining Super Bowls.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
It was, I mean, it was exhausting when I look
at just when the clock hit zero and you watch
the ball go through the uprights. Started the game just
talking with Jake and sitting down with Stephen Davis. They
said they talked to Dan Henning all week and he said, hey,
we're not going to be able to run the ball.
It is going to be tough. And I think when
we think so much about the Patriots, it's focused on
(04:58):
Tom Brady, but we forget Ted Washington and Teddy Bruski
and all the greats, Richard Seymour on that defensive side
of the ball, and that was really where that three
team that Super Bowl thirty eighteen for the Patriots was built.
Tom was still Tom and he got it done. But
for us to go back and forth, toe to toe
or early in that football game and then catch a
(05:19):
break right before halftime and then both teams found their
footing on the offensive side was absolutely incredible. And we
just knew on the defense, and we have talked about it,
the team that would get the ball last had a
great chance of winning it. Unfortunately it was the Patriots.
It was Tom Brady, and that legend grew from there.
But one of the greatest moments of my life. I
think none of us walked out of that building in
(05:41):
Houston with any regret for what we put on the field.
And how we represented the city of Charlotte, the North
and South Carolina, and the Carolina Panthers. So a highlight
of my career obviously, and I think the same could
be said for all fifty three guys on that.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Runster an incredible playoff run. We love John Fox. I
love asking you guys for the Jo Fox era. Do
you have a favorite John Fox is? I mean he
had so many, it is what it is, and all
his sayings that he had did anything resonate with you
in particular?
Speaker 3 (06:08):
Yeah, I remember a situation with myself and it's just
kind of some of the language that we used on
the sideline. So there was a point in the game
where we're not new and so good. The defense needed
to make a play. So I'm kind of running around,
not one of the main leaders, but saying, hey, guys,
we need to tighten up, meaning we need to kind
of tighten up and do a better job. Where Fox
(06:29):
heard that, it's like we needed to play tighter, and
he just, hey, what are you talking about. You're not
doing that. We're not trying to tighten up. So kind
of pulled him to the side and told him what
it means. We had a good laugh in the middle
of the game. But there are so many John Fox
isms that have gone around. But he was a great coach.
He knew when to push on us, went to pull
on us, but he also knew when the back off.
(06:51):
And that made that team so good. It made us
a bunch of brothers, and it made us have such
supreme trust for the process that Fox put us through,
starting in training camp, which was incredibly tough. Starting in
two thousand and two, we took preseason seriously. We took
the preseason game seriously, and that made us such a
tough football game team to handle early in the season,
(07:12):
and that paid off in three where we went with
five and oh six and oh beat the Patriots on
the road after a bye week. That was John Fox
and that was the mastermind that he brought to the table.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
All right, I'll finally just to wrap up. I mentioned
Charlotte forty nine ers. You've done a lot broadcasting in
this Charlotte area talking all kinds of sports. Really, how
much you enjoy just kind of keeping involved in sports
and around being around football and getting a chance to
talk about it like that.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Man, it's been one of the greatest things I've been
able to do post careers, to stay close to football
and to work with the college athletes, and I was
there with Will Healey and of course Biff Pogi now
at Charlotte, and to watch the evolution of the sport
right the transfer portal Nil and the athletes that come
in every year, and on the broadcast team. It makes
the job more difficult because I got a whole new
(07:57):
roster every year. But for a guy I just to fifty,
that played my entire life in sports since I was
eight years old, to be able to do broadcast seems
to stay close to it, To travel on the planes,
buses and trains with the young guys and stay connected
to the sport that I love has been such a joy.
And I am privilege every year that I'm asked to
come back and do the job with Matt swear At
(08:19):
and Bobby Razitski and the great team and staff over
there at Charlotte.
Speaker 1 (08:23):
I'll always great to get a chance to talk with you.
Thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Thanks Jim, I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
Thirty seasons of Panther Football
The first of the two Super Bowl appearances by the
Panthers occurred just over twenty years ago, Super Bowl thirty
eight in February of two thousand and four against Tom Brady,
Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots, in a game
that featured one of the most exciting finishes to a
Super Bowl of all time. Defensive end Al Wallace was
a big contributor to that team and shared a position
group with now Hall of Fame defensive end Julius Peppers.
(00:23):
We catch up with Big Owl's. We take a look
back at three decades of Carolina Panthers football.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Thirty Seasons of Panther Football, a celebration of the players, coaches,
and other key figures have contributed to the organizational success.
All right, Al Wallas.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Great to catch up with one of the great path
of defensive ends. I see you now with the college
football they shot out of forty nine ers. Of course,
doing the radio shows that you do and so forth.
But when you think back to being with these guys
and playing with this team, what does it mean for you?
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Oh man, it meant everything to me. I was kind
of kicked around the NFL and found myself in the
trade from the Dolphins to Carolina. Had to drive from
West Palm Beach, Florida to Spartanburg, South Carolina, had never
been in my life. So to get the opportunity for
John Fox and Mike Turgervak and those guys to say, hey,
we're going to give you a fair shot to make
(01:17):
this football team, and to find that brotherhood with that
defensive line that turned out, in my opinion to be
the greatest defensive line in the history of this football
team was such a blissing man. And when I look
back on it now being included in events like this
as part of the thirtieth year anniversary, I just couldn't
be more fortunate and more excited to come to a
franchise that absolutely has from start to finish, felt like family.
(01:40):
And that's what it feels like today.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
I say, from a competition standpoint, in a position that's
the toughest line up to crack. Maybe you said best
defensive line in Panthers history. I don't know if there's
a better position group in thirty years of football here,
I don't think. So.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
You look at Mike Rucker, who was a pro bowler,
Julius Pepper's going into the Hall of Fame, and I
was fortunate enough to be the swing for both of
those legends of this position. So yeah, I when I
look about at it, of course you have Mario Addison,
Charles Johnson, some of the great burns is gonna be
mentioned in there from his time here at the Carolina Panthers.
But to be able to come in, get a fair shot,
(02:16):
injury free, and approve what I can do as a
defensive end, it was great. It was great, and they
made me feel like home. They never once considered that
I was an undrafted free agent rookie. They found me
a way to play and they said it for work hard,
and I did what I was supposed to do. I
could play. So it's just great filling a part of
that unit. And it turned out to be, you know,
the greatest stretch of my career.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
You're you're a big part of the success of this organization.
Peppers of course, hall of Famer. But people are asking all,
you know, what was it like playing with him? What
was the relationship as far as being a teammate with him, Like,
what are some of the things that come to mind
for you?
Speaker 3 (02:50):
So he was a quiet guy, so it wasn't a
lot of conversations. It wasn't a lot of discussions, but
he always invited us to his home. We would go
over there. Mat was big for us and he was
a huge man guy, so we would go there and
play Madden for hours. Even on the road, we would
all carry our PlayStations and play the game. But just
being in awe of a guy that I met when
(03:12):
he was twenty years old his rookie season coming out
of Carolina that from the day he stepped on the
football field, he was a bigger, better athlete, not just
the defensive linement, but everyone on that field, all fifty
two other guys heading shoulders, he was the best athlete.
So to watch him do a job that I was
also hired to do at such a high level was incredible.
(03:32):
It just came with ease. And I know at the
beginning of its career that was a huge criticism. Was
he playing hard? Did he love the game? The answer
was yeah, It was just so easy for him because
he was so much better than the rest of us,
so much more gifted athletically. So to watch his progression
through Chicago, through Green Bay and then back as a
Carolina Panther was amazing. Not only did he grow as
(03:54):
a player, but as a leader. He became more vocal,
he grew up and became a man, and was just
so proud and so honored to have taken the field
into at one point swapped out with him when he
needed a break. So that's a huge, huge deal for me.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
You mentioned how quiet he was, and then you see
him he goes to Chicago Hills that press conference and
it's like, you know, his confidence came and just like
became a business guy after his career and all that,
He's grown a lot. Got to go back to that
Super Bowl season though, super Bowl thirty eight, and when
you look at that game, it was like there's so
many ebbs and flows and everything that happened with that game.
(04:28):
It was just amazing how slow it started and the
Panthers make that big comeback and so forth. But disappointing
for his franchise they couldn't get it done. But it
was really one of the best, most entertaining Super Bowls.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
It was, I mean, it was exhausting when I look
at just when the clock hit zero and you watch
the ball go through the uprights. Started the game just
talking with Jake and sitting down with Stephen Davis. They
said they talked to Dan Henning all week and he said, hey,
we're not going to be able to run the ball.
It is going to be tough. And I think when
we think so much about the Patriots, it's focused on
(04:58):
Tom Brady, but we forget Ted Washington and Teddy Bruski
and all the greats, Richard Seymour on that defensive side
of the ball, and that was really where that three
team that Super Bowl thirty eighteen for the Patriots was built.
Tom was still Tom and he got it done. But
for us to go back and forth, toe to toe
or early in that football game and then catch a
(05:19):
break right before halftime and then both teams found their
footing on the offensive side was absolutely incredible. And we
just knew on the defense, and we have talked about it,
the team that would get the ball last had a
great chance of winning it. Unfortunately it was the Patriots.
It was Tom Brady, and that legend grew from there.
But one of the greatest moments of my life. I
think none of us walked out of that building in
(05:41):
Houston with any regret for what we put on the field.
And how we represented the city of Charlotte, the North
and South Carolina, and the Carolina Panthers. So a highlight
of my career obviously, and I think the same could
be said for all fifty three guys on that.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Runster an incredible playoff run. We love John Fox. I
love asking you guys for the Jo Fox era. Do
you have a favorite John Fox is? I mean he
had so many, it is what it is, and all
his sayings that he had did anything resonate with you
in particular?
Speaker 3 (06:08):
Yeah, I remember a situation with myself and it's just
kind of some of the language that we used on
the sideline. So there was a point in the game
where we're not new and so good. The defense needed
to make a play. So I'm kind of running around,
not one of the main leaders, but saying, hey, guys,
we need to tighten up, meaning we need to kind
of tighten up and do a better job. Where Fox
(06:29):
heard that, it's like we needed to play tighter, and
he just, hey, what are you talking about. You're not
doing that. We're not trying to tighten up. So kind
of pulled him to the side and told him what
it means. We had a good laugh in the middle
of the game. But there are so many John Fox
isms that have gone around. But he was a great coach.
He knew when to push on us, went to pull
on us, but he also knew when the back off.
(06:51):
And that made that team so good. It made us
a bunch of brothers, and it made us have such
supreme trust for the process that Fox put us through,
starting in training camp, which was incredibly tough. Starting in
two thousand and two, we took preseason seriously. We took
the preseason game seriously, and that made us such a
tough football game team to handle early in the season,
(07:12):
and that paid off in three where we went with
five and oh six and oh beat the Patriots on
the road after a bye week. That was John Fox
and that was the mastermind that he brought to the table.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
All right, I'll finally just to wrap up. I mentioned
Charlotte forty nine ers. You've done a lot broadcasting in
this Charlotte area talking all kinds of sports. Really, how
much you enjoy just kind of keeping involved in sports
and around being around football and getting a chance to
talk about it like that.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Man, it's been one of the greatest things I've been
able to do post careers, to stay close to football
and to work with the college athletes, and I was
there with Will Healey and of course Biff Pogi now
at Charlotte, and to watch the evolution of the sport
right the transfer portal Nil and the athletes that come
in every year, and on the broadcast team. It makes
the job more difficult because I got a whole new
(07:57):
roster every year. But for a guy I just to fifty,
that played my entire life in sports since I was
eight years old, to be able to do broadcast seems
to stay close to it, To travel on the planes,
buses and trains with the young guys and stay connected
to the sport that I love has been such a joy.
And I am privilege every year that I'm asked to
come back and do the job with Matt swear At
(08:19):
and Bobby Razitski and the great team and staff over
there at Charlotte.
Speaker 1 (08:23):
I'll always great to get a chance to talk with you.
Thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Thanks Jim, I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
Thirty seasons of Panther Football
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