BC’s Luke Kuechly Leads Way for Carolina Panthers in NFL Playoffs
By Joe Micik
Former Boston College standout linebacker Luke Kuechly played a key role in the Carolina Panthers’ playoff victory on Saturday.
A highly-decorated Eagle from 2009 to 2011, Kuechly was a top ten draft pick of the Panthers in 2012 who has paid dividends since the moment he arrived in Charlotte. Just named to his second Pro Bowl in three NFL seasons, Luke Kuechly had something more immediate on his mind: help Carolina get through the Arizona Cardinals and onto the Divisional round of the NFC playoff bracket.
He did just that. The numbers for Luke Kuechly on Saturday were impressive, as they typically are: he had 10 tackles (six solo) on the evening, plus one interception inside the five yard line early in the fourth quarter.
During the regular season, in which the Carolina Panthers went 7-8-1 and still won the NFC South (defeating Matt Ryan’s Atlanta Falcons to get there), Kuechly recorded a team-leading 153 tackles, plus three sacks, eight tackles for a loss, one interception, and one fumble recovery. Those 153 tackles by Luke Kuechly led the NFL during the regular season.
In 2013, Kuechly was fourth in the NFL with 156 tackles, and as a rookie in 2012, he was first with 164.
Boston College Eagles
Let me, in conjunction with all Boston College fans, take this opportunity to remind NFL fans that we were big believers in Kuechly long ago and knew of his true abilities. While you had people like this guy and that guy projecting Kuechly to be an NFL dud, and others saying that Boston College being at the time a bad team inflated his numbers, he has shown repeatedly over the last three years that he is no fluke. If you were wrong about him, accept your failure and move on.
Depending on Sunday’s result between the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions, Luke Kuechly will face one of two former Eagles in the next round: B.J. Raji of the Green Bay Packers or former teammate Kevin Pierre-Louis of the Seattle Seahawks.