Those are the three words NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue has used to describe Carolina Panthers Owner and Founder Jerry Richardson.

The words were well chosen.

Richardson knows about tradition. He was a member of one the NFL’s most storied teams, the Baltimore Colts, and played a role in their 1959 championship win over the New York Giants. He, along with George Halas, is one of two NFL owners to ever play in the League.

He is also familiar with legacy, for he will always be known as the man who brought NFL football to the Carolinas. That has been enough to earn him induction into both the North Carolina and South Carolina Sports Halls of Fame. However, even before he gained that most recent notoriety, he was already regarded as one of the best college players to play in the Palmetto State.

Richardson’s integrity is reinforced every time the Commissioner appoints him to another committee, for as Tagliabue has said, “Jerry wins people’s confidence because he’s forthright, he’s intelligent, and he’s able to suggest win-win solutions over conflict.”

Another quality can be added to Tagliabue’s list - passion. Richardson has a passion for his family, for the NFL, and for the Carolinas. That passion led him to bring a franchise to his native state against staggering odds. It led him to be the motivation behind one of the finest stadiums in the country as the home of the Carolina Panthers. And it now leads him to make the necessary moves to restore the Panthers among the NFL’s elite.

After growing up in North Carolina, Richardson moved to South Carolina when he attended Wofford College in Spartanburg. A stellar college career for the Terriers led the Baltimore Colts to draft him in the 13th round in 1958.

In a glimpse of what would come nearly 40 years later, Richardson overcame tremendous odds to earn a roster spot as a third receiver with the Colts. In the 1959 Championship Game, he caught a touchdown pass from Johnny Unitas in a 31-16 victory over the Giants.

He used his playoff check of $3,500 to begin a successful 30-year career in business, but football remained a passion and love that he never lost. On July 16, 1987, Richardson began running the longest and best route of his career when he and his son, Mark, along with NationsBank Chairman Hugh McColl, Jr., attorney Richard Thigpen, Jr., and John Lewis of Arthur Andersen met in Charlotte to discuss the possibility of entering a bid for an NFL franchise. With the marketing genius of Max Muhleman providing nationwide attention, the ownership group overcame repeated hurdles to obtain the franchise six-and-a-half years later.

Richardson was born in Spring Hope, NC, and grew up in Fayetteville, where he graduated from Fayetteville Senior High School. He and his wife, Rosalind Sallenger Richardson, have two sons, Jon and Mark, and a daughter, Ashley Richardson Allen, of Charlotte. The Richardsons have nine grandchildren and live in Charlotte.

The Meineke Car Care Bowl is proud to honor a true champion of the Charlotte community by awarding the Jerry Richardson Most Valuable Player to a deserving individual.