Sir Purr is the mascot of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. He is an anthropomorphized panther wearing a Panthers football jersey, No.00.
On his page at the Panthers' web site, he describes his favorites snacks as "birds like falcons and eagles and seahawks."[1] He has a running rivalry with Jaxson de Ville, the mascot of the Jacksonville Jaguars (the Panthers' expansion brethren). Sir Purr also has family that occasionally joins him in games, such as Mini Meow, a younger version of Sir Purr.
He caused a stir in a 1996 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers; on a Panthers punt, he jumped on the ball even though it was a live ball, turning the play into a touchback.[2] In 2020, Sir Purr made a number of headlines when Panthers wide receiver Robby Anderson mistook him for a bear.[3] This created a running joke within the Panthers organization which is still referenced today in Sir Purr's Instagram bio.
- ^ Panthers' Web site
- ^ Fowler, Scott; Chandler, Charles (1997). The Year of the Cat. Simon and Schuster. p. 219. ISBN 978-0684844480.
- ^ "Panthers WR Robbie Anderson still not a fan of that, uh, bear". Panthers Wire. 2022-05-31. Retrieved 2022-09-05.