Frank Reich and the Carolina Panthers have now come full circle.
On Thursday, the organization ended their extensive search for a new permanent head coach—officially naming the 61-year-old Reich to the position. And in case you haven’t heard it over the past 24 hours or so, the former quarterback actually threw for the first touchdown in franchise history.
Check out it here, along with the rest of the highlights from the 1995 season opener against the Atlanta Falcons:
That 8-yard toss to tight end Pete Metzelaars capped off a nine-play, 65-yard opening drive. Carolina would end the first quarter of their first game with a 13-3 advantage.
Then, after Atlanta scored 17 unanswered points to capture a 20-13 lead in the fourth quarter, Reich found wide receiver Willie Green for a 44-yard score to knot the game with less than 30 seconds remaining.
Unfortunately for the Panthers, they’d go on to lose in overtime on a 35-yard field goal from Falcons kicker Morten Anderson. Reich, who was sacked nine times on the day, finished his team debut with 329 passing yards and the pair of touchdowns.
