Panthers DT Zach Kerr shares his philosophy: ‘Nobody cares, work harder’

Panthers defensive tackle Zach Kerr has become one of the team’s top under-the-radar free agent pickups in 2020.

Panthers defensive tackle Zach Kerr has become one of the team’s top under-the-radar free agent pickups in 2020. Kerr did not play Thursday night against the Falcons due to a toe injury. That said, when he’s been on the field Kerr has performed well, a welcome development especially after another season-ending shoulder injury for star DT Kawann Short.

Kerr has only played 39% of the team’s defensive snaps so far, but he has four quarterback hits and a pass breakup already. This morning, Kerr shared some profound thoughts on Twitter about his process and philosophy. His working mantra seems to be “nobody cares, work harder.”

It may not be a football reference. However, it’s the right frame of mind to have for Kerr and the Panthers going into Week 9. The team has opened as a 12-point underdog against the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs. Hopefully Kerr will be back in the lineup.

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Gators gain some ground in Amway Coaches Poll for Week 9

Starting the week ranked No. 9, an Oklahoma State loss to Texas opened up a spot in the top 10 for the Gators to move up to No. 8.

The Florida Gators seemingly struggled at first against the Missouri Tigers on Saturday, but once the muscle memory started to click, UF cruised to a resounding 41-17 victory at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Halloween night.

While Florida has bobbed up and down in the polls during its two-week layoff, its third victory in four games this year gave the team a boost in the latest Amway Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports for Week 9. Starting the week ranked No. 9, an Oklahoma State Cowboys loss — previously ranked at No. 6 — to the Texas Longhorns opened up a spot in the top 10 for the Gators to move up to eighth in the nation entering November.

The Clemson Tigers retained the top spot, continuing its wire-to-wire dominance over the poll, while the Alabama Crimson Tide, Ohio State Buckeyes, Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Georgia Bulldogs round out the top five, respectively. The Texas A&M Aggies placed seventh in the rankings, giving the Southeastern Conference a total of four teams in the top 10.

Kadarius Toney’s breakout leads our five takeaways from UF’s win

Take a look at some photos from Saturday night between UF and Mizzou

Here are five observations from the first half of UF vs Mizzou

Here are the complete poll results from Week 9 of college football.

Rank Team RCD PTS 1ST PREV CHG Hi/Lo
1 Clemson 7-0 1527 43 1 1/1
2 Alabama 6-0 1503 17 2 2/3
3 Ohio State 2-0 1407 2 3 2/10
4 Notre Dame 6-0 1358 0 4 3/10
5 Georgia 4-1 1304 0 5 3/5
6 Cincinnati 5-0 1157 0 7 1 6/22
7 Texas A&M 4-1 1154 0 8 1 7/20
8 Florida 3-1 1101 0 9 1 3/9
9 Brigham Young 7-0 1025 0 10 1 9/23
10 Miami 5-1 964 0 12 2 7/NR
11 Wisconsin 1-0 908 0 11 11/18
12 Oklahoma State 4-1 783 0 6 -6 6/19
13 Indiana 2-0 730 0 19 6 13/NR
14 Oregon 0-0 725 0 15 1 9/17
15 Marshall 5-0 473 0 18 3 15/NR
16 Coastal Carolina 6-0 464 0 21 5 16/NR
17 Iowa State 4-2 433 0 22 5 17/NR
18 Southern Methodist 6-1 421 0 23 5 16/NR
19 Oklahoma 4-2 413 0 24 5 3/NR
20 Southern California 0-0 365 0 20 17/NR
21 Auburn 4-2 246 0 NR 5 7/NR
22 Army 6-1 208 0 25 3 22/NR
23 Boise State 2-0 204 0 NR 6 23/NR
24 North Carolina 4-2 192 0 13 -11 6/24
25 Michigan 1-1 141 0 14 -11 14/25

Schools Dropped Out:

No. 16 Kansas State; No. 17 Penn State.

Others Receiving Votes:

Texas 115; Northwestern 112; Liberty 92; UL Lafayette 90; Kansas State 64; Utah 57; Penn State 56; Purdue 55; West Virginia 49; Virginia Tech 37; Appalachian State 32; Tulsa 29; Missouri 23; Boston College 20; NC State 16; Kentucky 13; Memphis 12; Wake Forest 11; Tennessee 11; Arizona State 11; Michigan State 9; California 9; South Carolina 8; Arkansas 8; Nevada 3; San Diego State 1; Central Florida 1.

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