By james art Former Carolina Panthers star and rising media personality Cam Newton recently returned to Charlotte and stopped by the city’s HBCU.
Newton was recently in town for a weekend kids’ camp at Johnson C. Smith University, and he took the time to leave a message for the football program. The video was posted on the school’s Instagram page.
“Needless to say – yo, what’s good? What is poppin? Cam Newton here man I want to give a special shout out to the Johnson C Smith football team. Faculty, staff, players, coaches, everyone involved, as well as the fans. Man, I’m rooting for you. Keep rocking and rolling. And as always, say one puppy, one thumbs up, one love.
Johnson C. Smith was in the middle of a win against Winston-Salem State University on Saturday when Newton made the video. The HBCU’s Division II team is now 8-0 and nationally ranked as it continues its best season in more than half a century.
Newton, of course, remains a beloved figure in Charlotte, where he spent much of the previous decade as the star quarterback of the Carolina Panthers franchise. He also has several ties to HBCUs. His father, Cecil Sr., played football at Savannah State. His older brother, Cecil Jr., played his college ball at Tennessee State University. His youngest brother, Kailin, began his career at Howard University, where he led the program to a huge upset over UNLV in 2017.