Carolina Panthers Spanish Play-By-Play Man Jaime Moreno Joins Toucher & Rich
By Matt Dolloff (@mattdolloff)
BOSTON (CBS) -- Carolina Panthers Spanish play-by-play announcer Jaime Moreno joined Toucher & Rich Thursday morning to talk about his newfound viral fame.
His calls for "Las Panteras" more resemble an epic World Cup match than an NFL regular season game, but his incredible enthusiasm and flair has captured the internet's attention unlike any other time in his career. People at the Panthers' stadium have gotten used to his team's screaming in the booth - except the NFL officials who have to review plays, who were situated right next to them.
"No wonder you guys are undefeated!" Fred Toucher joked.
And the officials have a lot of noise to deal with: Moreno and his team don't just celebrate touchdowns - they celebrate winning the coin toss, making a first down, the other team getting a penalty, etc.
Moreno told T&R that he was surprised to see his broadcast team's popularity growing so much just recently, saying "We've been doing this same thing from day one that we're doing now." He added that exposure on the Panthers Facebook page has been a huge boost to that.
Moreno has delivered plenty of memorable calls this season alone for the undefeated Panthers, who look like a legitimate Super Bowl contender. But he admitted that he doesn't prepare or rehearse everything he says - some things just come out, like his now-famous "Mayonnaise!" call.
"When I listen to what I had to say, sometimes I come out with stuff that I don't even think about it," he said. "It just comes to my mind at that particular moment at that particular time of the game."
Moreno explained that he needed to give Panthers players nicknames because much of their audience (initially, at least) didn't speak English. He called Steve Smith "Angel Hands", for instance.
T&R concluded the interview by doing what they do best: putting regular play-by-play announcers in outrageous situations. He had Moreno simulate his call of popping popcorn and finding an onion ring in his fries at Burger King - and it's riveting.
Listen to the full interview with Jaime Moreno below.
