If a Hollywood screenwriter submitted the script that could play out at this year’s Super Bowl, it likely would have been chucked in the trash.

Too unrealistic, the studio heads would howl.

Just two years ago the Carolina Panthers hit rock bottom. There was nowhere for the team to go but up after stumbling through a disastrous 1-15 season.

High-profile head coach George Seifert was shown the door and the relatively unknown (at least to the public, but not to NFL insiders) John Fox was hired.

In one year, Fox engineered a remarkable turnaround as Carolina went 7-9. And while some people thought that the Panthers were a team on the rise, few would have picked them to be the NFC representative in Super Bowl XXXVIII.

While it’s likely there will never be a story that tops Kurt Warner’s rise from grocery shelf stocker to Super Bowl MVP, Carolina quarterback Jake Delhomme clearly is one of the feel-good stories of the 2003-04 season.

Like Warner, Delhomme won a World Bowl championship while playing in NFL Europe and he also led a most undistinguished career before this year’s breakout season.

Look up the definition of journeyman and you’ll see a picture of Delhomme, who up until this season has started a grand total of two games in his five-year NFL career.

Cast away by the New Orleans Saints, Delhomme was signed as a free agent by the Panthers and certainly did nothing to set himself apart from his peers, at least if you were to only look at his statistics. Delhomme’s passer rating of 80.6 ranks him 14th among all NFL quarterbacks. His touchdown-to-interception ratio is a rather pedestrian 19-16.

But statistics don’t tell the whole story about Delhomme, whose calm demeanor seems to be a perfect fit for a blue-collar Panthers team that will go into Sunday’s game as a decided underdog against New England. Delhomme inspires confidence among his teammates.

All that stands between Delhomme and a storybook ending is a defense that totally manhandled Indianapolis QB Peyton Manning in the AFC championship game.

So does Carolina stand a chance against New England’s head coach and defensive mastermind Bill Belichick and budding superstar quarterback Tom Brady?

Not according to our unofficial poll of resident football experts.

Archbishop Murphy football coach Terry Ennis claims that he is the world’s worst prognosticator, but I tend to pay attention to someone who has won three state championships, including back-to-back titles with the Wildcats in 2002 and 2003.

Ennis picks New England for a couple of reasons.

“Sound defense and big-play offense,” Ennis said. “Carolina doesn’t strike me that they’ve got a big-play offense. They’re a little more controlled.”

Ennis admits he doesn’t have much time during the fall to follow the NFL and his team’s postseason appearances have extended into December the last two years.

He occasionally catches the ESPN game on Sunday nights. Only when the high school season is over does Ennis get a chance to watch much pro football.

“I love to watch the games when I don’t have our games on,” he said.

Lynnwood coach Andrew Burton doesn’t expect a repeat of last year’s blowout. He also likes the Patriots mostly because of their defense.

“They have a tough defense, real tough,” Burton said. “I think they’re going to cause some turnovers.”

Of last year’s panel of experts, only Shorecrest’s Mike Wollan foresaw Tampa Bay’s victory over Oakland. Wollan’s thoughts on this year’s Super Bowl echo what he said last year.

“Defense wins championships,” Wollan said a year ago when he picked the Buccaneers.

This time he’s going with New England for the same reasons.

“Their defense, it’s unpredictable,” Wollan said. “They come at your from a lot of different angles. They’ve been on a roll … then their offense, they’re patient. They spread the field and take what the defense gives them.”

So there you have it. The experts have had their say.

It appears the Panthers have their work cut out for them. But do they really have a chance at pulling off one of the biggest upsets in recent history?

There’s an old adage on Wall Street that when all the so-called experts are saying “buy, buy, buy” you should be selling and conversely when everyone is saying “sell, sell, sell” you should be buying.

I don’t know if this theory is applicable to the sports world, but two years ago everyone’s pick to win the Super Bowl was the St. Louis Rams. No one gave the AFC representative a chance but somehow the New England Patriots came home with the championship trophy.

As much as my heart is with underdog Carolina, my head says Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the tenacious Patriots’ defense is too much for the Panthers.

Unfortunately, I’ve found that following one’s heart can lead you hopelessly astray at times, so I’m playing it safe and picking New England to win big. David Pan is sports editor for The Enterprise Newspapers. Questions and comments may be sent by e-mail to entsports@heraldnet.com, by fax to 425-774-8622 or by mail to Sports editor, The Enterprise, 4303 198th St. SW., Lynnwood, WA 98036.