Amid all the drama surrounding the Panthers this week — through The Steve Smith Situation, free agency (in) action and Cam Newton’s surprise surgery — the team’s unassuming defensive star was doing good.Linebacker Luke Kuechly spent most of his Monday at a Charlotte photo studio pointing into a camera asking, “Are you on the list?”Kuechly recently became a spokesman for Project Life, a nonprofit started at Davidson College. Since 1989, Project Life has connected with over 25 universities and partners to register college students for bone marrow donation.To meet the increasing need for donors, Project Life has plans to get more students “on the list” by expanding its movement to campuses across the country. To expand, they need to raise awareness. To raise awareness, they reached out to Kuechly.“It’s an opportunity to do something simple to save someone’s life,” Kuechly said during a break from the photo shoot. “With bone marrow, everyone thinks it’s a painful thing, but all you have to do is swab your cheek and you’re in the registry.”Project Life will feature the photos and videos gathered Monday on its website and on posters. They could also appear on billboards and football stadium videoboards.Carolina’s defensive quarterback, Kuechly has taken a quieter path to stardom than the team’s offensive quarterback. Cam Newton became the face of the franchise the moment the Panthers drafted him in 2011. Before that, his face was on a Times Square billboard, and months earlier, he was the face of college football.Kuechly, meanwhile, took over as the Panthers’ defensive leader midway through 2012. Since then, all he’s done is win NFL Rookie of the Year and NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Not a bad start to a career.But while Kuechly is still waiting for his first national ad campaign, he didn’t want to wait any longer to get involved in giving back. He’s helped teammates with their off-the-field events, but Project Life is the first major charitable campaign he’s latched onto since coming into the NFL.“Thomas (Davis) has his deal, Greg (Olsen) has his deal. Guys always have something they’re attached with and now I have something I can put my hand into,” Kuechly said.The 22-year-old also has his hand in schoolwork for the second straight offseason. Last year he returned to Boston College to continue working toward his management degree. Kuechly, who turned pro after his junior year, is staying in Charlotte this year. He’s currently taking two online classes — economics and history — and is currently trying to add one more to fulfill the requirements needed for graduation.There’s also the matter of getting ready for the 2014 season. While the Panthers rode Kuechly and Newton to their first playoff appearance in five years, the first week of the NFL free agency period has seen an upheaval of the NFC South champion’s roster. Smith’s release was the most public move, but one that was partly done to allow the team to build around its young stars.“I learned a lot from Steve. Just watching him play with the energy and passion he played with, he’s a tremendous player,” Kuechly said. “The thing I look at is you’ve got another friend on another team and you get to say hi to him and maybe if I’m up in Baltimore I’ll give him a call. But it’s a business and that’s how it works.”While Kuechly lost a friend on the offensive side, one of his most important defensive partners will be back. When asked about defensive end Greg Hardy’s return, Kuechly replied excitedly, “That’s good for us.”After returning to the photo shoot, the linebacker delivered his lines with a mix of poses ranging from a stern game face to his increasingly famous smile. When the shoot wrapped, he made the rounds to thank everyone involved in the effort.The last week has been rough for the Panthers and their fans. But when Carolina kicks of its new season in September, they’ll do so with Kuechly, one of the best defensive players in the game who’s now trying to help save lives with Project Life. That’s something to smile about right now.    For information about Project Life: projectlifemovement.orgMore pics from Monday’s shoot:[content_band inner_container=”true” no_margin=”true” border=”none, top, left, right, bottom, vertical, horizontal, all” padding_top=”40px” padding_bottom=”40px” bg_pattern=”” bg_image=”” parallax=”true” bg_video=”” bg_video_poster=””] [container] [slider animation=”fade, slide” slide_time=”4000″ slide_speed=”500″ slideshow=”true” random=”true” control_nav=”true” prev_next_nav=”true” no_container=”true”] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0457.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0456.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0450.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0449.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0446.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0440.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0437.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0435.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0433.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0431.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0430.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide] [slide] [image src=”http://blackandbluereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/IMG_0429.jpg” alt=”Alt Text” type=”thumbnail”] [/slide]  [/content_band]