He barely reaches the waist of most of the players, but the Carolina Panthers were listening to the orders of their new coach.

Braylon Beam, 6, has been battling cancer since February.  He signed a one-day contract to be the head coach of the team for the annual “Fan Fest” practice August 7th at Bank of America stadium in Charlotte.

Braylon is a big fan of Carolina quarterback Cam Newton.  The first-grader wore a Newton jersey during an appearance on the Ellen TV show where he talked about his #JustKeepDancing movement to raise money for pediatric cancer.

“He’s a real energetic young man who has got a real good sense for being around people. He showed that,” Panthers regular head coach Ron Rivera said. “He’s got a great fight about him and I hope our guys got the message and understand who this young man is.”

Beam held a team meeting, telling the Panthers: “Be brave, be positive, never give up, have a heart, go Cats.”

Beam told ESPN after the event that it was the “best day ever.”