Originally Posted by
Squeegee Thompson
I just got back from Pittsburgh last night after an incredibly fun weekend catching my first Steelers game in Pittsburgh - here's a few takeaways I had:
The fan base:
My judgement is colored from having spent the last 20+ years in Colorado, so comparing Steeler fans to Broncos fans is the only first-hand comparison I can make. In a word: Holy shit! (Sorry, that was two words). Grabbing a Primanti's on the Strip and touring all the Yinzer shops on Penn Ave, you get a sense of how absolutely massive the fan base really is. Met some people from Canada, Alabama, and California - all flying in for the game, all touring the ridiculously large number of shops to get shwag. I've never seen another city that has an entire city street dedicated to these shops. Denver has absolutely nothing like this - which means they have nothing even approaching the kind of fan base Pittsburgh enjoys.
Thought I was gonna look out of place wearing a game day jersey on Saturday. Nope. I was just one of the several hundred people I saw wearing one the day before the game.
The pregame experience:
Took the 'Sailgate' to the stadium which motors from the marina on 23rd street and docks right next to the south end of the stadium. Any out-of-towners looking for a different kind of tailgating experience, I highly recommend this option. Free food and open bar for 2 hours before kickoff. Jeff Reed came on board, took pictures with everyone, signed everybody's stuff (including my Terrible Towel) - and even let everyone getting a picture wear his SB XL ring. Nicest guy in the world. And yeah, his legs really are built like tree trunks.
The stadium experience:
Again, bear in mind - I'm the out-of-towner here, so I'm usually the one wearing the wrong-colored jersey and trying to stay out of fistfights. Typical Broncos games are at least 30% Steeler fans, probably more. They despise when we come to town because it's such a heavy takeover. Not so in Pittsburgh. I, literally, saw maybe 50 Ravens fans in the stadium. It's absolute, unequivocal home team domination in the stands. I've never seen anything like it.
Fan behavior was also surprising to me. Denver has gotten progressively worse and worse in the last 20 years. Fights are common, people getting absolutely shithoused before kickoff is nothing unique. Every game I go to there, some drunk asshat will invariably try to start something. I saw none of that anywhere at Heinz Field. Steeler fans were respectful of Ravens fans. The Ravens fans we chatted with were totally cool. It was almost a level of 'fan professionalism' that you don't see in other stadiums. People are there for the football game, not to tangle with opposing fans. Never once saw a fight. In fact, the only person I saw get tossed was some Ravens fan who was talking too much shit and got bounced in the 4th quarter when the Steelers were up 23-20. His wife was beyond pissed.
The game experience:
It's a gorgeous stadium looking right out on the confluence. We were in the northwest 500-level (near the north-end jumbotron), so had amazing views to the south. People know when to get loud and when to shut up, that "IT'S THIIIIRRRDD DOOOOWWNNN!!!" crap needs to go away. If you don't know when to get to AC/DC-concert-decibel-levels as a fan, you should hand your tickets off to someone else who does. Nobody should need a reminder on down, distance and situation. If you do, then you hit it too hard at the tailgate.
The Mason hit was surreal in that nobody in the stadium had any idea what was going on. When he completed the pass, all eyes followed the football to James Washington to see if he'd get the first down. By the time anyone looked back to Mason, he was already surrounded by his O-line who were frantically beckoning the trainers over. There was a huge crowd around him including Ben (I suppose to create a little privacy). From our vantage point, all we could see were Mason's feet. And they weren't moving. They refused to show a replay on the Jumbotron, probably because they though it might incite a riot. We all thought it was the hit from behind by Carr that knocked him out - it wasn't until well after the game did we get a sense of what really happened.
We couldn't see him stand up, but then once he stood up, the crowd went nuts. He walked to the tunnel under his own power - and it took a loooong time to get there. Play had already resumed and he was still gingerly making his way down the sidelines. As he got close to the tunnel, he pulled his helmet off (just the shell at that point), and looked like he didn't know where he was. From that look, we were amazed that he actually got to go home the same night.
When Mason went down, the Ravens fans cheered when he got up. When a Ravens player went down, the crowd cheered when he got up. Very respectful on both sides. I won't belabor the end of the game other than to say I wanted to personally go down and put one between Willie Snead XIV's eyes on his way to the tunnel. Classless piece-of-shit asshole. 'Nuff said.
Renegade:
When they pinned the Ravens on the 1-yard-line, they cranked 'Renegade'. That's the most off-the-chain I've ever seen a stadium get. The defense looked ready to kill somebody. Pretty sure the Ravens went backwards by a half yard, and we all thought they got the safety on third down. I still get goosebumps thinking about how insane the stadium went after that song came over the PA.
Post game:
People were subdued, without the wailing and gnashing-of-teeth associated with a post-season loss. When you're rolling out a 3rd string QB at any point, your season is pretty well effed, anyhow. We'd intended to stay on the north side and find a sports bar to watch the late games and skip the boat ride back to the strip. My wife had to unload a few beers, so we were looking for a bathroom on the way down the north-end concourse, when we discovered Heinz Field Fun Fact #12: Once you're on the ramps down, they reaallly want you out of the stadium. There are no more bathrooms, and nothing outside. Well shit. So, we headed back to the boat which had a head.
Glad we did - since on the way back, word got out that it was my 49th birthday, so the captain bought me a round. When I grabbed my free Yuengling, the bartender asked if I'd like a like a shot to go with it. Weeelll, when presented with that kind of logic ... "Just nothing from the top shelf." Okay, I'll take a Jose Cuervo. "Ah, screw it - how 'bout a Patron?" Ma'am, you're manna from heaven.
The only thing better would've been had we gotten a win on Sunday - but at this point, the season looks to be inexorably screwed anyway. A great experience all around. Next time, we'll have to bring the kids.