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Back from a weekend in Indy. Before I post my criticisms, let me say that the people in Indy, and the Indy fans, are the nicest, friendliest people you would ever want to meet. They also have a good set up with the RCA Dome. It is right downtown with lots of restaurants and hotels all around (think of Foxboro being placed next to Fanueil Hall Marketplace). Now onto the football stuff.
First, on Saturday, the day before the big game, the articles in the paper are not about match-ups, analysis or anything (save an article on Roethlisberger) about the game itself - they are about the fact that the Colts sent an e-mail to all season ticket holders, signed by Dungy and Polian, asking that the fans not sell their tickets to anyone other than Colts fans. The article goes on to interview Polian who believes that many of their season tickets are owned by professional ticket scalpers (scalping is legal in Indiana) who are not loyal to the team and this affects their "home field advantage" (which we all know they must have in order to win!). He said the last time they played the Steelers in the playoffs (1999 maybe?) the Colts had to use a silent snap count because the 5000 Steelers fans in attendance were too loud. Boo Hoo! He goes on to say that he had proposed legislation to make scalping illegal in Indiana, but so far nothing has come of it and it is very frustrating. So, not only does he change the rules to win in the NFL, he is trying to change them in the whole state of Indiana! What a joke - the guy is truly paranoid!! Can you imagine BB signing such a letter to the season ticket holders?! Why do the Colts have to try so hard to get their own fans to the game? Their tickets were cheap in comparison to ours. My hubby and I were so incensed that we bought Steelers hats, wore them to the game and cheered loudly for the Steelers (never thought I would do that!).
Then we get to the game (which a lot of Steelers fans did attend, by the way) and we see at least 8 banners hanging from the rafters with the following type-slogans: "AFC South Champ - 2004"; "AFC Finalist - 2003". We were cracking up! We asked the Steelers fans around us (who were appreciative that we wore their colors and said they were really bummed there would not be a match-up in Foxboro for the AFC Championship) if they had banners in their stadium showing they lost in the playoffs. They were laughing too, about the banners and about the letter from Dungy and Polian. We all agreed that our organizations have a very different mind-set from the Colts, who look desparate to pat themselves on the back for anything.
The streets around the RCA Dome have names like Dungy Way and Peyton Place. Can you imagine driving on BB Way in Foxboro? The whole organization is mamby-pamby and they are never going to win. Instead of concentrating on their oppontent and coming up with a solid game plan they worry about how many fans from the opposing team are going to show up and ruin their home field advantage, thus subconsciously setting themselves up for a loss (because everything isn't "perfect" for a win) and giving them a lame excuse when they lose.
Okay, I'm done venting and am almost over the teary feeling I get when I think about Saturday night. Have a good day.
First, on Saturday, the day before the big game, the articles in the paper are not about match-ups, analysis or anything (save an article on Roethlisberger) about the game itself - they are about the fact that the Colts sent an e-mail to all season ticket holders, signed by Dungy and Polian, asking that the fans not sell their tickets to anyone other than Colts fans. The article goes on to interview Polian who believes that many of their season tickets are owned by professional ticket scalpers (scalping is legal in Indiana) who are not loyal to the team and this affects their "home field advantage" (which we all know they must have in order to win!). He said the last time they played the Steelers in the playoffs (1999 maybe?) the Colts had to use a silent snap count because the 5000 Steelers fans in attendance were too loud. Boo Hoo! He goes on to say that he had proposed legislation to make scalping illegal in Indiana, but so far nothing has come of it and it is very frustrating. So, not only does he change the rules to win in the NFL, he is trying to change them in the whole state of Indiana! What a joke - the guy is truly paranoid!! Can you imagine BB signing such a letter to the season ticket holders?! Why do the Colts have to try so hard to get their own fans to the game? Their tickets were cheap in comparison to ours. My hubby and I were so incensed that we bought Steelers hats, wore them to the game and cheered loudly for the Steelers (never thought I would do that!).
Then we get to the game (which a lot of Steelers fans did attend, by the way) and we see at least 8 banners hanging from the rafters with the following type-slogans: "AFC South Champ - 2004"; "AFC Finalist - 2003". We were cracking up! We asked the Steelers fans around us (who were appreciative that we wore their colors and said they were really bummed there would not be a match-up in Foxboro for the AFC Championship) if they had banners in their stadium showing they lost in the playoffs. They were laughing too, about the banners and about the letter from Dungy and Polian. We all agreed that our organizations have a very different mind-set from the Colts, who look desparate to pat themselves on the back for anything.
The streets around the RCA Dome have names like Dungy Way and Peyton Place. Can you imagine driving on BB Way in Foxboro? The whole organization is mamby-pamby and they are never going to win. Instead of concentrating on their oppontent and coming up with a solid game plan they worry about how many fans from the opposing team are going to show up and ruin their home field advantage, thus subconsciously setting themselves up for a loss (because everything isn't "perfect" for a win) and giving them a lame excuse when they lose.
Okay, I'm done venting and am almost over the teary feeling I get when I think about Saturday night. Have a good day.