Memories-Stories from Schaefer-Sullivan-Foxboro Stadium

[italian pat patriot]

i would like to hear from you some stories-memories-facts you remember about the past at the 'old stadium'...

thanks a lot !

 

[JoeSixPat]

Aside from memories of the ice cold aluminum seats sucking the heat out of your ***, my best memory (that is, actually being there) is at the Dolphins game where a short Bledsoe to Coates pass deep in their own territory led to an outstanding 84 yd TD thanks to some nice running by Coates

 

[PatsRI]

A few memories dealing with the old stadium. The bad/good was having an aisle seat so I had more room but every time the crowd stood up I end up having half a butt cheek hanging off because of it. I remember being a kid/teenage being able to go to Strawberry Records a couple of days before a game and get good tix. I remember the fans booing Grogan calling for Eason then booing Eason calling for Grogan, then Grogan being loved in 85. I remember freezing (the coldest game I had been to, been to alot colder since)watching the Pats beat the Bengals in 85 and the only time I remember the crowd rushing the field, of course some idiots got electrocuted carrying the goal post down Rt 1. I remember having a whole section for the 10 people I went with for an Indy game in the dark years. I remember the Minnesota game where the Pats were down big and Bledsoe hit Turner in OT to cap the comeback. The people who sat behind us left early (in thier defense they lived in Lewiston, ME) but I still don't let him live that one down. And of course the last year was the grandest of them all: Mo Lewis hit, everyone thinking the season was done, the Indy game whrere Cox laid, I think it was Pollard, out, where everyone thought "Maybe there is a season left." The Saints game the week after the loss to Rams. The Saints were supposed to be a good team and the Pats smoked them. A playoff run looked good. And the climax was the Snow Bowl. The surreal feeling before the game as the snow came down in huge flakes while tailgating. The Flag and fireworks before the game (got a picture on my wall of that one). The Tuck and Adam's kicks. It was a dump but it had some good memories.

 

[italian pat patriot]

did the people at these years dressed the Pats colours (t-shirts, hats, etc ?).

i do not think so or, better, surely not like today.

i saw some old photos and i noted that very few had pats items

am i correct or ?

 

[PatsRI]

Hats mostly.

 

[italian pat patriot]

A few memories dealing with the old stadium. The bad/good was having an aisle seat so I had more room but every time the crowd stood up I end up having half a butt cheek hanging off because of it. I remember being a kid/teenage being able to go to Strawberry Records a couple of days before a game and get good tix. I remember the fans booing Grogan calling for Eason then booing Eason calling for Grogan, then Grogan being loved in 85. I remember freezing (the coldest game I had been to, been to alot colder since)watching the Pats beat the Bengals in 85 and the only time I remember the crowd rushing the field, of course some idiots got electrocuted carrying the goal post down Rt 1. I remember having a whole section for the 10 people I went with for an Indy game in the dark years. I remember the Minnesota game where the Pats were down big and Bledsoe hit Turner in OT to cap the comeback. The people who sat behind us left early (in thier defense they lived in Lewiston, ME) but I still don't let him live that one down. And of course the last year was the grandest of them all: Mo Lewis hit, everyone thinking the season was done, the Indy game whrere Cox laid, I think it was Pollard, out, where everyone thought "Maybe there is a season left." The Saints game the week after the loss to Rams. The Saints were supposed to be a good team and the Pats smoked them. A playoff run looked good. And the climax was the Snow Bowl. The surreal feeling before the game as the snow came down in huge flakes while tailgating. The Flag and fireworks before the game (got a picture on my wall of that one). The Tuck and Adam's kicks. It was a dump but it had some good memories.

thanks. perfect. very interesting. expecially Grogan-Eason fact.

 

[italian pat patriot]

next ?
(as minimum is 10 characters): next pls ?

 

[pats60]

i remember Shawmut bank giving away free tickets to pats
games with a $50.00 deposit.

 

[italian pat patriot]

i remember Shawmut bank giving away free tickets to pats
games with a $50.00 deposit.

really ? when ?
'70 or '80 or '90 ?

 

[QuinielaBox]

New England vs Buffalo

back in 1976 when OJ Simpson got tossed out of the game. Pats won 20-10 in that 11-3 season they came from no where.

Don't get me started on Ben Drieth, please.

I suffered a flat tire at one of those games I went to. A nice guy helped me change the flat.

 

[italian pat patriot]

nobody, correctly, is yet able to forget that play-off game against the Raiders (Ben Dreith...).

finally the tuck rule made 1-1...

 

[pats1]

Aside from memories of the ice cold aluminum seats sucking the heat out of your ***, my best memory (that is, actually being there) is at the Dolphins game where a short Bledsoe to Coates pass deep in their own territory led to an outstanding 84 yd TD thanks to some nice running by Coates

WBCN Radio clip:

I remember the Minnesota game where the Pats were down big and Bledsoe hit Turner in OT to cap the comeback.

WBCN Radio Clip:



1994 - New England Patriots 26 Minnesota Vikings 20 OT - Trailing 20-3 at halftime, the normally explosive Parcells asks his team how long they are going to allow other teams to push them around. The team responds by rallying for the victory as Kevin Truner catches a 14 yard Drew Bledsoe pass in OT that sets two NFL records. One for attempts with 70 and another for completions with 45. The victory sparks a 7 game winning streak that sees the Patriots clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 1986.


And some others:



1998 - New England Patriots 26 Miami Dolphins 23 - Trailing 23-19, Drew Bledsoe fractures a finger on his passing hand by hitting his hand off of a helmet on the final drive. Drew stays in the game and hits Shawn Jefferson on a 25 yard TD pass with 29 seconds left to clinch the victory.



1998 - New England Patriots 25 Buffalo Bills 21 - With a fractured finger on his passing hand from the previous week, Drew Bledsoe again rallies his team in the closing minutes. Drew caps a 246 yard 3 touchdown day by hitting Ben Coates in the endzone as time expires. Drew would run the winning streak to three games, all with a fractured finger on his passing hand, by throwing for 327 yards as the Patriots beat Pittsburgh 23-9. The win streak propels the Patriots to the playoffs.

 

[italian pat patriot]

I am still today a fan for Drew Bledsoe and, expecially, i respect a lot him like a person.

Brady, Grogan and Bledsoe are in my opinion the 3 best qb in our franchise history for me.

Petty for Drew that he was unable to bring a ring to us but anyway i loved him and he was one of the persons that helped the franchise to resurrect.

 

[Bill B.]

In 1974 I went to my first game. It was the third game of the season against the Rams. The Pats won their first two games that year, against the World Champ Dolphins then against the Giants. The Rams at the time were a good team and the Patriots were not expected to win. This was a good team With Plunkett, Cunningham and Vataha. The Pats won, I think it was 16-7. Very exciting game. The Pats only ended up being 7-7 that year. They started out strong but got decimated with injuries as the year went on.

A funny story I remember about Schaeffer Stadium is the Great Flush. When the first game was ever played there, the restrooms all backed up because at half time all the toilets were flushed at the same time and there was not enough water pressure to handle it. After resolving the problem, the system had to be tested, so the Patriots had office people, reporters, and stadium employees all flush the toilets at the same time. They called it the Great Flush. Pretty funny, I think.

 

[italian pat patriot]

In 1974 I went to my first game. It was the third game of the season against the Rams. The Pats won their first two games that year, against the World Champ Dolphins then against the Giants. The Rams at the time were a good team and the Patriots were not expected to win. This was a good team With Plunkett, Cunningham and Vataha. The Pats won, I think it was 16-7. Very exciting game. The Pats only ended up being 7-7 that year. They started out strong but got decimated with injuries as the year went on.

A funny story I remember about Schaeffer Stadium is the Great Flush. When the first game was ever played there, the restrooms all backed up because at half time all the toilets were flushed at the same time and there was not enough water pressure to handle it. After resolving the problem, the system had to be tested, so the Patriots had office people, reporters, and stadium employees all flush the toilets at the same time. They called it the Great Flush. Pretty funny, I think.

yes, i read that story on 'tales from the patriots sideline' too.

petty that i have never seen one game at the old stadium...

i think that the athmosfera there was good for real fans...

 

[IcyPatriot]

I live in a part of RI where UHF reception from 38 and 56 and even the channel 4 games was always very poor. So most Patriots were as I say "snow games".

So the Stadium opened and my Dad took me to a game. He was cursing the whole game about the seats and kept complaining about "The Piles". So I was like, oh...dad loves when there is a big pile."

We got home and Dad was in the bathtub for hours...again he was swearing about "The Piles". My mom asked where he was and I said he was in the tub swearing about the game and all the piles...she started laughing so hard she was crying..."I was like, Ma...you like the piles you should come next time...maybe we will make the piles and we will win."

Anways....Dad put an antenna on the roof with the electric rotor....he said it was the biggest G.D. Antenna he could find...we didn't go back that year and the next we bought the cushioned seats. Dad said no more piles..I said Dad, they still have them...He just laughed, and well....now that I know better...the story still brings laughing tears to my eyes.

Also, that stadium was like going flounder fishing in Quincy on the 10ft boats with the 6HP motors. Always freezing on the inside way more than on the outside. Newbies asked how to dress, we always said to dress like we're gioing for some flounders.

 

[italian pat patriot]

I live in a part of RI where UHF reception from 38 and 56 and even the channel 4 games was always very poor. So most Patriots were as I say "snow games".

So the Stadium opened and my Dad took me to a game. He was cursing the whole game about the seats and kept complaining about "The Piles". So I was like, oh...dad loves when there is a big pile."

We got home and Dad was in the bathtub for hours...again he was swearing about "The Piles". My mom asked where he was and I said he was in the tub swearing about the game and all the piles...she started laughing so hard she was crying..."I was like, Ma...you like the piles you should come next time...maybe we will make the piles and we will win."

Anways....Dad put an antenna on the roof with the electric rotor....he said it was the biggest G.D. Antenna he could find...we didn't go back that year and the next we bought the cushioned seats. Dad said no more piles..I said Dad, they still have them...He just laughed, and well....now that I know better...the story still brings laughing tears to my eyes.

Also, that stadium was like going flounder fishing in Quincy on the 10ft boats with the 6HP motors. Always freezing on the inside way more than on the outside. Newbies asked how to dress, we always said to dress like we're gioing for some flounders.

thanks. it was nice to read it.

 

[Santa Barbara Pats Fan]

Parachute Jumper

I can no longer remember his name, but, one of the half-time shows was a parachute jumper who landed on some giant air cushions. He was fine.
That was during the Sullivan years.
The stadium must have been called Shaffer ( for the beer) at that time.

We had a large group if taligaters and traffic was so bad we arrived at 9:30 for a 1 o'clock game. How well I remember those early morning bloody mary's.

 

[italian pat patriot]

I
We had a large group if taligaters and traffic was so bad we arrived at 9:30 for a 1 o'clock game. How well I remember those early morning bloody mary's.

i think you and yr group eat and drunk a lot waiting so many hours...

 

[Santa Barbara Pats Fan]

Bocci ???

We played Bocci(sp) (lawn bowling) in the gravel parking lot.

A great time though!!