| Okay, this isn’t exactly Babe Ruth. It just seems that way.
1968. It was perhaps the most violent year in the history of the United States. Our young men were being slaughtered over in Vietnam, and Walter Cronkite told all of us that we should be outraged over the purpose and the unwinnability of the war. Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. were being slaughtered on the home front. Riots and protests from the frightened American youth nationwide caused even more slaughtering.
Through it all, the war raged on, Lyndon Johnson decided to chuck the presidency, and black America never replaced their most eloquent spokesperson. It was a time where the America we once knew was being erased off the chalkboard of history, and being totally re-written. In the sporting world, it was an Olympic year. Jean-Claude Killy owned Grenoble, and Bob Beamon owned Mexico City. Over in baseball, the American League Champion Red Sox lost their Cy Young pitcher thanks to a ski accident in Vail, Colorado. Too bad, because 1968 became the year of the pitcher. Denny McLain won 30 games, Bob Gibson had an ERA of 1.12, and Carl Yastrzemski led the AL in hitting with only a .301 average. The Celtics? Yawn, they won another title. We were just kidding about the yawn, folks. After King’s assassination, they fell behind Philadelphia in the east finals 3-1, but roared back to win. They fell behind the Lakers in the finals, 2-0, but came back to win the whole thing. And ESPN only had Bill Russell number 16 in its greatest-of-the-century poll? And then there’s the Patriots. The New Eng…whoops, sorry, Boston Patriots, were five years removed from the playoffs in 1968. This would be the final year for head coach Mike Holovak, still the head coach with the most wins in Patriot history. But 1968 is notable for a win that would prove to be one you had to get a good look at. The Patriots played the Denver Broncos twice that year, once in Boston and once in Denver. The Broncos won the game in Boston, 35-14. But the Pats took the game at Mile High, 20-17. And that’s been it. No wins for the Patriots in Colorado ever since. It’s too bad. Colorado is one of the prettiest states in the country. Even if skiing isn’t your cup of tea, there is still all sorts of mountain sports that the outdoorsman within you can enjoy. The Denver area is one of the nicest metropolitan areas in the country, stained only by the shootings in Littleton a few years back. But one thing about Colorado that sneaks up and bites you on the ankle is the elevation. Calling Denver the “Mile High City” isn’t just a cute name. One of the steps on the state capital building in Denver has an inscription on it that says “Elevation: 5,280 feet”. Exactly. Those who come visit Colorado aren’t used to the thinner air in this region. It’s even more noticeable up in the ski resorts in the Rocky Mountains. The summit of Vail, near where Jim Lonborg suffered his 1968 broken leg, is 11,000 feet above sea level. The base itself is 8,000 feet. You can be down in your chalet, enjoying your apres-ski drink with your favorite ski partner, and find yourself taking deep breaths of air every five minutes or so. The thin air affects all who don’t live here year round. This is why Denver is one of the biggest home field advantages in the NFL. The crowd is only a part of the problem. The thin air is the major reason. Most football teams simply can’t deal with it. The thin air saps them of their strength, and the Broncos take full advantage. Especially on your poor Patriots. The Patriots finally broke through and beat Denver last year, 24-23 in Foxborough. Some folks thought the Patriots won because John Elway was finally out of there, a fact made credible by the fact that the last time the Patriots beat Denver (1980) was the last game that the Patriots faced an Elway-less Bronco team. Still, Elway notwithstanding, winning in Foxborough and winning in Denver are two completely different things. The Patriots never had an answer for Elway, be it here or Denver. But even before Elway, the poundings the Patriots took in Denver were simply awful. The only thing interesting about the 1972 clash was that Red Sox broadcaster Ken Coleman called the game for NBC (he called a few Pats TV games that year, not just the Denver game). Coleman was a longtime Cleveland Browns broadcaster, so his football knowledge was keen. But the Patriots were anything but, and the Broncos, led by the immortal Steve Ramsey at quarterback, drubbed the Pats, 45-21. 1979 was actually a measure of redemption for yours truly. Back in these days, I ran a football pool around my college dorm. I always used Jimmy The Greek (this was back before we knew Snyder’s opinion of black people)’s point spreads. For this one week, I decided to make my own. Back then, of course, these were the Patriots who had just won the AFC East title last year, and were favored in most every game they played. Anyway, I installed Denver as a 21-point favorite. My dorm pals were outraged. Comments from “Blasphemy! How dare you pretend to be Jimmy The Greek?” to “What are you, stupid?” rang out. Those who did play bet all their money on the Pats. I got an awful lot of dirty looks after the game, won by Denver, 45-10. I never again did my own spreads, by the way. Maybe I should have. So, here we are at the 2000 clash. Will this finally be the year? You must be kidding. The Pats are 0-4. How in the world will the blockers keep guys like Keith Traylor, Trevor Pryce and Bill Romanowski in check? The Patriots have an even harder time trying to stop Terrell Davis and Ed McCaffrey. The team knows what it is up against, and has to know that 0-5 is more than just a likelihood. Well, maybe not. The Patriot win last year was pulled off with only two healthy linebackers at game’s end. Both Davis and Brian Griese are nursing injuries. Olandis Gary, the backup tailback, is out. Shannon Sharpe calls Ben Coates his teammate in Baltimore. The Bronco secondary is not what it used to be. Mike Shanahan fears the Patriots. He feels that this is not really an 0-4 team. They have been in each of their four games, and each one has come right down to the last play. Will this be the game where the Patriots finally do pull it off in the end? It would be the first win for the Patriots in Denver in 32 years. But breaking this hex is the last thing the team will take from this game if they win. The Patriots need to win. They have to win. But they’re going to a place where they almost can’t win. Who knows. Maybe this is the year. If it does happen, it would be the most important team win since the AFC title game of 1996. For a team that has to win, what a time and a place to get it done. |
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Covering Boston Sports since 1997. Native of Worcester, Mass. Attended UMass and Univ of Michigan. Lives in California. Just recently retired after 40 years of public school teaching. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@thepic4139" rel="nofollow noopener"><strong>Podcasts on YouTube at @thepic4139</strong></a>
