Legion of Doom Nets Game Winner

Toronto Maple Leafs v Philadelphia Flyers, November 30, 1995

The Spectrum, Sec 59 Row 4

Our seats in the Crows Nest. A walk down stairs to the 2nd level. Many steps down from the 2nd level to the first level and concourse. And the bathrooms were in the basement of the old Spectrum. So it was like climbing Mt Kilimanjaro with a beer just coming back from taking a piss. This was the Flyers last year in the Spectrum.

Rod Brind'Amour netted an unassisted goal at 10:05 in the opening stanza to put the Flyers up.
Toronto scored the next two goals in the 2nd. First with Dave Andreychuk was set up by Doug Gilmour at the 5:10 mark and Craig scored another in the last 30 seconds of the period. Eric Lindros drew a roughing penalty at the buzzer, giving the visitors a man advantage to start the 3rd.

Brent Fedyk tied up the game on a Flyers power play. And with Larry Murphy in the sin-bin for the Maple Leafs, Mikeal Reneberg, off a feed from Eric Lindros, at the 18:57 mark to put the Flyers up for good.

Garth Snow got the win for the Flyers with 24 saves on 26 shots.

17,380 were on hand for the victory.

Flyers 3 Toronto 2

Natural Hat Trick

Pittsburgh Penguins v Philadelphia Flyers, November 29, 1991

The Spectrum, Sec A Row 19

Three days after Pittsburgh coach Bob Johnson lost his battle with cancer. A nice tribute to start the game.

Tom Bar-asshole in the nets for the Pens against the Flyers Ken Wregget (until he was pulled for Dominic Rousell). Wregget lived in my apartment complex at the time he played with the Flyers.

Pittsburgh's Kevin Stevens scored a natural hat trick in the first period. Jaromir Jagr and Mario Lemieux chipped in for the Penguins in the 2nd when Pittsburgh pulled ahead to a 6-0 lead.
The Flyers Rod Brind'Amour netted 2 in the 3rd along with Dan Quinn to cut the deficit in half.

Lemiuex added his 2nd of the game and 16th of the year in the 3rd.

Inaugural Year for Phantoms

Providence Bruins v Philadelphia Phantoms, November 29, 1996

The Spectrum, Sec W Row 5

Old school Spectrum when the 1st level were lettered and the upper were section number beginning with "200". Soon after the Spectrum changed the seating sections for some unknown reason to me.

Villanova at the Palestra

Rhode Island v Penn State and

Towson v Villanova, November 28, 2008 The Palestra, Sec 201 Row 2

A Philly Hoop Group opening round double header at the fabled Palestra.

URI 77 Penn State 72

2nd Game: Once Villanova settled down, everything else fell into place. Especially in the second half.

Scottie Reynolds scored 14 points, Dante Cunningham and Antonio Pena both had 12, and No. 20 Villanova overcame a sluggish start to defeat Towson 64-47 in the Philly Classic on Friday night.

"I think we just executed better," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "We weren't really poised in the first half."

Corey Fisher added 11 points for the Wildcats (5-0), who will play Rhode Island in Saturday's championship game. Rhode Island advanced by beating Penn State 77-72.

Junior Hairston scored 11 for Towson (3-2), which had been off to its best start in nine years. Hairston, the team's leading scorer and rebounder last season, gave the Tigers a lift in his second game back after being suspended for the first three games for a violation of team policy.

"This is the most physical team I've played since I've been at Towson," Hairston said. "There's a reason why they're ranked."

Villanova led by as many as nine in the first half, but Towson whittled the margin to 30-28. The Wildcats took a 33-28 halftime lead on Fisher's 3-pointer just before the buzzer.

Villanova opened the second half with a 13-3 spurt, keyed by back-to-back baskets by Cunningham, to take a 46-30 lead with 13:32 left. The Wildcats extended their advantage to 53-32 on a basket by Pena with 10:02 remaining.

"We had open shots," Reynolds said. "In the second half, we came out and executed. We made the easy pass and we weren't trying to do everything by ourself with the ball."

Towson made only 18 of 55 shots, including 5-of-27 from 3-point range.

"We just couldn't make any shots," coach Pat Kennedy said. "We're really, really pleased with our effort. We really competed against them."

Thanksgiving Tradition

Scranton Wilkes Barre Penguins v Philadelphia Phantoms, November 28, 2003

The Spectrum, Sec ?

A Thanksgiving Friday matchup. The Flyers assigned left wing Todd Fedoruk and defenseman Jim Vandermeer to the Phantoms on this date.

Greatest Embarrassment in the NCAA

Michigan State v Virginia, November 28, 2001

Richmond Coliseum, Section 15U Row K

A made for TV farce. ESPN, when not producing chick basketball and hyping the Yankees and Red Sox, dabble in men's basketball sometimes. This event was a Big Ten v ACC challenge.

Virginia played this game in Richmond, 7o miles from campus. The Richmond Coliseum is an outdated, often not used arena. When an event of notoriety does show up, the staff is ill prepared to handle a crowd.

Tonight was no exception.

Final Virginia 31 Michigan State 28 *

Virginia was ranked # 8 and Michigan St #17 at the time.

The sellout crowd was electric for the little time a game was played. Players began slipping and sliding all over the court in the 1st half. At the half the teams went into the locker room for a unusual amount of time. The 2nd half started with more slipping and sliding.

The Coliseum was also used for a minor league hockey team. The court covered the ice. Because of high humity outside and poor air conditions inside, condensation kept forming on the floor, making it too dangerous to continue the game.

A sellout crowd booed, a national television audience was disappointed, and neither ACC nor Big Ten officials were happy, but both schools were relieved that no player was injured during the game.

With the threat of a serious injury lurking with every cut and rebound, referees decided five minutes into the second half to stop the Michigan State-Virginia game at the Richmond Coliseum because of a wet floor. The Cavaliers led, 31-28.

The game was never finished or made up. And the University of Virginia never ventured back to the neutral site Richmond since the embarrassment on national TV.

Greatest House in the NFL

Philadelphia Eagles v Washington Redskins, November 28, 1993

RFK Stadium, Section 242 Row 14

Not sure how I landed these tickets. I know my brother in law was there. I drove down from NJ, he drove up from Richmond. Tickets were hard to come by when the Skins played in the old RFK Stadium.

I think this was my first time seeing an NFL played on grass. All my other experiences were from the Vet (fake, fake looking artificial turf).

RFK had many characteristics of The Vet. But it was smaller, louder and it didn't feel like they tried to jamb a rectangle into a round stadium. There was history here. The names of Redskins greats on the fascia around the upper deck.

Our seats were in an end zone on pull out bleachers which retracted for baseball (The Senators left town in the early 70's). And when the game got going, the bleachers got rocking. The fans bounce in unison making the entire game fell like a deep sea expedition. The only thing taking away from this magnificent experience was my team, the Eagles, were on the field. It had to root against the home team.

The Eagles were coming off 4 straight losses. A Matt Bahr 22 yard field goal put the visitors up 3-0 early in the first. It was the only scoring in the opening quarter. The Redskins sucked too this year. But the place was still dynamic.

Vaughn Hebron crashed the line for a 1 yard TD run in the second putting the Eagles up 10-0, which was the score going into the half.

The 3rd period was lifeless due to the ineptness of both teams on the field.
Rich Gannon did hook up with a 17 yard TD pass to Tim McGee in the 4th to pull the Redskins within 3 to the delight of the passionate fan bouncing the bleachers up and down. Gannon again connect, this time with Art Monk for a6 yard TD. Talk about excitement. Monk is an all time Redskin favorite and to put the team up was electric.

The jubilation did not last all afternoon. Philadelphia's Bubby Brister hit James Joseph for a 2 yard dump into the end zone late in the regulation to put the Eagles up for good.

Eagles 17 Redskins 14

Perfect Sunday

New York Giants v Philadelphia Eagles, November 24, 1990

Veterans Stadium, Sec 725, Row 11

700 Level. The Vet. The Giants. Heaven.

Out of every NFL game I have been to, this was the perfect one. A rival. Beautiful sunny warm November day. National TV exposure. Bill Parcels and Buddy Ryan on the sidelines. The Giants were 10-0 at the time and would go on to win the Super Bowl this season. None of that mattered today.

Phil Simms connected with Mark Ingram on a 15 yard pass for the game's first points. Randall Cunningham hit Fred Barrnett on a 49 yard pass to neutralize the score. In the 2nd Cunningham took a keeper from the 1 yard line in for an Eagles 14-7 lead. Danvers High product Mark Bravo took a 4 yard pass from Simms in but the PAT failed. The home Eagles took a 14-13 lead into the half.

It was all Philadelphia in the 2nd half. A Roger Ruzak 39 yard FG, and a Calvin Williams pass reception tacked on another 10 points for the Eagles offense. Byron Evans intercepted a Phil Simms pass and ran it in the end zone for a 23 yard TD.

The Eagles won the game 31-13.

Thanksgiving Hockey

Football Is Back In Baltimore

Jacksonville Jaguars v Baltimore Ravens, November 24, 1996

Memorial Stadium, Sec L38 CC1

I'm an Eagles fan who was getting pissed with the Eagles and head coach Rich Kotite. A new NFL team moves within tailgating distance so I became intrigued enough to check it out. And have been a fan since.

A cold, bitter day in Baltimore. A buddy from LA was in town so we jetted down to Baltimore for a game. This game was played at the old Memorial Stadium. Our seat were on field level in the end zone, right next to the old Orioles home dugout. This is where the Ravens entered the field and exited.

The resently relocated Cleveland Browns were not off to an impressive start for their new fans in Baltimore. They were 3-8 coming into this game. In the first quarter Mike Caldwell intercepted and ran back a 45 yard TD for Baltimore.

In the 2nd, Matt Stover kicked a 21 yard FG to put the Ravens up 10-0. Jacksonville's Jame Stewart poked in a 1 yard run in the 2nd. Stover, then Jacksonville's Mike Hollis traded FGs in the 2nd until Stover kicked another one through the uprights to make the score 16-10 at the half.

Baltimore's Bam Morris ran in a 1 yarder but the PAT failed. Proving to be big later.
The Jaguars Mark Brunell connected twice for TDs in the 4th to tie the game up and sending the game into OT.

In overtime, Jacksonville's Mike Hollis nailed a 34 yard FG to win the game.

Little Club in Big House

Hershey Bears v Philadelphia Phantoms, November 23, 2001

First Union Center, Sec 304 Row 10

We made it a tradition to go to the Thanksgiving Friday Phantoms game. This one did us in. At least for see the Phantoms at the Big House.

The AHL Phantoms began playing the old Spectrum when the Flyers moved next door to the Core States Center/First Union Center/Wachovia Center.

The new building has never been a good substitute for the Flyers. Now it was evident it sucked seeing the Phantoms there too.

Jordan Krestanovich scored twice in the third period as the visiting
Hershey Bears rallied for a 4-4 tie with the Philadelphia Phantoms.
Krestanovich netted a power-play marker 4:46 into the final period,
drawing Hershey within two scores.

After Riku Hahl netted a power-play goal midway through
the third, the 20-year-old winger then beat goaltender Maxime
Ouellet on a penalty shot with 1:53 left in regulation as the
Bears improved to 4-1-2 over their last seven.

Frederic Cassivi was pulled late in the first period but returned to start the
second, collecting 15 saves, including three in the extra
session, to preserve the tie. John Slaney tied for the
league-lead in goals among defenseman with his eighth marker
five minutes into the middle stanza for a 3-0 Philadelphia lead.

The Phantoms remain unbeaten (3-0-4) over their last seven
games. Ouellet yielded one goal on the first 13 shots he faced,
but surrendered three goals on the final 15 Hershey chances to
settle for the tie.

Only 10,610 showed up for the event.  During this time period, when Hershey was in town,
games at the Spectrum were routinely sell outs.

Stover Wins With OT Kick

Pittsburgh Steelers v Baltimore Ravens, November 20, 2005

M&T Stadium, Section 132, Row 18

Favorite new stadium. Hands down. I am not a Baltimore native but I have to give it to them for having the best game day atmosphere of any NFL place I've been to in recent years. Baltimore is a small, concentrated football passionate city. I would have never guessed in the mid 90's when Cleveland moved the Browns to Baltimore that this city would ever allow another team to replace the Colts. It has only gotten better.

A typical AFC Central defensive battle. No points in the 1st quarter. And the first points would be a boomer of a 47 yard FG from Baltimore's Matt Stover. The Steelers Jeff Reid responded with a 44 yarder of his own in the 2nd.

The Ravens Kyle Boller threw a 3 yard TD pass to Randy Hymes while both kickers cancelled each other out to finish off the half with Baltimore up 13-6.

Baltimore's defense kept Pittsburgh from adding to their tally in the 3rd and most of the 4th. But backup quarterback Tommy Maddox connected with Willie Parker to tie the ballgame up in the 4th.

Regulation ended 13-13. A rare OT for the NFL.

A Matt Stover 44 yarder sealed the victory for Baltimore.

I Must Be Front Row

New York Rangers v Pittsburgh Penguins, November 18, 2007

The Igloo, Section A16, Row A

I hate using a Bob Uecker line in my title being he is such a pecker head in person.
Front row. Beer on the dasher boards. Pucks flying at us during warm ups. I even took that photo from my cell phone.

The Penguins dropped yet another game in which they built a two goal lead when Jason Strudwick scored his first goal of the season 1:40 into overtime.

Pittsburgh came out like gang busters early on as Maxime Talbot tallied a shorthanded goal off of a nice feed from Sidney Crosby.

Three minutes later, with the extra attacker on due to a delayed penalty, Sidney found the back of the net past Henrik Lundqvist.

Pittsburgh doesn't play well with an early comfortable lead.

The second period was all New York, specifically former Penguin Michal Rozsival, as he scored two goals in a five minute span. Daniel Girardi scored a power play goal late in the second to give th Rangers a 3-2 lead. All three goals in the period were scored by defensemen.

Petr Sykora scored another garbage goal in front of the net off of a sweet kick pass by Evgeni Malkin.

With Sid's two first period points and Malkin's assist in the third, both players extended their career long scoring streaks another game. You would think having two of the NHL's top five players on your roster would win you more games, the problem is that they are they only guys on the team putting up numbers.

Sykora, the only guy not named Malkin or Crosby to contribute scoring.

The Rangerss scored a minute and a half in to OT to win the game. Sergei Gonchar was in deep and tried to feed a puck to the slot and the Blue Shirts just took it up ice on an odd man rush, the rest is history.

Gamecocks Upset

South Carolina v Navy, November 17, 1984

Navy-Marine Corp Memorial Stadium, Sec 104 Row 24


A college buddy had a brother playing for Navy at the time. The morning of the game he called to ask if I wanted to ride with his parents to the game. At the time I had no idea who Navy was playing or that their opponent was #1 in the nation.

Being the Midshipman were 3-5-1 at the time and coming off a 29-0 loss to Syracuse the week before, no one saw an upset coming. Still, the stadium was packed with optimism.

The Navy website timeline of history states: Navy defeats top ranked South Carolina, 38-21, in one of the biggest upsets ever for the Mids, marking only the third time Navy has beaten an opponent ranked this high.

Rare NFL Tie

Philadelphia Eagles v Baltimore Ravens, November 16, 1997

Memorial Stadium, Section L27, Row 13

The Ravens were only in their 2nd year in Baltimore. Already there was an atmosphere like they belonged. The NFC East showed up on their schedule so it was an opportunity to see the Eagles play on the road and only travel a few hours.

Memorial Stadium was the old place where the Baltimore Colts used to play. The Ravens used the stadium for a few years after moving from Cleveland (Browns) until their new M&T Bank Stadium was being built. An old, dark and damp stadium more suited for baseball in the middle of a neighborhood.

The Ravens scored first in the game when quarterback Vinny Testeverde connected on a 29 yard pass to Michael Jackson. That was the only scoring in the entire 1st half.

The Eagles got on the board in the 3rd with a 33 yard field goal. The Ravens Matt Stover connected for one of his own FGs in the 4th. Also in the 4th the Eagles Charlie Garner ran one in from the 2 yard line. This made the score 10-10.

After a scoreless OT periods, that is how it ended. In a rare NFL tie game.

The Eagles QB was Bobby Hoying who finished with 26 of 38 for 276 yards.

T.O. Show

Philadelphia Eagles v Dallas Cowboys, November 15, 2004

Texas Stadium, Section ??

It was a protest game. I always hated the Cowboys and never yearned to go to Dallas to see them play. But my dad was a Cowboys fan in Philadelphia since Staubach's days playing the the Army Navy game at JFK Stadium. It was a milestone birthday so we decided to take him to see his favorite team in their own ballpark.

It just happened the Eagles were the closest home game to his birthday and it was a Monday Night game. So it made it more of a compelling trip.

We did not "tailgate" but went into a corralled off area in the parking lot where there were bands, food and beer. We bought my dad a personalized Cowboys jersey. The place had a pretty fair share of Eagles fans who traveled. And some one from the old neighborhood noticed my dad's name and came over to hang out with us. They made the trip from Philadelphia for the game.

When we go into the stadium and I got to see the field I had that same feeling of awe like the first time walking into Fenway Park, Yankee Stadium, Boston Garden and the Montreal Forum. There was a sense of history. It probably was the team I have most seen on TV (outside of Eagles games) and the stadium I have seen the most, but have never visited.

We sat in the end zone, first level 16 rows from the field. I can't find my ticket stub

Terrell Owens got the fun started with a 59-yard touchdown he considered so easy that he celebrated by pretending to ice skate in the end zone. Then he followed a 27-yarder with his favorite Texas Stadium pose, spreading out his arms while standing on the Cowboys logo.

When he scored again, Owens just dunked the ball over the crossbar. Might as well save the good stuff for a tight game, because by then the Philadelphia Eagles were well on their way to a 49-21 victory Monday night.

Donovan McNabb made sure the Eagles (8-1) bounced back from their only loss this season, throwing four touchdown passes and setting up another with an incredible, scrambling 60-yard completion. Lito Sheppard capped a record-setting night for both teams with a 101-yard interception return for another score in the closing minutes.

"The guys took pride in themselves to come out here and rebound from the loss last week," said Owens, who had 134 yards on six catches. "We came in with a passion, the pride and the character of the guys on this team, and it showed today."

The Eagles quickly showed why they should still be considered the midseason favorite to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl by scoring 35 points in the first half -- more than they'd scored in any game this season. They wound up with their most points in a regular-season game since beating the St. Louis Cardinals 52-10 in November 1981.

"It takes a couple plays for us to get a little momentum," said McNabb, who was 15-of-28 for 345 yards with no interceptions. "Once things get going, we feel confident that every play that we call is going to be effective and possibly get in the end zone."

The most amazing play didn't reach the end zone, but that's a minor quibble.

Facing third-and-10 from the Philadelphia 25, McNabb spun away from one would-be tackler and sprinted to his right, only to find another defender waiting. So he went back to his left, chased by two more players, and finally heaved the ball, letting loose a 60-yard pass toFreddie Mitchell. . Replays showed McNabb held the ball for 14 seconds before the pass.

"It felt like a video game out there," he said.

Brian Westbrook followed with a 1-yard TD run, giving Philadelphia touchdowns the last five times it had the ball before halftime, a streak that continued on its first drive of the third quarter.

There was the minor interruption of a punt, but the Cowboys (3-6) fumbled the return, adding to the humiliation of their fifth loss in six games -- and their eighth in nine tries against the Eagles.

This one was eminently forgettable for Dallas fans as the team gave up its most points ever at home and its most anywhere since a 50-24 loss at Cincinnati in December 1985. The Cowboys allowed four touchdowns in one quarter (the second) for the first time in franchise history and the 35 points Philadelphia scored in the first half tied another dubious record.

After calling his team "stupid" following a 26-3 loss to Cincinnati last week, Dallas coach Bill Parcells tried holding his tongue.

"We just got to get better," he said. "I'm not going to get into the state of the union right now."

The Eagles loved every minute of it, especially Owens.

He was in such a good mood after his first touchdown that he and McNabb playfully argued on the sideline, mocking their sideline confrontation from last week. He celebrated his second touchdown on the Cowboys' star in the end zone, mocking his midfield moment four years ago that marked his entry into the realm of post-touchdown performers.

Owens finished with his second three-TD game of the season and upped his NFL-best total of scoring catches to 12.

"It's never easy," he said. "I just make it look easy."

Parcells grimaced through it all, knowing there was little he could do about yet another lopsided loss. The Cowboys' season is a bust, with the only curiosity left being when he'll turn the offense over to rookie quarterback Drew Henson.

Vinnie Tesaverde playing two days after turning 41, was decent enough to keep the future leader on the sideline. He was 21-of-30 for 254 yards with two touchdowns to Jason Witten. Eddie George added a 15-yard touchdown run.

Testaverde's only interception came in the end zone with about five minutes left. Sheppard took it all the way, breaking past the defense around the 30. Keyshawn Johnson grabbed his collar at the goal line and just held on, knowing he was too late.

Philadelphia's biggest struggle was on third down, a problem that's bothered the Eagles for weeks. The skid ended on McNabb's 60-yarder to Mitchell.

About the only thing Philadelphia did wrong was call a timeout in the closing seconds of the first half, when the Cowboys had taken a knee and were walking to the locker room. Parcells stalked back to midfield, then stared across the field.

It was the same blank look he wore most of the night.

Lindros 1st Career Hat Trick

Ottawa Senators v Philadelphia Flyers, November 15, 1992

The Spectrum, Section Y Row 14

The Senators were a new NHL team and not very good. Eric Lindros was in his first full month of his NHL career. Talk has surfaced recently raising the debate if Eric Lindros is Hall of Fame worthy.

In a scoring fenzy, the Flyers netted 7 goals against the lowly Senators, including 3 from rookie Eric Lindros, the first in his early NHL career.

Lindros netted an opening minute goal to start the game at the 0:41 mark of the 1st with assists from Mark Recchi and Dimitri Yushkevich. Lindros scored again in the 2nd to up the Flyers lead to 5-1. A power play goal early in the 3rd by Lindros earned him his first NHL hat trick. In a sign of frustration, Ottawa's Dave Marsh took a run at Lindros in the closing seconds of the game to earn them both roughing penalties.

Dominic Roussel stopped 31 of 33 shots while Peter Sidorkiewicz managed to stop only 20 of 27.

Do you like Aerosmith?

Aerosmith, November 14, 1987

Richmond Coliseum, Backstage Passes

I was a personal trainer in college at a swanky invitation only health club. High highfalutin lawyers, bankers, etc in a downtown high rise. My boss came up to me one day to ask if I ever heard of Aerosmith and if I liked them. I told him I did. He said "Good, you are working them out for the next week".

Steve Tyler shows up, we are introduced. He starts stretching in a corner. I have to stop and and ask why he is stretching without warming up. He never considered that stretching is not good with cold muscles. He is a pretty approachable guy so he listens contently. He was into running. I always found time after hours to use the bank of treadmills to run. Steve was into running so I ran with him during work hours.

I noticed he had these pink slip on shoes that he was running with. I had to rip him for running with pink shoes. He laughed and told me they were his encore shoes. I also noticed while spotting him while lifting weights that he has zebra strip fingernail polish. I told him I couldn't spot a man with finger nail polish so if the weights dropped on his neck he was on his own.
Of course I never would have said this if he wasn't an approachable and cool guy.

Joe Perry was more into the stationary bikes and weights. Again, very approachable and easy to talk with. He doesn't look like a chatty type on TV. He is too cool for that. But he was unbelievably a great guy to shot the shit with. Not much music, just everyday stuff. They were there as students, not as entertainers.

Brad and Tom were also very approachable and good conversationalists, but didn't spend hours and hours in the gym like Perry and Tyler. I can't say the same about Joey, the drummer. He was a douche bag.

The band stayed in a central location for a week or so at a time. In this instance they were in town for 10 days. They'd jump on a lear jet and fly to shows in the region at nights. This provided some stability for the families. I only remember seeing Joe's wife and little boy during the stay.

Steve left me a few tickets for the Richmond show, back stage passes. I had an out of town girl friend, who could care less about Aerosmith and a roommate from NY who was a huge fan. She surrendered the 2nd ticket to my roommate. Backstage was a cool pass to have but I felt funny about bugging the band, so we kept our distance.

The club was closed on Sundays but someone asked me to come in to open the place for the band. Since it was a non work day, I brought my girlfriend. When my roommate found out I had to go in and work the band out, he begged. He was a runner as well. So I threw him a bone and allowed him to run with Steve.

Steve really liked the treadmills we had and asked if I could get him info to purchase one for himself. I never do know if he ever bought one.

I tried to keep music conversations to a minimum. We did have either MTV or VH1 playing on all the TVs in the workout rooms. At one point "Dude Looks Like a Lady" came on. My buddy asked Steve how they came up with that. The band has said in interviews that they were in a limo and saw a construction worker with long hair and one of the members said, "That dude looks like a lady". But allegedly Steve told my co-worker that they saw Mr T on TV an joked that the guy looked like a girl with all the jewelry but would never admit it because Mr T would kick their asses. Don't know if the story is true or not.

Shortly afterwards, I did move to Boston. They were gods there. WBCN had the band in heavy rotation. People I met up there could not fathom the fact I got meet the band.

Setlist:
01 Toys In The Attic
02 Same Old Song And Dance
03 Dude Looks Like A Lady
04 Big Ten Inch Record
05 Lightning Strikes
06 Rag Doll
07 Back In The Saddle
08 Last Child
09 Draw The Line
10 Rats In The Cellar
11 Dream On
12 Sweet Emotion
13 Walk This Way
14 Train Kept A Rollin

Sunday Night Hockey

Boston Bruins v Washington Capitals, November 11, 1990

Capital Center, Section 200 Row L

My first and only trip to the Cap Center for hockey. A strange structure. We were up top. The roof dipped in the center. We were ceiling height looking down on the dip while trying to see the ice.

I just moved from Boston and became hooked on B's hockey. DC was a little over 2 hours from my new home. It was a Sunday night game so the crowd was not that large.

The Caps were loaded with some pretty decent talent. Dino Ciccarelli, Kevin Hatcher, Dale Hunter, Peter Bondra and Hall of Famer Rod Langway.

The Bruins weren't too shabby either with names like Ray Bourque, Cam Neely, Craig Janney, Randy Burridge, Garry Galley and Lyndon Byers.

The B's won 5-3.

D1-AA

James Madison University v Richmond, November 11, 2000

University of Richmond Stadium, East C, KK

Ryan Tolhurst caught a 21 yd pass from Sean Gustus to put the Spiders up 7-0 in the 1st in a
6 plays, 50 yards drive.

In the 2nd Richmond capitalized on a 3 play 30 yard TD pass to JR Purnell.   This put the Spiders up 14-0
at the half.  The Spiders added to the lead with a 1 yard poke in from Tyronne Turner.

The only points the Dukes were able to put up was a safety.

Richmond 21 JMU 2.

March To The Cup

Pittsburgh Penguins v Carolina Hurricanes, November 9, 2002

RBC Center, Section 330 Row J

Can't say I remember this one too much.

The Penguins has a decent amount of fans in the stands. And they let themselves be heard after the first goal of the game. A Martin Straka power play goal at the 14:49 mark of the first. That was the only goal in the first.

In the 2nd, the Canes Kevyn Adams tied up the game at one. The 3rd found goals being scored by the Penguins Alexandre Daigle and the Hurricanes David Tanabe and Bates Battaglia.

Carolina won the game 3-2.

Start of a Rivalry

Hershey Bears v Philadelphia Phantoms, November 8, 1996

The Spectrum, Section Q Row 21

The 1996-97 campaign brought Hershey both a new affiliation with the just crowned Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche -- and rekindled an old on-ice rivalry with Philadelphia of a kind not seen since the first year 1938-39 Bears had fought it out tooth and nail with their first arch foes, the Philadelphia Ramblers. With the vast majority of the first year Phantoms' roster made up of former Bears, the intensity of play generated in each of the seventeen regular season and playoff games eventually contested between the two clubs in 1996-97 reached increasingly higher levels as the season progressed. By January every meeting between the two clubs in either building was invariably played to SRO crowds. And with Bill Barber returning to Philadelphia to guide the Phantoms, ironically the Bears were taken over by Bob Hartley who in both 1994 as assistant coach and 1995 as head coach had helped lead his former club, the Cornwall Aces, to playoff series victories over the Bears.

As had also been the case in Hershey's first AHL season in 1938-39, only Philadelphia finished 1996-97 with more points than Hershey-and also (as six decades earlier) these two rivals dominated the league's All Star Teams. Bears' netminder Jean-François Labbe took both the Cunningham (MVP) and Holmes (top goalie) awards to go along with his First All Star Team berth while right wing Blair Atcheynum, Hershey's leading scorer (42-45-87), also collected First Team honors. (Three former Bears -- Darren Rumble, Vaclav Prospal and Patrik Juhlin -- represented the Phantoms on the First Team.) Hershey defenseman Pascal Trepanier rounded out the Bears' all stars with a Second Team berth.

"Cheap Seats"

Philadelphia Eagles v Washington Redskins, November 6, 2006

FedEx Field, Section 411, Row 10



This was one of those crappy Sunday Night games that starts after 8pm on the East Coast and goes to midnight, when most of the East Coast is sleeping. That's how I ended up with a set of free tickets; no one else wanted them.

I took one of my boys. We got inside the stadium a bit early when the stands were mostly empty.
There was a group of Eagles fans in the next section and a group of Redskins fans about 20 rows behind them. It is not often a Redskins fan will get the best of an Eagles fan, even on his own home turf. After a few barbs, the Eagles fan yelled up "We are in your house and have better seats then you. That's the best you could do". Then they started chanting "cheap seats" at the Redskins amateurs.

I don't wear Eagles gear to Eagles games (home or away). Even thought they are my home town team and favorite, their (new) colors since the late 1990's are horrendous and their revised logo even sucks. I suspect one day the team will either update colors or go back to the classic kelly green. And I'll buy something once again.

Donavan McNabb connected for 56 yards to Reggie Brown and after a David Ackers PAT, the Eagles were up 7-0. The Redskins John Hall kicked a 24 yard FG in the 2nd followed by a Mike Sellers goal line run to give the Skins a 10-7 edge at the half.

The Eagles tied it up in the 3rd with a 34 yard David Akers FG. Still in the 3rd, Washington's Clinton Portis rushed for a 6 yard TD to put the Redskins up 17-10.

The Eagles saw opportunities in the 4th bu never could put anything together. They had possession of the ball in the last few minutes of the game but were sloppy managing the clock.

The Redskins won 17-10.

Southeast Rivalry

Florida Panthers v Carolina Hurricanes, November 5, 2005

RBC Center, Section 305 Row P

Last row seats. Part of a hockey team trip. RBC has emerged as a great place to see a hockey game. Northeast bastions such as Philadelphia and Boston have lost their atmosphere after moving into new buildings in the last decade.

The RBC is a smaller, more engage arena. 16,015 were on hand this evening. Robert Luongo was the netminder for the visiting Panthers. Martin Gerber was in the nets for Carolina. With those two, you'd expect a low scoring affair. It remained scoreless for 2 periods. Florida only got off 3 shots on net in the first. Both teams picked up the tempo in the 2nd.

The scoring did not start until the 3rd period at the 11:29 mark when on a powerplay, Rod Brind'Amour netted his eight goal of the year, ending the 0-0 stalemate.

Niclas Wallin added another for Carolina at the 14:35 mark putting the Hurricanes ahead 2-0.
Carolina had 27 shots against them with Gerber stopping all for a shutout. Roberto Loungo stopped 27 of 29.

Post Rivalry

New York Giants v Philadelphia Eagles, November 4, 1991

Veterans Stadium, Section 249 Row 5

A Monday Night match up. I did not have a ticket to this game. I may have picked on up from the ground inside the stadium. The seat referenced above must have been the one I picked up from the ground.

JFK Stadium was still up. Parking in that lot was were we always tailgated. There was good pissing places around there that did not require a long walk. JFK was demolished in 1994 to make way for the new home of the NHL Flyers.
The warehouse across the street where we pissed were demolished in the early 2000s to make way for the Eagles new stadium, Lincoln Financial Field.

That means I pissed on 3 stadiums. Texas Stadium on the outside wall, Fed Ex Field on the outside wall and inadvertently, the spot where the Eagles would call home a decade or so later.

I worked with a guy who worked in the stadium on the side. He hooked us up with a security guard under the stadium. We would slip the guy $10 each and he would look the other way as we walked in the underground tunnels. If we got caught we promised not to rat the guy out.

I would look for dropped ticket stubs just in case we were ever asked later during a game for some type of proof of admission. We typically just walked around and stole views where ever we could. A bonus was we got an empty beer cup and a side door for free beers throughout the game. We just tipped the worker who our buddy hooked us up with. Another $10 tip was win-win for all involved.

This game lacked a little of the fire from years past. The Giants were removed from their Super Bowl victory the previous Super Bowl. They were not displaying the fervor of a team who looked like they wanted to repeat. The Eagles fired wildly popular Buddy Ryan and replaced him with Rich Kotite. The Eagles would go into a multi year slid until the Andy Reid era began.

Jim McMahon was the field general for the Eagles with Jeff Hostetler leading the Giants.

The opening quarter was scoreless. It wasn't until Roger Ruzek hit a 38 yard FG to put the Eagles ahead 3-0 in the 2nd. McMahon connected with Keith Jackson for a 73 yard TD and Ruzek kicked another FG in the 2nd to put the Eagles ahead 13-0 at the half.

James Joseph ran an 11 yard run into the end zone in the 3rd. The Giants Rodney Hampton poked in the team's first score from the 1.

Ruzek added to the Eagles lead with a 25 yard FG. This was followed by a Joseph 1 yard run for Philadelphia to put the Bird up for good at 30-7.

#1 Loses to Eventual #1

Georgia Tech v Virginia, November 3, 1990

Scott Stadium, Section SWS Row K

In perhaps the most exciting game of the 1990 college season, #16 Georgia Tech made a stunning comeback and outlasted #1 ranked Virginia, 41-38, at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville. The loss dropped the Cavaliers out of the #1 spot and made Virginia the fourth different number one to lose in 1990.

Our seats were on the side, last row of the lower bowl. The wife was a recent grad so we met up with her old roommate and husband. We had pre and post game oasis at a fraternity house. The pregame atmosphere was much more festive then the post game.

The game was a CBS nationally televised game. Back in those days when a game was on a network, it meant something. The stadium at the time had a phoney green artifical turf. Someone the night prior to the game broke into the stadium and tried to light the 50 yard line on fire. There was a large, unnatural green artificial turf patch hap hazardly plopped down in the center of the field.

Virginia had a comfortable halftime lead. Georgia Tech turned the tide in the 2nd half.
With the game tied at 38 with :12 left on the clock Georgia Tech's Scott Sisson nailed a game winning 37 yard game winner to the shock of 49,000.

Georgia Tech, in this year of so many changes at #1 eventually were awarded a co national championship with Colorado.

National Champs Seminoles

Florida State v Virginia, October 31, 1992

Scott Stadium, Section 9 Row W

A 13-3 snoozer. The Seminoles were the National Champs in 1992. The Noles had 4 players selected in the first 2 rounds of the NFL draft in 1993.

Today's FSU victory was Coach Bobby Bowden's 150th victory as head coach.