Game 11 of 122

Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field (vs Oakland Raiders):

Two Steeler games in the span of 14 days….can’t beat that (Click for details on Monday Night game in Cincinnati).  This was not my first trip to Heinz Field, but the first time I am counting it toward my goal of 122.  However, it has been a long time, in fact the last time I was there was for the 1^st game ever in the new stadium vs the Brownies.

Aaron Depew, me & Matt Boyle

This game was the continuation of a Pittsburgh sports weekend with some of my old college buddies.  As mentioned in the Penguin’s blog, our weekend started with watching the Penguins win in a shootout on Friday night, followed by a Steeler beat-down of the Raiders on Sunday.



The day started early with some tailgating festivities just a few blocks from the stadium. 



Chris Petersen, Doug Houser & Aaron Depew

Once inside, we took a walk through the Great Hall to see the 6 Super Bowl trophies (no team has more) and other historic Steeler items.  You could spend 1/2 a day inside the Great Hall viewing and reading about all the displays.  It is a great little bonus to a fantastic stadium.  The one thing I really like about both outdoor stadiums in Pittsburgh are the fact that they did a great job incorporating the city skyline into the design.

One of 6 Super Bowl trophies.

Our seats were great, right on the goal line on the Pittsburgh side of the field.  Lucky for us, 3 of the 5 Steeler TDs were scored right in front of us, not to mention the fact that the Steeler defense played extremely well and it seemed like most of the Raider offensive plays were run in front of us well as they struggled to move the ball all day long.

View from our seats

The Steelers dominated on offense, defense and special teams to destroy the Raiders 35-3.  The score could (and should) have been a lot worse considering the fact the penalties negated two other TDs for the Steelers – interception return and a punt return (both scored in the end-zone in which we were sitting).

The game might be remembered more of the fights and penalties.  I heard someone say that there were more yellow towels (penalty flags) on the field yesterday than in the stands.  An exaggeration of course, but this game will certainly be remembered for some terrible penalties.  Some of the loudest times during the game came when fans were booing appeared to be some poor officiating; followed by when they posted the final score of the Bengal’s game (a loss of course).  I have never seen angrier Steelers fans after a 32 point win. 

See ya - Rejected for fighting.

A great all-around weekend to the City of Champions.  Maybe some day we will get to see the Pirates back in the playoff hunt occasionally.  Once again, a special thanks to Aaron Depew for obtaining the tickets and allowing me to crash at his house.  Thanks as well to Matt Boyle and Chris Petersen for coordinating the logistics of parking, transportation and tailgating food.

Record:  6-5.  Go Steelers!  I'm 2-0 at Steeler games this year.

Official Box Score of the Game

To learn about my fund-raising efforts, visit:  http://www.firstgiving.com/christopherapel