With 22 NFL seasons already in the books, I figure there are plenty of off-the-beaten-path stories to recall for your viewing pleasure. Hey, if Neil Best can regale you with tales of covering a young Randy Johnson in Alaska, then I can offer up a few anecdotes that might not have made the papers over the years. (Incidentally, Best officially cracked this morning with a blog post, so check out Watchdog for the official time.)
I'll begin with my first NFL season covering the Giants' beat in 1985 for the Gannett Westchester-Rockland Newspapers. The Giants played the Steelers in a preseason game at Three Rivers Stadium, and I remember two things from that night: The first you'll remember, too, if you're a Giants fan who goes back that far: Tight end Zeke Mowatt tore up his knee on the awful artificial turf, and he was done for the year. Afterward, Bill Parcells was morose in delivering the news. He would have to depend on a rookie tight end from Notre Dame named Mark Bavaro in Mowatt's absence.
The second memorable moment occurred sometime in the first half. We noticed in the press box that a fan started climbing down a heavy-duty wire that ran from the mezzanine level of the stands to the baseball backstop. The guy was suspended a good 50 feet above the seats in the lower deck, and he had at least 40 yards to go before reaching the backstop.
The fans around him eventually noticed what he was doing, and they were cheering him on as he attempted his feat. The reporters figured the guy had to have had a bunch of beers in him to even think about climbing that far, as he was basically suspended upside down with his feet crossed, and then putting one hand over the other while sliding down.
When he got about halfway down, you could tell he was starting to get tired, because he stopped frequently. It was also getting a little scary, because if the guy falls, he'd be badly hurt ... or worse. So the game is going on, but all we can do is watch to see if this guy makes it.
Former New York Post beat reporter Hank Gola called his office to let them know about the high-wire fan, and he asked his editor if he should write a brief item on it.
The editor's response: "Only if he dies."
PS: After about 10 more minutes, the guy made it to the backstop and climbed down to thunderous applause before being hustled off the field by security. It was clearly the most impressive athletic accomplishment of the night.
PPS: Hey, buddy, if you're still out there, let us know how your life has gone.
PPPS: Whoever that editor at the Post was, thanks for a truly memorable line.
PPPPS: This Bavaro kid turned out to be a pretty good tight end.
PPPPPS: Three Rivers Stadium is now a parking lot.