No, not from the concert; that is tonight. Are you ready for some football??!!
Steph managed to get tickets for us for the NFC playoff game - Arizona Cardinals vs the Green Bay Packers. Yes, a rematch of the game three weeks ago... where the Cardinals ran over the Packers.
For full disclosure, I am not a rabid fan. I don't watch football every weekend. I like to watch the Super Bowl mostly for the commercials. And the snacks Joan makes. But, our son-in-law Dan is a very loyal Packers fan. He's from Wisconsin - being a Packers fan is a state law. And we like to do what they (Steph and Dan) enjoy. For more disclosure, Joan is the one who made a big fuss about "We should get tickets!" as soon as it became apparent the Packers were going to play here again.
This was our first NFL game. Oh, we have been in the stadium here quite a few times... for RV shows, the Home Show, etc. This would be the first time we would get to experience it for its real designed purpose. Bring on the pageantry!
We headed there three hours before kick-off. Once off the Expressway, the traffic was bumper-to-bumper; the game is a sell-out. We parked in the paid parking well north of the stadium (it's all paid parking on game days, even at the outlet mall or the theater complex...
Yes, we were all in Packers attire. Required by Steph and Dan.
Walking through the Westgate (shopping, dining, entertainment) area, to the stadium...
Steph wanted us to get the whole "lawn" and tailgating experience...
(From Joan's phone)...
Bands playing, people cooking, and lots of milling about. A reasonably quick security "wanding" through security, and we got our first view of the field...
We made a lap of the perimeter, scoping out snacks, then went to check out our seats...
We are in the end zone, five rows back from the field.
As the seats start filling, it is clear that we are going to be standing when the crowd in front of us stand. Group shot...
An aerial shot from the Jumbotron...
Looking to the side, we are seated near the entry where the Cardinals will enter the field...
Milling with the crowd right in front of us - Joan said, "That's Flo Rida!" (check out the post here from two days ago)
(In the red hat.) Steph said, "No it isn't..." There was some discussion about who the half time entertainment would be - none of us knew. I don't know - he is flanked by cheerleaders...
Speaking of cheerleaders...
They are inflating the Cardinal tunnel for the big entrance...
Let the festivities begin. The place is packed...
Arizona takes the field, and the roar is deafening...
Some pre-game video bantering...
Jordan Sparks sang a moving rendition of our National Anthem while servicepeople unfurled a flag that covered the whole field...
The game...
Early on, the Cardinals took the lead. Dan watched intently...
The game got exciting - Green Bay was able to get a field goal, making the score Cardinals: 7, Green Bay: 3. A touchdown by the Cardinals was called back - the crowd roared their disapproval.
Now, if you want to really watch a football game, at home on the TV is the way to do it. If you want the experience, this is hard to beat. I'm guessing the Cardinals fans outnumbered the Green Bay fans around 10 to 1. The Green Bay fans were enthusiastic, but civil. Some of the Cardinals fans were obnoxious, with chants of "Go! Back! Home!" I had to chuckle to myself with the way some of these people got into this... "Um, you know the guys on the field are the ones playing, right?"
One particularly obnoxious guy, this Kid Rock wannabe...
When the camera zoomed in on him for a couple seconds (his "moment of fame"), the female Packer fan sitting next to me thought it was funny when I said, "Oh, look - the Douchebag Cam!"
OK, back to the cheerleaders...
Packers fans...
The game...
It is hard to describe the volume in the stadium. They frequently displayed a deciblemeter...
It was consistently around 111, with occasional bursts to 114 to 118. Anything above 90 can potentially cause hearing damage. Fun.
This bit from Bose came on the Jumbotron...
Made me wish I had my Bose noise-cancelling headphones with me.
It was a tight game as it closed in on half time. Then the half time entertainment announcement: Flo Rida! (Yes, Joan was right!)
Honestly, his performance was quieter than the screaming crowd. After half time, the game got even better. The Packers scored a touchdown. The Cardinals got another touchdown called back. You could feel the excitement and tension...
With less than a minute, the Cardinals were ahead by 6. A "hail Mary" pass from Rogers was caught in the end zone as the clock ticked to zero. The extra point was good - tie game and sudden death overtime!
Another coin toss, Arizona receives. Now, the crowd got quiet...
In a truly amazing run, Larry Fitzgerald (Cardinals) made an amazing run back on the first play after the kick - he was stopped just short of the goal line, after running 75 yards. Next play...
Touchdown, Arizona... game over! The last few minutes of this game were truly amazing.
Final score: Arizona Cardinals: 26, Green Bay Packers: 20. For Dan's sake, I was sorry to see the Packers lose, but it was a heroic effort on the part of the Packers. Truly, the game could have gone either way, as both teams were playing with heart.
I didn't feel bad for the outcome - our first NFL game was quite an experience.
No comments:
Post a Comment