Hi Cindy!

DH & I live about 30 miles SE of Pittsburgh and have been life long fans. I remember my Mom dressing me up in black & gold when I was just a small child. : )

We aren't fair weather fans and stick with the team no matter if we win or lose.

The in-laws have great seats at Heinz field. I hope we inherit them someday, lol.

What a great game last Sunday. Troy did awesome, even after getting his hair pulled. ; )

So glad to know the Steeler Nation is in SE NY!

Go Steelers!
~Dawn

Longtime fans here too! We're originally from PA and have been fans since the great years of the 70's. Yep, there have been some tough years since then ....

Did I mention that we have two Labrador Retrievers named Rocky and Franco? :)

Cindy

Go Steelers!
Originally from PA, 25 miles east of Pittsburgh. Also been with the Steelers thru thick and thin since the 70's.
Currently live in Raleigh, NC (last three years). When we go back for a visit it still amazes me that every third person is wearing "Black and Gold". We have had a "Steeler Flag" and a "Pitt Flag" hanging from the house since we have moved here. DH has a Large "Your'e in Steeler Country" Banner that he hangs when the season heats up.
What a Great Team!...........Dianne

Go Steelers!
Originally from PA, 25 miles east of Pittsburgh. Also been with the Steelers thru thick and thin since the 70's.
Currently live in Raleigh, NC (last three years). When we go back for a visit it still amazes me that every third person is wearing "Black and Gold". We have had a "Steeler Flag" and a "Pitt Flag" hanging from the house since we have moved here. DH has a Large "Your'e in Steeler Country" Banner that he hangs when the season heats up.
What a Great Team!...........Dianne

Sure - I'm here!! What a great Steeler Nation it is! We live in Pittsburgh, and traveled out to San Diego two weeks ago for the game...oh man - it seemed like half of that stadium was filled with Steeler fans! What a wonderful time we had - that was, until after the game, when the Charger fans really became down-right nasty (believe it or not, it was mainly the women becoming very down-right dirty - saying extremely nasty stuff about Pgh, as well as the Steeler team). Oh well.....that would never happen in Pittsburgh. Win or lose, we'll cheer the home team, but congratulate the other team if we should happen to lose. Thats why Pittsburgh is such a great city! : )
On the plus side......we made soooo many new friends out in California! There was a "Steeler bar" we went to the day before the game (and even though I ran into neighbors!! imagine that!!!!).....the majority of fans there were Californians. That state loves our Steelers!! What a great group of people!!! Love ya, California black & gold fans!!!
Barb

Hi Barb & Dianne. : )

You're right Barb, that stadium was packed with Black & Gold. It was just awesome to see on TV. Too bad about the sore loser fans. I've always taken pride in the fact that our city is so polite and friendly.

Dianne, I add more & more decorations as the season progresses as well. I have a few boxes in my storage room and by the end of the season my house is totally decked out. I usually add a few new things each year as well.

A house a few miles from where I live just painted the coolest "GO STEELERS" rocks in one of their flower beds. It's not the least bit tacky looking and they are done very nicely. Must have used stencils or had a very steady hand. I just love driving past to see it.

Heinz Ward and Deshea Townsend were at the annual Project Bundle Up event helping kids pick out coats. It's the 20th anniversary for this local event and the Steelers always give such great support. : )

{{gwi:164544}}

~Dawn

Add my DH and me to the list of Steeler fans...We live about 20 miles east of Pgh., but I think all of Western Pa., is considered "Steeler Country"...We've been fans forever and will continue....Let's hope Big Ben is OK for tomorrow's game, if not, Charlie is a great backup......

GO STEELERS!

I'm from New England...............Uh, have you Steelers ever played the Patriots?

Yea IrishDG, I have mixed emotions about Ben - sure would like to see him play, but don't want him to come back too soon either. I think Charlie has been great!

I hate these late games - just waiting around all day for the game to start :)

Cindy

Lets just hope they can take care of biz in the land of nuts and fruits where

Well, unless a miracle happens, there's always next year....

Well.......we need too remember that this a New Team......These are not the same guyzzs that won the Super Bowl!
As always................. Life makes its shifts and changes!.
Keep supporting the Steelers!....D

Here is a link that might be useful: The Steelers

"Well, unless a miracle happens, there's always next year...."

Ahhhh! Come on now! No need to start sounding like this guy already!!! :-)

As ya'll know, this is exactly what separates Steelers fans from most other football fans and sports fans in general. We believe through thick and thin. And although at 2-5 it might seem pretty thin NOW, I got 2 words for you to remind you how mighty thin we really used to be: Bubby Brister!

The Good News: Look around the NFL. Parity in football in alive and well. 9 wins can and sometimes does take a team into the playoffs. Going 7-2 from here is certainly not unrealistic IMO and far from a miracle. Granted, they MUST start playing like they did against KC NOT beating themselves by silly mistakes such as fumbling the ball 3 times (ie vs. Falcons) or throwing 4 INTs (ie vs. Raiders). Plus, we still have to play the Ravens twice and the Bungles once more. The AFC North division is far from clinched by anyone.

The Bad News: It certainly doesn't get any easier from here with 2 VERY formidable opponents in Denver and the Ain'ts (both currently leading their respective divisions). We must win at least one of those games. Biggest worry now are injuries to key players... namely Casey Hampton, Jeff Hartings, and James Harrison. IMHO, our running game featuring "fast" W. Parker remains a big ?. Unfortunately, his running style doesn't match the smash mouth brand of football that the Steelers bring to the table. Using Davenport as the feature back is a MUCH better option. Parker can still be an effective weapon on certain downs/situations (longer running plays, trick plays, etc.).

The Bottom Line: Having their backs against the proverbial wall is not an unfamiliar situation to the Steelers. Same as last year after the loss to the Bungles. They just gotta overcome one obstacle at a time. We all know they ARE capable of doing that with THIS squad. It will be interesting to see how the team responds in the coming weeks.

We now resume your regular Football Forum programming! :-)

Hey Semper fi - I agree with everything you've said! We went to the Detroit game (and Jerome's last home game) at Heinz field on 1/1/06 - the first of the do or die games last season ... so I've seen it happen! I never said that a miracle couldn't happen and will never give up the faith! :)

Cindy

Cindyloo, miracles do indeed happen. Believing in them has long been instilled in every true Steelers fan.




...and here's one from a more recent memory:

Hi Semper!!
Yay! It's great to "see" you. Your posts are cracking me up, as usual. LOLOL

Ahem! As I was saying, unless a miracle happens, there's always next year.... 8-)))

Mamabirrd, great to "see" U2 (perhaps Sunday bloody sunday would apply here!). BTW, you're sorely missed in the pond. Hope your BIG project is going well.

LOL, Thanks Semper. I'll stop by the pond and say HI soon. It's been a busy couple of months and things are going great. The most exciting news is that we have a brand new Steeler fan on the way!! It will be our first, due May 16th. Right around the time I was planning to move the fish, LOL.

I don't even know what to say about last Sunday's game.

Anybody need one?

LOL Semper :)

Well, either our season gets better, or we'll at least have a good draft pick next year! Just amazing - we have some amazingly good offensive stats ... but I'm starting to have nightmares about turnovers ....

Cindy

Hey congrats Mama! We need all the fans we get get about now :)

Heyyyyyy.... that is so cool! Congrats to both Papabirrd and Mamabirrd on the soon to be a fine new addition of Babybirrd to the Steelers Nation. Looks like Lil' Ben (or Benita as the case may be) might give us more reasons to cheer about than his/her bigger counterpart!

As you probably know, I'm NOT a doctor but I do play one on the internet from time to time. Studies have shown how classical music can have a positive effect on an unborn child. So I advise that you do take the time to play some classics such as this one. :-)

Thank you Cindy!

And thank you Doctor Semper. : ) I will definately be playing that classical piece, along with my new Baby Genius Classical Series Brain Power CD. Honestly. I just got it on Thursday.

Not sure about Benita though, LOL. I'll have to hop on over to the pond and tell you the names we did pick. We love them, but I suspect you may be amused.

Jerome Bettis was on the a.m. news today. He said that tomorrow is going to be our day. He thinks we will win as long as we don't turn the ball over. Hey! That's a thought! hee hee

Any opinions or comments regarding Santonio?

I think he'll be fine as a receiver, but just keep him off the special teams ...

I like that classical music, Semper :)

And by the way, my kids are now in college, but still have their stash of Steeler Jerseys with them - it all started with that cute infant Steeler clothing!

Getting pumped for the game, but the time's changed to later, longer of a wait :(

Go Steelers.........It feels good to win!

I AMMM HAVIN' CHESSSSST PAIIIIINS!!!

*THUD*

woo, woo, woo!!! Steelers two in a row!!!

ROLL CALL!

So is everyone still alive and kicking after that "game"?!?!

Wow that was painful to watch - where the heck is our offensive line? Still here though.

The O.L. has been a problem but I'm not sure they are THE problem. I've said it before and I will say it again... Willie Parker is NOT the answer for the smash mouth style of football that the Steelers play because he has to rely on finese and speed rather than brute power and punishing his opponents. I'm also baffled at how BAD he has played on the road comparing to his play at Heinz Field.... A measly 45 yds/game on the road vs. 128 @ home!!!

The first drive of that "game" was a perfect example of how this season has been going for this offense. After running the ball for almost no gain on first and second down, we are faced with 3rd and LONGGGGG where their defense clearly knows it's going to be a passing play and that's often a formula for disaster and/or failure.

On the defensive side, it is pretty obvious that all our cornerbacks pretty much STINK. Townsend, McFadden, Taylor, Clark all have their moments but during the course of a 60 minute game, they all are pretty much stinky!!! LOL! I was hoping this glaring problem would be addressed during last off-season... obviously, it was not.

One last rant... is it just me, or does our beloved coach seem a little out of it lately??? I just get the feeling that his heart is not into it anymore and next year we'll have our third coach in the last 3 decades. Hopefully I'm wrong.

Hey Semper, We're wondering the same thing about the coach...You know he and his wife are graduates of N.Carolina, they have a nice BIG house down there AND there are rumors, he is headed that way...Wouldn't be surprised, he sure doesn't seem like his heart is in Pgh....
Good game yesterday, too bad they didn't play like this earlier in the season.....

Is it North Carolina (Tar Heels) or NC State (Wolfpack)? I thought they were NCSU graduates. Either way, that would be a big loss for the Steelers. It would also put me in an ackward position since I went to a rival ACC school (one whose current idiot head coach used to be a defensive coordinator for the Steelers).

Hopefully I'm reading too much into this but did anyone notice Cowher's body language during the Tampa Bay game. They showed a quick shot of him on the sideline during the game zipping up his jacket up to his mouth to protect himself from the cold. He seemed miserable. I clearly remember a few years ago a clip in NFL films during pregame warmups where he was miked and talking to his players. Kordell Stewart was complaining about how cold it was that day. An energetic Cowher tells him that it was PERFECT football weather. How times change!

I'm not sure if that was a good game on our behalf or just a bad game on theirs. Maybe a combination of both. It WAS great to see them on the plus side of the turnovers margin for a change. That rushing game though....ackkkkk... take away the one "big" 14 yard run and Parker went 47 yards on 21 carries (a whopping 2.2 yards per carry!). I guess that wouldn't be so bad if there were 5 downs before you had to punt the ball!!!

I realize that the Steelers are all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs but I found these stats to be interesting....

Below are the win/loss percentage of the remainder of the schedule for the teams that are still alive in the playoff race...

NFC
*BEARS: 0.256
*SAINTS: 0.436
*COWBOYS: 0.385
*SEAHAWKS: 0.538
*GIANTS: 0.500
*EAGLES: 0.564
*FALCONS: 0.513
*PANTHERS 0.564
*VIKINGS 0.436
*49ERS 0.423
*PACKERS: 0.474
*RAMS 0.308

AFC:
*CHARGERS: 0.475
*COLTS: 0.462
*RAVENS: 0.410
*PATRIOTS: 0.462
*BENGALS: 0.590
*JAGUARS: 0.564
*JETS: 0.359
*CHIEFS: 0.538
*BRONCOS: 0.450
*STEELERS: 0.615
*BILLS: 0.564
*TITANS: 0.590
*DOLPHINS: 0.590

_______________________________________________________________

As you can see, the Steelers have the toughest remaining schedule. To me, OUR playoffs start next week. Give me 2 victories against formidable playoff calibre AFC North opponents, and this season could end on a positive note, imo.

What a dramatic end to a dissapointing season! Still, the silver lining is that they went 6-2 in the 2nd half of the season and only lost to the much hated and incredibly talented Baltimore Ravens.

Lets just hope that the Cowher era continues in the Steel City. My gut feeling is that it does not. :-(

Rumor has it that *IF* Cowher does step down, Ken Whisenhunt might be our next head coach. I like Whisenhunt a LOT. He has proven to be a great coordinator and we have the same alma mater (he graduated a year before I did though). Still, nobody can ever replace the passion and intensity that Cowher brings to this awesome game.

Happy '07 everyone!

Happy New Year!

I just heard that it will be without our Bill Cowher :(

Well, well, well! It appears that Mike Tomlin WILL be our coach as of tomorrow (1-22-07).

Things that make me go hmmmmmmmmmmm.......... They passed on what to me was clearly the best candidate on their short list in Ken Whisenhunt because they wanted to be extra thorough in their search. So then there were 3: Grimm, Rivera, and Tomlin. As a football nut and a student of this game, I thought that Rivera was by far the best remaining candidate. Followed VERY closely by Grimm who has had a distinguished career with the Steelers on and off the field. BUT WHY MIKE TOMLIN??? If they really wanted to be thorough in their search, why not wait another couple of weeks to interview Rivera again after the Super Bowl?

I hope & pray that the Mr. Roonie (who I have the utmost respect for) and his staff see something here that I don't. I also hope that this is NOT some crazy equal opportunity crap to appease to the like of Jessie Jackson!

Around this time in 1992, I had a VERY good feeling about the young spirited coach that was to replace the legendary Chuck Noll. I do not have the same fuzzy feeling about Mike Tomlin right now. I honestly hope that Mr. Tomlin will prove me absolutely wrong and that I will look back at this thread exactly one year from know wiping the egg off of my face.

CHEERS!

Hey.. I am from Clymer Pa 70 miles to the east of Pitt.....love draft day!!!!