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On Sunday, February 1, 2009, I was fortunate enough to witness one of the greatest Super Bowl games in history, as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Arizona Cardinals 27-23 in Tampa, Florida. The Steelers, my favorite team since Age 6, took a solid 20-7 lead in the 3rd Quarter only to see the Cardinals furiously rally to take a 23-20 lead with 2:37 left on the clock. The pride of Miami University, Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, led a flawless drive covering over 90 yards in under 2 minutes to win the game with an incredible touchdown pass to Super Bowl MVP Santonio Holmes.

I was sitting in Section 102 of Raymond James Stadium, just on the other side of the end zone where Holmes made his amazing catch. The experience was worth every penny and will be in the forefront of my mind for a long time. The drama and excitement of the game, plus the way the Steelers won, made the game one of my favorite moments in my lifetime.

Of course, I took photos! Enjoy some of them below.

Raymond James Stadium during pregame

Matt from his Section 102 seats at SBXLIII

Big Ben makes a play...like he did all night

Big Ben cuts to avoid a Cardinals defender

Willie Parker is tackled by Chike Okeafor

Ben Roethlisberger in the final moments of the game

Big Ben and his team celebrate the winning TD

My football team is headed back to their 2nd Super Bowl in three years and their 7th since January 1975…and, for the 2nd consecutive time, I am headed there with them! The Pittsburgh Steelers will head to Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa to take on the underdog Arizona Cardinals on February 1, 2009. I was fortunate enough to attend Super Bowl XL in frigid Detroit on February 5, 2006, so a warm weather site will be an additional treat.

Fellow Miami University alumnus Ben Roethlisberger will once again lead the Steelers into a Super Bowl. It has been a special treat for me to see him play at Miami and in one (and soon to be two) Super Bowls. I’m crossing my fingers that my upcoming whirlwind trip from Portland to Tampa will be a safe, fun and fruitful one…oh yeah, and free of flight delays!

Photos and blogging to come. Until then, enjoy a few photos from past years. Here we go Steelers, here we go!

Ben Roethlisberger at Miami University (team finished 13-1 and ranked 10th)

Ben Roethlisberger in Super Bowl XL (just before his TD)

Matt at Super Bowl XL in Detroit

After Citigroup just secured $300+ billion in federal guarantees, as well as billions more in free taxpayer money, the Mets should name their stadium Shitty Field instead of Citi Field. I’m pissed. I’ve said this before…banks, telecoms, tech companies and fly-by-night firms need to stay out of ballpark naming rights! I am just tired of having parks named after companies that merge, fail, etc.

Examples are many: AT&T Park in San Francisco (originally Pacific Bell Park), Minute Maid Park (originally Enron Field), McAfee Coliseum (formerly Network Associates Coliseum), Rangers Ballpark (formerly Ameriquest Field) and Chase Field (originally Bank One Ballpark) come to mind immediately. I’m just waiting for Comerica Park, Citizens Bank Park and U.S. Cellular Field to be renamed.

But getting back to the Mets. What are they going to do about this? Hell, even Buick dropped their $7 million per year sponsorship of Tiger Woods after they went begging to the government. Will Shitty — I mean, Citi — do the same? Step up and rename the park Obama Field or maybe Alan Greenspan Memorial Park (yeah, I know he’s not dead yet, but he’s dead to me). Come on Mets! Don’t let Citi keep the rights. Do something about it.

And the MLB should outlaw any parks not named after people or long term brands like pet stores, insurance companies and orange juices. Or something like that. Whew! I’m glad I got that off my chest. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

This crazy hobby of mine is year-round anymore.  I’m already looking into three MLB Ballpark trips and one College Football trip…and I am thinking about Spring Training in Arizona for the first time.  Here is my thumbnail sketch of trips for 2009:

Mar - Spring Training

Apr - NY Mets and NY Yankees (in their new ballparks!)

Jun - Tampa Bay Rays and Atlanta Braves

Jul - Cleveland Indians, Toronto Blue Jays, Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers (yes, that means 5 games, 4 states and 2 countries in 6 days)

Sep - Miami University football game at Boise State in Idaho

Yes, that is pretty ambitious, but it sounds like a lot of fun right now…even though the June and July trips will involve a LOT of driving.  It’s all good, though.  Until later.

My first game of the year in Seattle’s Qwest Field was on October 12. The game was dominated by Green Bay in the second half, after a 10-10 tie at the break. The Packers eventually won 27-17 while holding the Seahawks to under 100 total yards in the first three quarters of the game. Here are a few pics.

Matt (middle) with Captain Seahawk and friend Mitch Spaulding

Ryan Grant breaks into the Seattle secondary

Seattle RB Julius Jones

Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers fumbles

Packers play action

Packers defenders crush Julius Jones

After baking in Arlington the day before, the temperatures in Houston were actually higher…and so was the humidity. The heat hit me like a wall after leaving the air conditioned cocoon of my rental car. Fortunately, Houston had the foresight to close their retractable domed stadium for the game. My body, accustomed to Pacific Northwest weather, could not have handled another outside game in that type of weather.

My brother Chris and I battled the traffic and made it to the park about 45 minutes before game time. Along with about 20,000 others, we enjoyed an Astros victory over the hapless Pittsburgh Pirates. So, after three ballparks in three cities over three days, I am calling it a successful trip and heading home to Portland early tomorrow.

Here are a few shots from Monday evening:

Exterior of Minute Maid Park

View from the upper deck

View from behind home plate

Matt near home plate

A short flight and a 600 mile change in latitude can make a huge difference. Last night in Kansas City, I was wearing a sweatshirt and sitting in rain showers. This afternoon, I was baking in 93-degree heat in Arlington, Texas!

Red Sox Nation was representing at the game, with (my estimate) 75% of the 29,000 people in attendance supporting Boston. Chants of “Let’s Go Red Sox” and other Sox-centric cheers echoed through the enormous ballpark all afternoon. Feeding off the fans, the 2007 Champs responded with a dominant 7-2 victory.

I had killer seats, just a few rows behind home plate and slightly to the first base side. Two games in a row behind the backstop net…not bad. It sure beats the early days when all I could afford were the cheap seats. ;^)

It’s on to Houston tomorrow for a night game in The Juice Box (Minute Maid Field) with my brother Chris. Until then, here are some photos from today’s game in Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

View from the upper deck

Matt near his home plate seats

Brandon McCarthy fires the first pitch of the game to Jacoby Ellsbury

The Tiger Stadium-esque tiered porch in right field

The view from deep right field

The enormous new Dallas Cowboys football stadium, nearby the ballpark

My first game at Kansas City’s Kaufmann Stadium in 10 years was a tad of a letdown. Rain made it cool and damp for a good portion of game. The stadium is in the middle of a huge renovation (that I did not know about when I bought the tickets back in February) and about a third of the ballpark was cordoned off. Finally, Royals pitcher Gil Meche stymied the Indians all night, leading to a 3-1 Royals victory. (UPDATED with photos below.)

Note to self: Stop going to see the Tribe in person. They always suck royally when I am in the stands. Yes…pun intended.

Oh well, tomorrow is a new day…and it will be quite a change of pace. Cool and rainy KC gives way to hot and humid Arlington, TX. The forecast is 93 with 60% humidity with a 2:05 pm start time. I am going to melt!

The exterior of Kaufmann Stadium

Kaufmann Stadium from the upper deck

Gil Meche pitches to David Dellucci

Matt near his home plate seats

The ginormous HD video board and beautiful water fountains

Despite Delta Airlines trying to ruin my trip, I am headed on another ballpark trip this weekend. Kaufmann Stadium in Kansas City on the 6th, Rangers Stadium in Arlington on the 7th and Minute Maid Park in Houston on the 8th. I get to see the last game with my brother Chris, who lives in Houston. I haven’t been these parks in a long time, so I am looking forward to seeing how they’ve changed and getting new digital photos. I will really try to get the photos up quickly this time!

After a long period of neglect and exactly 9 years after launching, I finally redesigned my website to make it easier to manage and update. [Thanks Wordpress!] That means more photos - quicker - and also a blog to keep you up-to-date on where I am, what I am doing and/or what I am thinking. Yes, I can hear it now, “yawn…yet another stupid blog.” I’m gonna try to avoid filling it up with wedge issues like politics, but who knows where I’m headed with this. Please excuse the fact that the photo galleries are not finished yet and four ballpark pages are missing photos. I think that is about all the deficiencies. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy the site. — Matt