T-MInus 6 Days Until Tampa!

One day down, and an eventful one at that. I coach my sons flag football team, and we are the Card-Pitt Steelers. The past 3 years we've been who else, but the Cardinals. This year, it was an 8 week wait to get jerseys. Well......As fat would have it, we were given the Steelers. Ironic....Don't chya think!!

So, today we played against the Broncos. So far, we were 0-3. The kids are really starting to get it, and after the first game blowout, the other two have been real close! We should have won th eprevious two....One play away two games ago......and last week, neck and neck until about the final 2 minutes.

So this week, we played yet another undefeated team. And they started the game on the forst play with a little run right up the middle for a TD....Man, all those flag grabbing drills out the door. But it was kind of a fluke...the flag litterally slipped out of the kids hadn, and the rest was paydirt freedom. After that they really buckled down, and just before halftime, we gave aup a long TD...we got the ball for one final play and BAM!!! TD PASS!!!! I called a split formation, XZ52. My Z receiver got 10 yards behind the defense, and my QB made a perfect throw. Just like that we went into hafltime down by 5 and the ball to start the second half. And we capitalized from the get go and NEVER looked back. We kept a 7 point lead until the final 26 seconds of the game. They scored a TD but had just missed the extra point. So we had a 1 point lead. My first call was to run the clock out. Running play that ended up us losing two yards. In flag you start each posession on the 5. So, with only a 3 yards cusion, I called a pass play that had killed them all day long....ALMOST an interception for a TD....Thankfully they dropped the pass. With 6 seconds left, I called a running play to the fastest kid on my team. I just wanted him to get free and run out the clock, WITHOUT geting a safety. I called my final timeout and talked ot the kids, and they executed with PERFECTION, giving us our first victory of the season! That will hopefully open the floodgates that will have them clicking the next time we face the undefeated Falcons!

So, tomorrow, we are one day closer to Tampa....I'm really starting to get JONESED!!!!

T-Minus 7 Days Until Blastoff!!!

Well, now that I've got my tickets safely in hand, I can easily say that a TON of pressure has been lifted off my shoulders. But that does not mean that it's not going to be crazy times getting there. This is the point where my blog trip down Super Bowl lane starts to take a turn from planning and preparation to a game day discussion. Sure there's a ton of stuff to discuss with respect to getting there, but man...What about all the stories about players, nerve, and getting to the day! We'll touch all of that along the way.

I would be rimiss if I didn't pub the fact that I'm going to be on Live TV Thursday morning. I got called by our local NBC station herein Tucson, and they'd like to have me on in the morning to talk about being a HUGE Cardinals fan and what to expect when I hit the road to Tampa. Honestly, I think it's funny they're actually sending a couple of reporters to Tampa. I'm like, why start now...LOL . Oh wait, they're the story of the century. I personally think they ought to give me the mic and let me do the tough inside scoop reporting. I would LOVE to be there for media day, next week. Who knows....Maybe that will happen. I did just submit my information to the Ellen Degenerous show to let her in on a little secret... I AM THE #1 ARIZONA CARDINALS FAN! I'm sure once she sees my crayz pics, she'll agree!

Well, that should cover it for now.....At least today's the 23rd. I can finally start replying to text messages again! Man....This time if the year, and a 200 per month limit....Not coolio....I get shown on TV, and the next thing I know my phone goes ballistic!!! Keep checkin in here.....You can find all your breaking Cardinals news here. And if you've got a lead on an extra ticket, I'm still pimpin to find my boy Pete entranceinto the stadium!

MIRACLES DO COME TRUE!

That's right folks! My dream of getting Super Bowl tickets, at an affordable price, has been realized! I just happened to be at the right place at the right time! Throughout the day, I was actually upset with the whole process. Seeing deuchbag after deuchbag coem onto the Cardinals Message board trying to hock their tickets for thousands of dollars. The worst, a guy came in being selected for $500 seats wanting $3900 for the pair. Give me a freakin break!

Anyways, I was on the Arizona Sports Fans message board when I saw a post show up stating Super Bowl Tickets for Sale. A long time fan, and club seat holder, who's dealing with health issues could not go, but he didn't want his tickets to end up in the hands of scalpers. The man stood in line for 3 hours today, in not the greatest of weather, and got his tickets. He only wanted $1000 per ticket when he paid $875. I sent him a message and he graciously accepted. The amount over face value is negligable, especially considering he had to stand in line for as long as he did. I didn't think twice about paying him the amount he wanted.

What a great guy! 40YearFan, you just made two new BEST FREINDS in my father and I, and we would love to tailgate with you next year! You just made my dream come true when I thought all was lost. Thank ou again, and this is what the team means by WE DO THIS TOGETHER!!!!

Let the Ticket Search Begin!

My mountain to climb to get to the promised land all of a sudden looks like Mt Everest. I'm telling ya, the range of emotions I've felt in the past 24 hours have gone from amazing highs to gut wrenching lows. The fact of the matter is, I'm flying to Orlando on Friday the 30th of January and flying back on Monday February 2nd. That's all I know right now. There's still hope that somehow, by the grace of god, I will still somehow land a Super Bowl ticket at face value. But that hope fades every day. I've seen people, who I've been season ticket holders with for almost a decade now, and partied with for many years, whom you thought were your friends tell you that even when they had no intentions of going, are selling the tickets they got at $825 for face value at double the price. Pretty scary what money will do to you. Why, because I would have NEVER done that to them. If I couldn't make it, and I was selected, the first people I would have offered it to were friends and/or family at face value. That's just how I roll. This is something that I feel very strongly about. There are vary many fans who have followed this team for a very long time who didn't get selected and really want to go. I'm not the only one in this boat. Yet, the prices right now are so ridiculous, that we as fans are being forced out. And it just plain SUX.

I still have hope.....But every passing day that hope dwindles. Perhaps there's some Corporate sponsor who's looking for a couple of Diehard fans to help promote their business out there. I've got a line on people who are passionate about this team, love to paint thier faces, and dress up in crazy outfits that are looking to attend this game.

DENIED!

Just got the word from the Arizona Cardinals that I was NOT selected for Super Bowl tickets. I need a beer to put out these flames!

So much hope......All gets CRUSHED!

Well, it doesn't look good for my ticket quest for Super Bowl Sunday. Yesterday I was informed via email, that one of my season ticket accounts was not selected for Super Bowl tickets. I have two accounts because I added two seats last year for my boyz. I didn't expect that account to get picked since it was so new. I had hoped that my main account would get selected, and that I just hadn't received the letter yet. I happen to know other people that are in a similar situation, that ended up getting two rejection emails.

So imagine my jubilation. I just figured, that since it didn't get delivered on Saturday, that it should be here yesterday since there was no mail on Monday due to MLK day. It didn't come yesterday, but I still have hope due to the fact that I hadn't received an email for that account.

Well...That hope just took a square shot to the midsection. There are very credible reports from people that I know very well who did NOT get the email yesterday, but got the letter of DOOM today! This absolutely SUX! So I'm guessing that now when I go home, I too, will have the letter of DOOM for my other account. To add insult to injury, I've already purchased my plane reservations so that I could lock in the price at $250 round trip. It's a good thing, because the price jumped to $400 a couple of hours later.

The next couple of hours are going to SUCK! I'll post here when I get home this afternoon and find my letter of DOOM!

I'M ON ESPN.COM!!!

Yes..I got an email today to that gave me a little heads up that my mug is the feature picture on espn.com!

OH SNAP!

THE UNTHINKABLE! THE ARIZONA CARDINALS ARE GOING TO THE SUPERBOWL!

That's right fans of all ages. You read that right. THE ARIZONA CARDINALS HAVE MADE IT TO THE SUPERBOWL. Again, I must admit, this blog is supposed to be about running. But right now, that story line has to take a back seat as my travel plans have just taken on a whole new adventure. Yesterday was probably one of the the absolute BEST days of my life, other then my children being born. It has that same kind of....OH SNAP....feeling to it. For me to say I'm surprised and in shock would be an absolute understatement. This game was a tale of two halves, in what will turn out to be one of the BEST playoff games EVER. I have to give credit to the Philadelphia Eagles. At halftime when your team was down 24-6, and had absolutely NOTHING going for you, you guys rallied and just about gave us Cardinals fans yet one more GUT WRENCHING LOSS that would rival the Monday Night debacle that ended up making Denny Green a very rich man with his sound bites of how we LET EM OFF THE HOOK!

Well, did what what Cardinals teams with close to a century of history could not do! We took the ball back after giving up the go ahead touchdown, and we methodically drove down the field and chewed up a large majority of the 4th quarter and RE-TOOK control of game that had slipped out of our hands. and in Un-Cardinalesque style, we didn't just settle for a game winning field goal, we PUNCHED PHILADELPHIA squarely in the mouth with a TOUCHDOWN and TWO POINT COVERSION. Those "Same 'Ol Cardinals" would have either squandered the drive and/or settled for a FG leaving enough time for the opposing team to drive down the field and kick the gut buster in the closing seconds. NOT THIS YEAR! NOT THIS TEAM!

We FINALLY did the unthinkable, and became the NFC Champions, and held the Eagles on a 4th and 10 to basically end the game. What an amazing POST SEASON. It's as if the GOD'S above hand wrote this script. It's as if there was divine intervention. That's right people. This is NOT a dream. We are going to TAMPA to play the BIGGEST GAME IN FRANCHISE HISTORY! We're going to play in the Super Bowl against the team that passed on HIRING Coach Whiz....The PITTSBURGH STEELERS.....

Now.....I must play the waiting game.....Since today is Martin Luther King Day....I have to play the horrific waiting game to see if I've scored Super Bowl tickets.....OH THE AGONY! Come on mail gods....Devlier me that all important letter stating YOU'VE BEEN CHOSEN!!!!