BTSCers - Please Read!

I’ve given my testimony on here before, but since it’s a question I have to field on a regular basis here in Louisiana I don’t mind repeating myself. I was born in 78 so I’m younger than your preferred demographic and I grew up watching college football and not NFL so it wasn’t until I was 20 that I became a Steelers fan.

It was the 98 coin toss controversy game that solidified me as a Steelers fan. I liked Bill Cowher and losing the game in such a way gave me the underdog syndrome. I grew up a Braves fan (sorry to all you Pirates fans) so I was used to rooting for the underdog. The Steelers finished off that year miserably and then went on to another miserable year. It wasn’t until my third year as a Steeler fan that I began to learn the history of the team and realized that PIT was a powerhouse football club.

I began to reach out for online fansites after the Steelers won XL. I was at a SB party that didn’t care at all for the game and would only quiet up for the commercials. So I’ve been hanging around one fansite or another for a few years now. Over the years I’ve convinced my brothers and dad that they should be Troy Polamalu fans, but they haven’t taken that final step to being full on Steelers fans.

1) I grew up in Olean, NY which is located in Western NY (Buffalo Bills Country), but the area is still only about 10 miles away from the Pennsylvania border. My Parents grew up in Erie, PA which is halfway between Cleveland and Pittsburgh; my parents were both fans of the Steelers.
As a kid, Olean, NY is hard-core Buffalo Bills country, and when I was growing up it was the time of Kim Kelley and the Run-and Gun Offense and the great Buffalo Bills teams. More than anything my rooting for the Bills was more of an act of rebellion since my parents were fans of the Steelers who are a much despised team in that area. After a few years of rooting for the Bills to spite my parents I decided when I was about 11 years that the tradition and passion that Steelers fans had was too powerful to resist.

2) Question number two ties directly into question number one for me. It goes as far back as when I was in High School because rooting for the Steelers in the Buffalo area was hard as television coverage of the Steelers was rare. I would say I first started going online for Steelers information around the year 2001, which happened to be the same year that I got my own PC. Besides stealing music on Napster I also liked to search for sports information especially fantasy football and Steelers information. More recently when I found Behind the Steel Curtain I was looking for an outlet to gather information from around the web on the Pittsburgh Steelers, but I also wanted an outlet where I could contribute and express my thoughts and viewpoints on the team.

3. The first thing that came to mind when you mentioned tribal formations of the Steelers happened to me during last season. It was the Monday Night game against the Redskins and my wife & I decided to take the Metro to the game. We were discussing what metro lines we were going to take and had our plan figured out when we saw another couple dressed in Steelers garb that were somewhat lost. Since my wife & I are familiar with the DC Metro system I decided to strike up a conversation and see if they wanted to go to the Steelers bar in DC that we were stopping at to grab a few drinks before heading to the stadium. They were not from the area and were thankful to have some fellow fans and "tour guides".
Being a Steelers fan, especially when you are out of the area of Pittsburgh is similar to being in a fraternity. A bond is immediately formed with anyone wearing the black and gold, and no matter how obnoxious a person is, they always have one thing going for them because they are a Steelers fan. I know every time I put on my black and gold regalia I am always reminded of the pride and passion that Pittsburgh Steelers fans have, and proud to be part of Steeler Nation.

Hello Blitz -

1) Grew up in Churchville, PA (60’s), outside Philly, moved to Michigan early 70’s. Late 70’s moved to Georgia ( and back in time 100yrs). Can u imagine movin from Detriot Mi to Atlanta GA in the 70’s, thats culture shock for anyone, almost killed me..
Anyway I owe my support of the “Black & Gold” to my Grandfather, he hated the fEAGLES!! The one thing I remember clearly about that time was “He and my Dad would split a 12pack of "Black Label” and sream at the TV" Back when there was only 3 channels.. maybe 4! I remember watching a lot of the Steelers games back then, so I would have to say in the Michigan/Ohio(canton) yes the Steelers were on TV alot in the 70’s. I stuck with the Steelers cuz they were fun to watch, brutal games".

2) I started searchin for steeler info, because the internet made it more available, until the last 5 years or so, most of the information was just facts/stats – one sided.. Then this bloggin stuff started, and I was saved.. Finally people that shared the same passion as me that I can trade ideas/frustration/comedy with. Sure I ran into Steelers fans everywher out and about, and its like drivin a Jeep, they all wave to eachother!! I been to a bunch and BLITZ this is the best, especially from the perspective of sharing ideas/info/rants and raves real time, supported by a cast of characters that keep it fresh…

3) probably answer this in 1 & 2 – but the amount of participation and information on this site is incredible!! Its almost like a contest(for me) to see if I can gleen some STEELERS nugget before BLITZ, Carlsweathersmustache, highschoolsteeler(must be homeschooled), Drinkyourmilkshake, and all the others..

So to all of you and Blitz, thanks and keep it up, cuz being a hard core STEELERS fan In Georgia is a tall order.. Constant haters, seems like a lot of Cowgirls fans hear. Not to mention the “STEELERS BAR” near me also doubles as a “JAGUARS” bar.. Sucked last year real bad!!

Blitz good luck with your Grad Degree and prolong working as long as you can!!

but:
1) I grew up in Bengals country in the 70’s. My dad is from South Park, PA (Library to be exact). I had a lot of exposure to the Steelers through my dad. Being Super Bowl champs the year I started watching football helped me to join Steeler nation, but what made me become an avid fan was the antagonism of Bengal fans. It was like, we are Steeler people and you are attacking us because you are Bengal people. I began to watch just to put it in their face. The more I watched the more I was hooked. Ironically, my son became a Steeler fan much the same way.

2) I started searching for Steeler info online because it is the best form of information mining. I starting looking at blogs because they consolidate information from various sources. Some people pride themselves on being first to report something that has been reported in the mainstream media. rather than search that you can just come to a blgo and look for it.

3) I came to BTSC because it is much easier to follow than Steeler message boards. It’s also very easy to post. I like the quality of the product here and I like the people.

1) I grew up, and still reside, in NE. Nobody was following the Pats* in the 70’s when I started paying attention to sports (collecting cards, watching games, etc.). I’m not sure I even knew the NE Pats* were supposed to be my team. Besides, all the hoopla was about PIT or DAL. Honestly, the cheerleaders from DAL almost swayed me to the dark side, but Pittsburgh also had the Pirates, so… well… that was enough for an eight year-old kid, I guess.

2) Over the years, I’ve gotten a lot of information via blogs and online magazines. For example, in addition to following the NFL, I’m also a bit of a car buff. Internet forums are great places to pick up news and editorial. I’ve used them as a research tool when buying my last four cars. Until this past season, I never bothered to register with a Steelers blog because most of the stuff I found was little more than trash talk. The noise to signal ratio was too low. I found this place (accidentally) while looking for information to support an argument I was making with one of my Pats* fan buddies. While poking around, I found more good stuff than the other sites I’d perused in the past.

3) Like any other good site, this one seems to be focused around a few truly knowledgeable posters and then a bunch of hacks (like me) who add color commentary in three flavors: tired conventional wisdom, humor, and rare bits of insight. While it takes a while to sort through it all, this stuff develops into expertise for the readers and improves our understanding of each play. Furthermore, the open game day threads provide those of us in the diaspora with fellow fans to share a double yoi. It makes me feel like a complete geek, but there were a few games where I sat on the couch with one eye on the wide screen and the other on my laptop; both screens vying for my attention. That’s a big change from the way I used to watch.

1) I became a Steeler fan because my father was one, and I was raised as such. Being from Michigan made it hard to consistently watch games until Sunday Ticket came out, though. But my family has always appreciated the blue-collar, grind-’em-to-dust mentality the Steelers have. Even as a kid growing up in Metro-Detroit, I loved watching the Steelers more than the Lions, even though the Lions had the greatest Runningback of all-time in Barry Sanders.

2) My search for a Steeler-blog was a two part search; it began first in high school to get more info about the team (or, more precisely, more information quicker than other sources), and I began participating in postings and such when I came up to Marquette for college, because I had left my group of high school buddies and no one up here knew the Steelers even to the extent they did, let alone talked football. I needed somewhere to connect, I needed another ‘family’ if you will, people to talk not only Steeler news over but football news in general.

3) I’m a much better person because of this blog (as it is the only one I trust for my Steeler news). Before, I would fret and fidget and just be a nervous wreck in general before (and during) games, and would be irritable after losses, because I had to place to vent, to review information and think clearly/listen to others rational discussion about the games. It would take me nearly the entire week to wind down, especially if there was a big game looming and the Steelers had struggled the week before.

Now, BTSC helps me “detox” the same day, and I’m over a loss by Monday morning (or Tuesday if it’s MNF), and because of it I’m a happier, significantly less stressed young man. I mean, if the Steeler vets like maryrose and Rick can handle it, and with dignity and class even in defeats, so can I. (Which is kind of a micro-chasm of the Steelers organization in general, to be honest)

Not proofreading FTL

I can tell you about how I found the blog and why I was looking for it. The other two questions, I don’t really have good answers for. I’m from western PA (Meadville, near Erie), and I really don’t know many Steelers fans around here, although like others have said, if I wear something Steelers, I’ll usually get people greeting me and saying “Go Steelers, etc.”

Anyway, to answer why I was looking for a Steelers blog/how I found BTSC:

I guess it was 3 years ago (nearly 4 now), and I really started reading NC State message boards trying to find info on our basketball coach search. It lasted for a couple of months, so every day I’d check in and try to find out the latest. Well, from the message boards, I started reading an NC State blog called StateFansNation.com, which was really good. The posts were well thought out and used data to back up what they said (something very thin on message boards). After the Steelers won the SB in 2005, I read the message boards on steelers.com and the scout.com page (can’t even remember the name). Then, much like the NC State message boards, I found myself wanting something more like what I saw StateFansNation for the Steelers. I did a google search on “Steelers blog” and I found a site called Steelersblog.com. It was pretty decent, but there wasn’t much going on, especially during the offseason. Then after Tomlin was hired, it was maybe over a year, and I don’t remember seeing any new updates (I think there were server issues). Anyway, I finally did another search on “Steelers blog” and found BTSC. At that time, I was reading StateFansNation every day, but now I check it out periodically.. BTSC has replaced it as my “must read” website. A big reason is that it’s easier to post and comment here, and I’ve gotten to know the people here. I suppose another big reason is that the Wolfpack has struggled while the Steelers have been winning a SB. It is much easier to read every day when the writing is optimistic, and there is hope for improvement, which doesn’t seem to be the case with NC State’s athletic dept. under the current AD. But, anyway, that’s how I found BTSC. Hopefully, there’s something you can use there, Blitz.

2) Why did you start searching for Steelers related information online and what were your reasons for looking for blogs in the first place?

I was sick and tired of there only being two or three good venues for Steelers info, I used Post Gazette Online, Tribune Review Online, and the Steelers Website. I belonged to an anemic blog called Steelers Haters or Steelers Sucks (something like that) in which I made fun of Cleveland fans, but that got old kinda quick.

When I came upon SI’s webpage for the Steelers I found a few blog posts from BTSC. I started reading through the site. I stayed on as a reader, then became a commenter, and have added a few fanposts of my own, even getting on the frontpage once.

Since I have joined I have seen a few other Steelers blogs, but nothing that compares to the excellence of BTSC.

3) Anything you could share about ‘tribal’ formation of Steelers fans in general? And more specifically how a community like this one and others that is defined by nothing more profound than a mutual love of Steelers football has changed the way you interact with the game, the information related to the game, and other fans who share your interests, regardless of their age, religion, etc.

“Tribal” … Not sure I would have used this term. I guess that the fervor of many of the members could represent that of a tribe, maybe a cult. A leader or figurehead in Blitz, an elder statesman in Maryrose, and even some junior type people like highschoolsteeler… Maybe tribal is appropriate. I still prefer “cult”.

How does one look to define oneself? When that question is answered in part as a “die-hard Steelers fan” you then must find ways in which to better become that self-perspective. It is one thing to read the Pittsburgh papers, another thing to watch or listen to every game, another to go out and buy jerseys, fatheads, posters, car flags, inflatable yard ornaments, etc., but it is a complete other thing to use how well you are informed on the state of affairs of your team to help feel more self actualized in your self-assigned pidgeon-hole of a “die-hard Steelers fan”.

Is knowing that Brian McFadden may have been lost to us next season going to affect my mood? Yes, it will! Do I want to find out everything that there is to know about the new undrafted free agents that we signed this offseason and which one will be the next James Harrison, FWP, or even Dan Krieder? Yes, I do! What if no one else has found the answer to these questions/issues that are vexing me about my beloved team? Then it is my responsibility to find out, write a fanpost, and let them know, because if it is vexing me, then it is probably vexing someone else in Steeler nation.

Not only am I looking for information, now I am looking to share information, now I am looking for acceptance and respect from what I consider to be peers, and fellow self-defined die hard Steelers fans, now I am feeling the right to judge, accept or withhold acceptance of others. I am embroiled into a community of like-minded individuals and spend a small portion of my week hinged upon:

The information presented
What I can present
Is what I am presenting is accepted
Do I accept what others are presenting to me Is Blitz going to chastise me or block me for calling this guy a “fucking bedwetting moron”
Better not hit “post” on this comment calling this guy a “fucking bedwetting moron”

From the 50s. In fact, I was born in the same hospital Big Ben was rushed to after the cycle accident (Mercy). Anyhow, I suffered through the lean years, which made the glory of the 70s all the more meaningful. Even to this day, I feel a deeper sense of Steeler ownership, whatever that is, because I first lived though utter misery for so many years. I searched around for various web sites and decided to pick just one. Time does not allow me to pay attention to more than one.

Four things were important to me: 1) quality of information, 2) simplicity in navigation (I’m technologically challenged), 3) minimum profanity/spitball shooting, 4) minimum of useless information that wastes my time. BTSC graded out the highest all things considered. Other sites had good things about them, but BTSC was the best.

1) I’m unsure of exactly when I became a Steelers fan, but evidence of a recently found Steelers patch on a pair of mustard yellow cords that now fit my nearly two year old son suggest it was pretty young. The mystery is no one else in the family was a Steelers fan (that I know of). I was born in 73 in South Carolina. My Dad claims that he was a Redskins fan as they were the team that were broadcast in our area (on the radio?) when he was younger (he was born in the thirties), but he was primarily a college fan of the Gamecocks.

Anyway, we didn’t have the “local” NFL team of the Panthers then so really we in South Carolina were in a bit of a no-man’s land for fans. Some folks wonder why I didn’t pull for Atlanta, Tampa Bay, old Colts, or Dolphins, and I can only say that once I choose the Steelers I wasn’t going to budge. I can only assume that the success of the team in the seventies lead to them being televised (certainly in the postseason) a lot more than others. Also there were other aspects such as the Mean Joe Coke commercial that played for a long time in my mind. This was also about the same time that Star Wars came out, and I remember my young “fandom” being like playing Star Wars out in the yard. Instead of being Han Solo or Darth Vader or whatever, when I played football it was playing Bradshaw, Franco, Mean Joe, etc…. The team had recognizable characters that you could identify with (even though emulation fell woefully short). Another draw for me was that I always respected the toughness of the teams, even through some of the less than shining times.

2) I went through a time period where I barely watched football at all – due to going into the military and heading overseas. For a long time it I just didn’t know how to catch the games, or how to get news of games. This was during the early Cowher years. About the only game I could reliably watch all year was the Super Bowl. During this time I developed a thirst for Steelers news that has not shown any signs of stopping.

Games started being shown more often overseas. I got a sat TV connection when I could afford it. Still you’re having to watch games that other’s pick out for you. The Steelers were rarely on there at all. With the internet coming along I started to figure out that I could read Steelers.com and similar sites to get info on the team. I am naturally resistent to technology, but this grew on me. I became more up to date with my information, but unfortunately I worked with a bunch of Brits at this point in time that just didn’t share my enthusiasm at all – much less enthusiasm when I rolled into work late from staying up till 6 in the morning sometimes watching games. It wasn’t really until the announcement of Coach Cowher’s retirement that I really went over the edge and looking for information on a daily basis.

I remember just searching all the time about the candidates (real and imagined) out there, and that’s where I first stumbled on this blog. Articles from the site were coming up in a Google search on Steelers news. I wasn’t a blog guy…didn’t even like the term, but when I ran across this back and golden oasis – I was hooked. Really the quality of the writing, the communal feel to the place, and the excellence of the information and debate was enough to get me to hang up my preconceived notions about what a blog meant. For me this was really the first time I could just get into a conversation about Steelers football (and football in general) with folks who felt the same towards the team.

3) I have met quite a few folks with similar Steelers fan background like mine – being kids in the seventies, and never giving up on the team. I think the recent superbowl runs will produce another generation of similar fans all over the world (as evidenced by a lot of the posters on the site!) Luckily the organization (in my own biased opinion) does not seem to attract the bulk of the media attention that other teams do…so that the fans attracted to the Steelers actually have to like football. It does feel like something more than just being a fan of the team. It makes me happy when I see another Steelers fan out there. Being part of the site has perhaps driven me a little more nuts about the team and the game, but I think it’s a healthy thing. Now, when I find a new Steelers fan out there, if we get a chance to talk for a time, I direct them to the site. So the site has become part of my fandom…which I never expected would happen to me. The site, via the means of the hugely diverse and informative group of contributors that come here has definitely improved my knowledge of the game itself. Pretty much every aspect is covered and debated in depth: roster moves, cap space, draft, health of players, coaching, game strategy, how much Steely mcbeam stinks etc…. Can’t beat it.

Hope there’s something in there for ya, and sorry for the length.

I meant to post something expressing my thanks to Blitz for such a snazzy site.

Yeah, once I came across BTSC I centered here. Much better analysis and involvement than other NFL sites.

And to echo what others have said, I just recently came across another Steeler fan in LA when he saw my visor. He’s homegrown and moved down here for a job. I

My family moved to Raider country in the early 70’s but kept the Steelers legacy alive. My parents watched(from afar) as a Steeler fan was beaten into a coma by a gang of Raider fans at a game in Oakland.

In California, my family wore black and gold the whole time and when I was born in the 80’s they passed it on to me. I have been proudly getting heckled by Raider fans ever since. The Steelers are a team that lives through generations no matter how far away from Pittsburgh we get. The announcers always say that Steeler fans travel well, I always laugh at this. We dont travel well, we are already there. Even in the Bay Area, Steelers fans rival the numbers of Raiders fan now, and that is an accomplishment. My story is like many others that were forced to leave due to the economy. And like many others, Pittsburgh is still home and at least for me, that has most to do with the Steelers beckoning me to the land of my ancestors.

I am relatively new to the game and to Steeler Nation. My boyfriend has been a fan since the 70s and when I met him I not only fell in love with him, I fell in love with his Steelers. I did not just love the Steelers because he did however. I fell in love with the culture of integrity and the blue collar nature of Steeler football. There is nothing more satisfying than driving down to a Steeler game in Buffalo or Pittsburgh and realizing that we are not the only Steeler fans making the trip.

I watched my first full season in 2001 and I’m still learning the game, but I can tell you our children will be Steeler fans, they will have no choice in this house. I must say thanks to BTSC, the best source for a Steeler fan who needs her daily fix.

Guys and gals – huge thanks, gracias, gratzie, etc. Bigtime of y’all to step in so quickly with such thoughtful stuff. I happen to ‘study’ similar topics, so perhaps you have a lil better idea why the site is more to me than just something I do when I feel like it.

Anyway, to all yall who emailed me privately as well. Some awesome interesting stories! Was curious about some who I figured must be longtime lurkers but never commented. Was quite grateful you took time out anyway for this request.

Cheers!