The Fortune That Smiles Upon Us All

Never take being a Steelers fan for granted. We are quite possibly the most fortunate fans of any franchise in the NFL. Who else could there be? The Cowboys? No thanks, Jerry Jones. Even during the drought of the eighties and (for the most part) nineties, we still fielded competitive teams that regularly found a way to the playoffs; teams that rarely, if ever, had one of those humiliating years. The ownership has been steadfast in approach and, more importantly, always wise enough to let the professionals do the jobs they were paid to do. No Bud "I know football" Adams, who apparently doesn't know enough to actually have any championships to show for it. No Al Davis, no Daniel Snyder, no Bill Bidwell. Think of the nightmare of any of those men running the Steeler franchise. They would've moved the team years ago.

Personally, I never had a choice in this matter. When I was six months old, in the year 1972, my family moved to Pittsburgh. We stuck around for the first two Super Bowls, moved away, then moved back in 1977. And again we stuck around long enough for the next two. In 1980 it seemed as if it was a given -- of course the Steelers were going to get "one for the thumb". We had moved away once again, this time never to return. Year after year we waited, but it didn't come. 1994 happened, we fell short. 1995 happened and Neil O'Donnell made Larry Brown look like a Hall of Famer. I began to wonder if I'd ever see that day, in my lifetime, finally old enough to really understand and enjoy the moment. But it didn't matter, the die was cast. And although I may say I never had a choice, I also will say I wouldn't have it any other way. The Steelers franchise is by far the model, in my opinion, of how it should be done in any sport.

Yet, somewhere along the way some other team got the moniker, "America's Team". Whatever, Dallas. You being called that is like Budweiser being called "the King of Beers" -- just 'cause you say it, doesn't make it so. As an example I might relate my personal experience of living in Australia a few years ago (where I was born). I ran into a Vietnamese kid one day, and lo and behold, he was wearing a Steelers cap. I tried to strike up a conversation with him, only to discover that he could only barely speak English. But he could say a few things -- "Terrible Towel", "Mean Joe Greene," and my favorite, "The wheels of the Bus go 'round and 'round". This was 2004, just before the disappointing loss to the New England Patriots. That was a tough time, and I really had to make the effort. Because of the time difference in Australia, I often had to get up at 4 A.M. and walk to a bar to catch the games. But I was never the only one there, which brings me back to the point: Hey Dallas, you can have your "America's Team" fantasy. Pittsburgh is alone amongst NFL franchises as being the World's Team. It transcends language, race and political lines. Steeler fans are everywhere. I never met any Cowboy fans in Australia.

So is it fortune? Maybe this year is a good example. You could argue that the adversity made us better. Perhaps the off-season woes were a blessing in disguise. Even seemingly unrelated things could be said to have helped us -- I've argued before that the Jets huge regular season loss to the Patriots was fortunate for us. Why? Not because the Jets had something to prove, but because the Patriots thought they were 40 points better and would beat the Jets merely by showing up. In a way I'm disappointed we didn't get that Patriot monkey off our back, but playing at home in the AFCCG is certainly to our advantage. Last week, we had a 'tale of two halves' game that had to factor into the halftime discussion on Sunday night. No way a team turns around a game like the one against the Ravens and then goes out and does the opposite thing the following week. That's a blessing.

For one final anecdote, I'll take you back to Australia, 2006. Ten years after the 1996 debacle and 26 years after my last faint memory of Super Bowl glory, the Steelers were finally back in the big game. The advantage of the late start meant I could actually catch the game during daylight hours. But this time I wasn't going to the bar. To be honest, there was some superstition involved, in that my experience with watching the Steelers at bars in Australia wasn't that exemplary -- they almost always played poorly, and they lost more often then I was comfortable with. However, there was also something more important than the Steelers this time... my fiancée. With her living in America, we were continents apart, and often the only time I could speak with her was on her Sunday evening/my Monday morning. I ended up following the game on the internet. Most of us know how that game went. The first half was unconvincing; Ben wasn't playing that well. The second half began and I realized it was time to call. Literally the moment she answered the phone, Fast Willie Parker dashed into Super Bowl history with a record-breaking 75 yard TD run. It was serendipity. I call her my good luck charm and truly love her more than the Steelers, or anything else in this world. We got married in 2007 and now we're on our way to the third Super Bowl since I proposed to her. It might be totally unrelated, but I don't care, I'm a lucky man in love and football, both.

Being a Steelers fan kind of makes you feel that way, doesn't it? This may be my story, but it's only a part of the fortune that smiles upon us all.