Dawg Pound Delivers a Chilly Win

Never did I think that any other game would be colder than a game at Lambeau Field in December. I was wrong! It was so cold in Cleveland that these three warm-blooded boys from Arizona and Florida were down-to-the-bone cold! Even with five layers on, the wind chill couldn’t be stopped. But that didn’t stop us from seeing the Browns beat the Steelers in the coldest game they have played against each other. Being apart of history is pretty awesome, but I would prefer that it was a different record we were apart of. We parked right next to the lake, literally, and we thought about jumping in to stay warm, but the aftermath of getting out of the water scared us. The lake-effect wind was fierce and we hid in the RV for a little while figuring out a game plan. Finally we braved the chill and cooked some steaks and corn and set up some music. We ventured over to a few other tailgates and had some good conversations with some veterans who even donated to our cause.

I wasn’t shocked when we got to the stadium about twenty minutes to kickoff and the gates were packed. I could see inside the stadium and it looked quite empty. All the fans were trying to stay warm in their cars before kickoff and rushed in all at once. We finally made it to our seats and the stadium was still lacking a sellout. But that didn’t stop the fans from hootin’ and hawlerin’ and giving the dawg shout all night. It always helps when the home team is winning for the fans. They weren’t winning by much, but the Browns held the lead the entire night after kicking a field goal in the first quarter. It seemed Roethlisberger was sacked on every third down for the Steelers. In fact, he was sacked eight times, and the Browns continued to foil the Steelers attempts to take the lead. Aaron was happy that an Arizona Alum scored the game’s only touchdown for the Browns. With only their second win of the season and first win over the Steelers since 2000, the team and fans were pretty excited about the win, despite the sub-freezing temperatures. I like to think it was because we were there, but I know it was our 19th home-team win out of 32 games, so we don’t bring all that much luck to the home team.

After getting some marathon training in by sprinting back to the RV, we headed out of town on our way to warmer temperatures; albeit, only twenty degrees warmer, but it’s a start. We should have lots in store for the Army / Navy game coming up on Saturday in Philadelphia. So if you are in town there, stop by Lot M / N and come find us. Beat ‘em!