freeagent
Six-man pro
Couple of kinda interesting things from today's Green Bay Press Gazette (which, by the way, was a paper I delivered in the late 60's) ... special interest is the guy complaining about the play-calling and special teams on the way home ...
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/art ... loose-ends
Green Bay Packers leftovers: Tying up Super Bowl XLV's loose ends
By Tony Walter • February 13, 2011
The GreenBayPackers won Super Bowl XLV. Oh, you know that already. But the deluge of pregame and postgame information has left a few loose ends I'd like to clean up.
♦ Remember the Florida man who was upset because the NFL insisted he had to buy a ticket for his 9-month-old grandson if he wanted to take him to the game?
Well, Daniel Smith caved in and purchased a $2,700 ticket from a broker for little Triton, because the boy's mother still was breast-feeding him, and she didn't want to miss the game, being the Packers fan that she is.
Smith used his credit card to buy the ticket, which was going to be mailed overnight. But then Smith learned the NFL relented and decided Triton could get in without a ticket since he'd be sitting on his mom's lap. The ticket didn't arrive, so Smith quickly contacted the ticket broker and told him to sell the ticket to someone else.
The rest of the story? For Smith, that will happen when he gets his credit card bill to find out whether the $2,700 charge is still there.
♦ The hour after the end of the game was a bit hectic. My assignment was to attend Coach Mike McCarthy's news conference in a media room across the hall from the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room. I did that, and McCarthy answered all the questions.
But getting back up to the press box to write the story was eventful enough. First, the elevator operator told me he had to stop at another floor first to pick up all the game officials. About 15 men crowded into the elevator and were deposited at another floor. I decided not to bring up any game decisions they made.
Then, the operator said he had to make another stop. That's where he picked up Fergie of the Black-Eyed Peas and members of her entourage and took them to another floor. This is where I should say we had a pleasant chat where I complimented her on the halftime show and she thanked me and asked me about Wisconsin and my family. Truth is, she never looked in my direction, and I was mute.
♦ The flight from Dallas to Minneapolis was filled with Packers fans, and one of them was sitting next to me, decked out in all the green and gold imaginable. Naturally, I asked him how he enjoyed the game. He had two major points to make.
The first was McCarthy's play-calling left a lot to be desired. The second was the Packers special teams were far from effective and needed to be fixed. I was surprised he wasn't critical of the way Aaron Rodgers was holding the Lombardi Trophy after the game, and relieved I wasn't sitting next to the man after a 6-10 Packers season.
♦ New York Daily News columnist Mike Lupica sat next to me in the press box and told me about the time Packers tackle Chad Clifton gave him a ride to Austin Straubel International Airport after the Packers lost to the Giants in the NFC championship game three years ago.
When the Steelers' final pass fell incomplete, Lupica nudged me and said, "You won the Super Bowl."
I agreed to take the credit.
Tony Walter is a columnist for the Press-Gazette
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/art ... loose-ends
Green Bay Packers leftovers: Tying up Super Bowl XLV's loose ends
By Tony Walter • February 13, 2011
The GreenBayPackers won Super Bowl XLV. Oh, you know that already. But the deluge of pregame and postgame information has left a few loose ends I'd like to clean up.
♦ Remember the Florida man who was upset because the NFL insisted he had to buy a ticket for his 9-month-old grandson if he wanted to take him to the game?
Well, Daniel Smith caved in and purchased a $2,700 ticket from a broker for little Triton, because the boy's mother still was breast-feeding him, and she didn't want to miss the game, being the Packers fan that she is.
Smith used his credit card to buy the ticket, which was going to be mailed overnight. But then Smith learned the NFL relented and decided Triton could get in without a ticket since he'd be sitting on his mom's lap. The ticket didn't arrive, so Smith quickly contacted the ticket broker and told him to sell the ticket to someone else.
The rest of the story? For Smith, that will happen when he gets his credit card bill to find out whether the $2,700 charge is still there.
♦ The hour after the end of the game was a bit hectic. My assignment was to attend Coach Mike McCarthy's news conference in a media room across the hall from the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room. I did that, and McCarthy answered all the questions.
But getting back up to the press box to write the story was eventful enough. First, the elevator operator told me he had to stop at another floor first to pick up all the game officials. About 15 men crowded into the elevator and were deposited at another floor. I decided not to bring up any game decisions they made.
Then, the operator said he had to make another stop. That's where he picked up Fergie of the Black-Eyed Peas and members of her entourage and took them to another floor. This is where I should say we had a pleasant chat where I complimented her on the halftime show and she thanked me and asked me about Wisconsin and my family. Truth is, she never looked in my direction, and I was mute.
♦ The flight from Dallas to Minneapolis was filled with Packers fans, and one of them was sitting next to me, decked out in all the green and gold imaginable. Naturally, I asked him how he enjoyed the game. He had two major points to make.
The first was McCarthy's play-calling left a lot to be desired. The second was the Packers special teams were far from effective and needed to be fixed. I was surprised he wasn't critical of the way Aaron Rodgers was holding the Lombardi Trophy after the game, and relieved I wasn't sitting next to the man after a 6-10 Packers season.
♦ New York Daily News columnist Mike Lupica sat next to me in the press box and told me about the time Packers tackle Chad Clifton gave him a ride to Austin Straubel International Airport after the Packers lost to the Giants in the NFC championship game three years ago.
When the Steelers' final pass fell incomplete, Lupica nudged me and said, "You won the Super Bowl."
I agreed to take the credit.
Tony Walter is a columnist for the Press-Gazette
