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Forgotten Blunders · Pittsburgh Sports Memories

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_07: Hi everybody, welcome to the Pittsburgh Sports Memories Podcast.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_07: My name is Tim Hannon.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_07: I have a co-host with me.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_07: I'll let him introduce himself now.
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I'm Steve Wirt.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_07: How's it going, Steve?
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, it's going well.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_03: It's uh good to be here today.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_07: Today we're gonna talk about blunders.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_07: So so yeah, a lot of well-known blunders in Pittsburgh sports history, both for and against a Pittsburgh team.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_07: You know, Neil O'Donnell throwing the interceptions in the Super Bowl, uh Jose Lean's error against the Braves.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_07: You got Vontez Berfecht and Pac-Man Jones handing the Steelers a playoff game by absolutely losing their minds.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_03: Barry Foster.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_07: Barry Foster with the kickoff, pretty much every pitch football loss in the last 40 years.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_03: What about uh what's his name?
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_03: Spike in the ball when he wasn't down twice ago.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, that's a good one.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_07: So so yeah, a lot of ones that that we all remember, and and moments that we've covered on the show before, but in this episode, Steve, we're gonna cover some moments you may not remember.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_02: Cool.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_07: So here we go.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_07: Let's kick this off with the aforementioned Cincinnati Bungles, because who doesn't love when that team messes up?
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_03: Tribute to Myron, sky tribute to Myron.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_07: Yes.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_07: In 1987, the Bengals are playing the Steelers at Three River Stadium.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_07: Cincinnati has a 10-point lead entering the fourth quarter, but the legendary Mark Malone leads three Steelers scoring drives to take the lead.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_07: So so here's the situation, Steve.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_07: The Bengals are down to one last drive.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_07: It's Steelers 23, Bengals 20.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_07: So Cincinnati needs a field goal to tie.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_07: Right?
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_07: The Bengals have the ball at the Steelers 34 yard line with 18 seconds left and no timeouts.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_07: Okay.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_07: Down by three.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_07: Steelers 34 yard line, 18 seconds, no timeouts.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_07: So what do you do if you're Sam White?
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_03: That's a long field goal, quite honestly.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_03: What down?
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_03: Was it third down or fourth down?
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I I bel I believe it was third down, but so you gotta get I I would say I mean, especially back then, I I would say you need about five to ten more yards to be like ten more yards would make it comfortable, five yards would make it doable.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_03: I mean thirty-four, you're looking at a 51-yard field goal back in what year was this?
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_07: Like 87 on the three rivers turf with 1980s kickers.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I mean, I I'm s that's not a sure thing.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_03: Correct.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_03: Even like 45 probably isn't a sure thing, but it's I think it's more for whatever reason, it was much more doable.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_07: So 18 seconds left.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, you're gonna throw it past the like the sidelines.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_07: But well, I mean Could you throw in the middle of the field?
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_03: You could if you do it really quickly.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_07: Right.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_03: Like, and then you would have to get up and spike it.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_03: It would have to be a first down, obviously.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_07: Yes.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_03: So it takes about 10 seconds to run a play.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, is the general rule.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_07: That would leave you with eight, everybody hurries up, spikes the ball with maybe like two seconds.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_03: I would think if you do it right, if you take a sack, the game's over.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_03: Probably.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_03: Or you're running some desperation Hail Mary with like one second left.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_07: Okay.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_07: So let's see what happens.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_07: And I do apologize as the audio here is not great.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_12: As the angles come out, the crowd noise is absolutely overwhelming, so difficult for the Zeno call signals.
• 3:53
  unknown: No timeouts left.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, that's uh you're done.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_02: You're done.
• 4:03
  unknown: That they can.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_12: And Chorko Unit comes out.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_12: Five seconds.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_12: Four seconds.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_12: Never get it off.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_12: They won't get it off.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_12: Nope.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_12: One second gets it.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_12: They don't get it away.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_12: Time runs out on Cincinnati, and the Pittsburgh standards rally to win the game.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_12: 23 to 20.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_03: It literally proved my fact.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_03: Like he literally complete the pet completed the pass with 10 seconds.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_03: And I did not see that clip beforehand, did I, too?
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_07: No, you didn't.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_03: But yeah, when a size in running around killed them, like at that point, throw it away, and at least you can try a 51-yard field goal or a Hail Mary if you don't trust your kicker.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_07: But but then he does complete the pass in the middle of the field, and it is a first down, and and that would have gotten them into much closer because it was But it was with 10 seconds left.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_03: That was the problem.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_03: That play needed to take like three seconds or less.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_03: Now in college, he would have been fine because they would have stopped the clock.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_07: Right.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_03: College, you could do that.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_03: It's no problem.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_03: It it's amazing, like stopping the clock to move the chains makes such a difference.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_03: It totally changes like the way you play that situation.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_07: So so the after the game, Stewart's Hall of Famer Donnie Shell says, quote, I think they were a little confused at the end.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_07: I don't think they knew what they were doing.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_07: End quote.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_07: And if you look at if you look at so so the guy gets tackled with the colour.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_03: So that was boomer.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_03: That was boomer too.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I mean, I thought Boomer's size and was smarter than that.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_07: Well, well, and and the guy does get tackled with 10 seconds left.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_07: There is a chance, I think still with 10 seconds, you could at least try to rush up to the line and spike it.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_07: But that's not what they did.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_03: The rush, they they tried the f yeah, they tried to fire drill kick play.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_03: They might have been better trying to spike it.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_03: They might have been, but I don't know even then that would have been you would have been lucky.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_03: The refs would have had to been very generous with giving like, you know, the guy's gotta go get the ball, he's gotta go spot the ball, you gotta go hope that Alex Smith doesn't steal the ball and run away.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_07: The the the I think so what apparently happened was Boomerus Eisen, the Bengals quarterback, he wants to line up to spike it.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_07: Sam Weiss, the Bengals coach, he sends the field goal unit on.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_07: So if you if you look at the end of that play, it's like mass confusion.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_07: I don't even know if they had 11 guys on the field because you can see like some guys looked like they were still running off.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_07: So I if they would have spiked it, that might have worked.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_07: I I think that was your best hope.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_07: I think your best hope was even if 10 seconds try to line up as quick as you can to spike it, but trying to get a whole another group of players on the field to to kick a field goal and then get the holder set and all that, that was hopeless.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_07: You weren't gonna do that with 10 seconds left.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_03: And I think he was tackled on the numbers.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_03: That was the 20, wasn't it?
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_03: So that's a really makeable field goal at that point.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_07: They they should have they should have tried to spike it.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_03: Um I don't even know if they would have I maybe because the guys don't have to come off the field, and it's not like they were way down field and had to run all the way back.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_03: You just would have had to have the offensive lineman like hurry and hustle down to the line.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_03: So maybe it might have worked him.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_03: It might have.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_03: There was 10 seconds, it would have been close.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_03: It would have been close.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_07: It would have been, but either way, um, Bang will screw up.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_07: This is the game, by the way, that earned Sam Weiss the nickname Wiki Wacky Weiss.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_07: Courtesy of a post-game quote from Steor's assistant coach Dick Hoke.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_07: He says, quote, Wiki Wacky Weish screws up again.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_07: Um although to your point, I don't know that you can blame that completely on Sam Weish.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, Boomer, like you said, boom, like why why scramble?
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_07: You can't scramble.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_07: You have to throw a quick pass.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_07: If if it's incomplete, fine.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_07: But you have to you have to throw it quickly.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_07: You can't run around in the pocket and try to wait for a guy to get open, which which worked.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, he did get, you know, running around did get the guy open, but then you didn't have enough time.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, 18 seconds, you know, if I've seen teams run three plays in 18 seconds.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_03: I mean I I don't know what to tell you.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_03: You just can't you can't run around, and if if you did, you would you had to try and spike it.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_03: They might, 10 seconds, maybe.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_03: Because like like I said, it wasn't it went from what the 38 to the 20, right?
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_03: That's 18 yards.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, I don't know how quick can the offensive lineman get down there and that that again, that the there was a much better chance of that happening.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_03: Spiking it, yeah, than running out the field goal unit out.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 8:48
  unknown: Yeah.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_07: All right, so that was an example of a forgotten blender by an opponent.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_07: How about one from a Pittsburgh team?
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_07: And who better to start with than the Pittsburgh Pirates?
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_03: Oh God.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_07: In 2015, the Pirates are playing the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
• 9:01
  SPEAKER_07: It's a pretty wild game.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_07: It goes into extra innings, tied at 10.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_07: That's that's quite a game when you're tied at 10 in a baseball game.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_07: And the bottom of the 12th, the Cubs load the bases, Matt Caesar's at the plate, and here's what happens.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_11: Popped it up again to Polanco.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_13: He slips.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_13: Polanco falls down.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_13: And the Cubs win it.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_11: That's unbelievable.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_11: That is unbelievable.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_11: He tripped on a routine shallow pop.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_03: Sorry.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_03: Uh
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_07: Let's go box.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_03: Woohoo! Buy them season tickets.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_03: Hey, season tickets on sale now, Tim.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_03: Um wow, that's that's I remember that.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_03: That's uh that was bad.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_03: They showed it in Allegheny Health Super Mo.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_03: Like, we needed to see that in super slow motion to see the dude.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_03: Like, I I gotta say, Gregor Polanco was one of the most what I say, enigmatic players the pirates have ever had.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_03: Like, dude is good.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_03: Like, he could really hit and he could feel too.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_03: He had a great arm.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_03: I remember I was at a game, a guy hit a sharp ball to right field, and he threw the guy out at first.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_03: So I thought, oh man, man, I've only heard of Roberto Calmeny doing that.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_03: I never heard of you know anybody else.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_03: But boy, he he just and then he hurt his shoulder, and I think that kind of ended his career.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_07: Once he got hurt, and it just That was a shallow pop fly, too, because there was only one out with the bases loaded, so that that that wouldn't have even been a sacrifice fly.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_03: Because it was called they could have called the infield fly roll.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_07: No, not for an outfielder.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, it wasn't that shallow.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_07: I mean it did go into right field, so you can't but but you're right, it was it was that shallow.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_07: It was it was basically a pop-up.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_07: It wasn't a fly ball, it was like a pop-up, and he just trips over his own.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_03: He has a great arm, too.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_03: Like maybe I think he was thinking about the throw before the catch.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, maybe.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_07: That's true.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_03: And he would he definitely like I said, he threw a guy out at first right field.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_03: There's definitely no way he wouldn't have.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_03: But he like you're supposed to like wait on it and then line up, and as you catch it, you're throwing it.
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_03: That's what you're supposed to do, especially on that, like a really high pop-up like that.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, you just catch that and gun it into the catcher accurately.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_03: You don't want to overthrow the catcher, but you gun it into the catcher, and you're probably gonna you know, at least hold the guy at third.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_07: So I I do like that you pointed out there that Gregory Palomko blowing the game is brought to you by Allegheny Health Network.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_07: That was that was a nice touch.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_03: Super slow.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_03: Like we needed to see that in super slow mo.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_02: I'm falling.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_03: It was like watching the guy with the used to get shot by the cannonball, like in slow motion.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_07: You can like you can see like the the look on his face when he realizes that he's like starting to trip.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_07: It's like you can see the fear in his eyes.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_07: Thanks to Allegheny Health Network Super Slow Mo can.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_07: Okay, well, we gotta get some Pit moments on here.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_07: So many buggers came from.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_03: Well, you do, you do have your uh, yeah, yeah.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_03: Which one do you want to go with, Tim?
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_07: Let's go with the 2000 game at Blacksburg.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_07: Pitt is taking on the undefeated number two team in the country, Virginia Tech.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_03: That's normally a problem for the number two team.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_03: You don't want to play number two against Pitt.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, or or or normally a problem for Virginia Tech because historically Pitt had their numbers.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_03: Well, well, except in Blacksburg.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_03: Blacksburg, it was more of a 50-50 proposition, but in Hinesfield, Accursure, whatever, bet the house on Pitt.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, you bet your mortgage, bet your kids' college savings, Pitt's gonna win.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_03: The perfect example was that game Pitt lost to Youngstown State the week before and then beats a ranked Virginia team in the week after.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_07: Yep.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_07: So in 2000, the hookies have this quarterback.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_07: His name is Michael Vick.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_07: He's pretty good, but Pitt has a pretty good offense that year, too, and this game quickly turns into a shootout.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_07: Also, Vick gets hurt and has to leave the game.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, so Pitt has all the momentum.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_07: It's 34 to 34 in the game's final minutes, and Pitt has the ball at the Virginia Tech 40-yard line, and they're about to pull off the biggest win, probably at that time, Steve, since the Dan Marino era.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_07: Remember, this is 2000.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_07: So they're, I mean, other than maybe like the West Virginia win in 97 that got them to the bowl game, this would probably have been the biggest win in like two decades.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_07: So let's see what happens.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_13: Turman pumps and throws in the middle, incomplete, wide open.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_03: That wasn't that that wasn't as egregious.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, he was wide open, but I think there was some pressure.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_03: He kind of moved around a little.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_07: Uh yeah, so so Pitt quarterback John Terman has There was still five minutes left to go in that game, too.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_07: Uh yeah, but that would have given them a touchdown lead.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_07: And and what ends up happening is Pitt has to punt, and then Virginia Tech wins the game on a last-second field goal.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, by a kicker that wasn't very good, I remember that.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_07: Right.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_07: But if this pit scored a touchdown, then they would have had to score a touchdown to match.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_03: I don't even remember who their quarterback was.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_07: It was whoever was backing up Michael Vick.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_07: So that's what I'm saying.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_07: They had their backup quarterback.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_03: Wasn't Jim Drunkenmiller, that's for sure.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_07: No.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_07: But but they had their backup quarterback and they would have had to drive the length of the field for a touchdown.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_07: I think that play wins the game for Pitt.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_07: And R.J.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_07: English, the wide receiver, I mean, he's he's just wide open.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_07: It's a touchdown.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_07: It's a 40-yard touchdown, and Terman just misses it.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_07: And and that hurt.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_07: I remember at the time, Steve, that like because Pitt that was a I think we watched this game together.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_03: I think that's I think we may have.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_07: And that that just it was like, man, it was so close.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_07: We were s we we had them.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_07: We had them beat.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I I felt I felt like this was like one of those it was a loss, but you felt like, man, Pitt's kind of going the right direction, kind of loss, you know.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_07: That's true.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_07: That's true.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_07: I think if that play doesn't happen, I'd feel better about it.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_07: You know what I mean?
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_07: Like if if they just would have got stopped on downs at the third.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_07: Like if it would have got knocked away or I mean he could get sacked or something.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_03: RJ English stuff would lead the big east in receptions, like I think a year or two later.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_07: So yeah, he was a good receiver.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_07: Again, which is probably why he was wide open.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_07: Uh and John Terman had a really good year that year.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_07: I hate to denigrate that guy because he had a really good season, but that just that was a that was a mess.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_07: Well, one guy we just love in Pittsburgh is Mark Andre Fleury.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_07: Everyone was sad when he left.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_07: Everyone cheered every time he returned.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_07: I think they could honestly, I'm not, I'm not exaggerating here.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_07: I think they could literally build a statue of that guy at this point.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_03: They probably should.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_03: I with him making the save that won the cup.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_03: The guy won't a freaking Stanley Cup.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_07: Like that would make that would make an awesome statue.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_03: That's yeah, him like there, like yeah, stopping Lidstrom.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_07: Well, it wasn't always that way.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_07: In fact, if you remember, there was a stretch there in like the mid-2010s when it looked like maybe Fleury was badly broken, especially in the playoffs.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_07: In 2013, he loses his job mid-playoffs to Tomas Vacoon.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_07: And then in 2014, the Penguins are playing the Blue Jackets in the playoffs, and they have a chance to go up three games to one.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_07: If Fleury can just hold off Columbus for the game's final twenty-two seconds.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_07: Let's listen to what happens next.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_13: Jack Johnson backhands off the glass and down.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_13: Worry couldn't play it.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_13: Johansson centers score! Dubinsky ties the game with 22.5 seconds remaining.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_03: Uh Fleury was really bad at handling the puck.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_03: He was the antithesis of uh what's his name?
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_03: Um Brodor.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_03: He's the exact opposite of Verdore.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_07: So let's tell people what happened there.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_07: Fleury tries to play the puck from behind the net.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_03: Which is always a mistake.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_07: Especially with 22 seconds left.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_07: Like I think he was probably thinking, 22 seconds, if I can just throw this thing down the ice, then the game's over.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_07: But let your defensemen do that, right?
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_03: Or just throw it behind the net and let them all like get in the big scrum behind the net and fight over it.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_07: So what he's he tried to shoot it up the glass, I guess, and it got stopped, or yeah, and then and then the the Columbus player got it and fed it out in front, and then there was literally it was an empty net.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_07: Like like the blue jackets had an empty net to feud in with 22 seconds left in the game, and they were down by one.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_03: So do we win this series?
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_07: Well, well, well, hold on.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_07: Let's stay with this game because that remember, that only sends into overtime.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_07: So maybe, maybe Flurry can redeem himself in overtime, right?
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_07: What do you think?
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_07: Let's see.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_14: Scores.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_13: Falito went with an overtime.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_15: This series was tied at two.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_15: Kruzluski takes out Mana.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_15: Quick up from Ryan Johansson.
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_15: And that's just an easy save by Mark Andre Fleury, and he boots it.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_14: He shoots it.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_14: It's a sinker, but Fleury's gotta have that.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_03: Ouch.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_03: How'd that even go in?
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_07: Like between the legs or no, it went to the it went to his like his left side.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_07: It was it was a ter I mean That's a bad one.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_07: It it was a bad one.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_07: I mean you maybe the other goal was still in his head.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_07: I I think that's honestly what happened is the other goal was still because this was only three minutes undertime.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_07: And and Felino, I mean, that was just like like the like you heard in the announcer say he he just kind of took a shot from the from the blue line.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_07: It wasn't even like that much of a shot.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_07: And and it just went right past him.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_07: Um the good news to your to your earlier question, Steve, is that the penguins do go on to win that series.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_07: And Fleury does go on to revive his career after that, but but boy, that was like a rough little stretch there.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_07: That fortunately not too many people remember.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_07: I I think they even got him like a sports psychologist.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_07: Remember that?
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_03: I think so.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I remember he changed the color of his pads from like gold to white or something.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know if that helps.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_07: That's what did it.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_03: I doubt it.
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_03: Like I I saw I saw a tribute video, because I guess he's retiring this year, right?
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_03: I think he's retired.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_07: He's retired, yes.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_03: So he they did like a little tribute video on the internet.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_03: Like uh, I don't know if it was the NHL or like a fan from it, was obviously from either Vegas or Minnesota, and 90% of the highlights were from Vegas.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_03: I was surprised.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_03: Like, so he really did have a little resurgence out there in Vegas, like maybe just needed a change of scenery.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, not like I I know people would always be like, oh, he's terrible, and I never thought he was terrible.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_03: He just he was really athletic and he could make really great saves, but his two big issues were handling the puck and rebound control, and when he could control the rebounds, I don't think handling the puck he was ever gonna get good at, but I thought rebound control, if he could play the rebounds to the corner, because that's why they went with the Vokun there that one year, because if you watch Voukun, he didn't make spectacular saves, but on normal plays he played them to the corners, and that really like even um Rodore would do that too.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_03: You either got to absorb it and not give up a rebound, but if you're gonna give up a rebound, make sure it goes to the corner.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_07: Yep, yeah.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_03: Whatever.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_03: Those were the days when we actually had like a decent goaltender.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_07: Those the days where we could we could be in the playoffs to lose a playoff game.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah, really.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_07: All right, let's talk some Steelers Ravens.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_07: That's a great historical rivalry.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_07: In fact, we even have a book you can purchase on Amazon detailing the history and all the amazing stories from that great rivalry.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_07: You can get a link for that in the show description.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_07: Tons of great finishes, lots of iconic moments, but also some blunders.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_03: Any involving head coaches standing on the field.
• 21:47
  SPEAKER_07: No, because that one's that's a memorable blender.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_07: We're going for forgotten blunders.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_07: And we'll and we'll cover two of them one by Baltimore and one by Pittsburgh.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_03: Well, that's fair.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_03: That's fair too.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, we want to we want to just be even it out a little bit.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_07: So let's With the 2002 Stewart Ravens game at Heinz Field.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_07: And this one is a rare shootout.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, a lot of those Stewers Ravens games, especially back in the early 2000s, they were like 10 to 6.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_07: This one, the Steelers lead 34 to 31 in the final seconds.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_07: So that's that's already kind of a misnomer there because that's always odd when it's a shootout.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_07: It's a shootout.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_07: So the Steelers have a three-point lead, but uh oh.
• 22:28
  SPEAKER_07: Ravens quarterback Jeff Blake has driven his team all the way down to the Steelers 10-yard line.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_03: The immortal Jeff Blake.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_03: I forgot he played for the Ravens.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_07: What year is this?
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_07: 2002.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_03: Jeff Blake was still in the league in 2002.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_07: And playing for the Baltimore Ravens.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_07: Well, well, in this game, he's about to kill the Steelers because they have the ball at the 10-yard line.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_07: They're only down by three.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_07: No timeouts, but like the 1987 Bengals, still enough time on the clock to run a play.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_07: Since they're they're at the 10-yard line, maybe they take a shot, maybe two shots at the end zone.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_07: Worst case scenario, the pass falls incomplete.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_07: You just trot out your kicker.
• 23:07
  SPEAKER_03: Don't take a sack game into overtime.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, don't take a sack.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_03: Don't do any turn the ball over.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, don't play hero ball, right?
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_07: Just maybe take a shot at the end.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_03: If it isn't there, throw it out into the first row.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_07: Okay, well, let's see what Jeff Blake does.
• 23:23
  SPEAKER_14: 21 seconds left, white pass.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_14: Has time.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_14: Floats a pass to the left run of the end zone.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_14: And it's intercepted at the end zone.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_14: The fit and play take away.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_14: Thank you for waiting watching this.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_14: Wow! The ball of more bitch to stand there in disbelief because their opportunity to send this second open back and escort break down the three.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_14: Wow.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_14: Horrible throw to throw right into the heart of Double Carmen.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_14: Well, Wayne Washington comes through.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_03: I kind of forgot about that.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_03: Jeez.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_07: Gotta love Tunge just being like so dumbfounded that he threw that pass.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_03: Because it yeah, it's like what?
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_03: And that's I think that's did Jeff Blake start another game after that?
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_03: Because I remember he just like kind of unceremoniously went out of the league in a hurry.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_07: That's a great question that I don't have in front of me.
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_07: He may he may not have.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_07: That might have been the end of Jeff Blake.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_03: Because he went from Cincinnati to Arizona and like had like eh, had like it was like, well, it's Arizona, they stink, but he didn't look terrible.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_03: But boy, that was a I mean, like I said, was he trying to throw it out of the end zone?
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_03: I I I because if he was, that he he literally threw it like leaf flowers and like the the receiver for Baltimore was out of bounds, number one.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_03: Number two, like Dwayne Washington, that was the easiest interception of his career.
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_03: Like he didn't even gun it.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_03: He didn't like float it real high.
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_03: He kind of like just floated it to Dwayne W uh Wow, that's maybe he didn't get everything he wanted on it.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_03: I I I don't know.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_07: It was a it was a duck.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_07: He just threw up like a duck in the double coverage.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_07: Like you said, the Baltimore receiver wasn't even close to it.
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_07: It just I don't yeah, I don't know what he was thinking there, like Tunch said.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_07: Jeff Blake does start 13 games the next season for Arizona.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, okay.
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_07: So I guess it wasn't the end of Jeff Blake.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_07: And then he plays for the 2004 Eagles, who went to the Super Bowl, and then he plays for the 2005 Bears, who were also a pretty good team, but he doesn't start any games on those teams.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_07: He's a backup.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_03: He played all the way to 2005.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_03: Jeez, I remember him in '95, Kelly.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_03: Was he like a rookie that year or something?
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, he had a longer career than I think we remember.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, because I remember him more from the 90s.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_03: Wow.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_03: He was good though.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_03: Like he was really good at that like moon ball, like that deep pass, like the deep high pass.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, like he was like Chris Chandler, the guy who was quarterback ended up being for the Falcons, was really good at that, too.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_03: There's just some guys are like really good at like dropping it in a bucket like from 40 yards away.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_03: That's an underrated skill.
• 26:13
  SPEAKER_07: It is.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_07: Jeff Blake had a lot of really good moments, but I will give you a little teaser here, Steve.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_07: We will see Jeff Blake again before we're done with this episode.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_07: So let's so that's Steelers Ravens won.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_07: Let's fast forward eight years.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_07: Then the Steelers and Ravens are playing at Heinz Field again, but this time it's in the 2010 AFC divisional playoffs.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_07: The game is tied at seven, and the Steelers have the ball.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_09: Humphrey.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_09: Now throws over the middle now incomplete.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_09: Terrell Suggs making his presence felt again.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_09: Did Jeff Triplett roll that?
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_05: I don't think he did.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_05: I think that's a live football.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_05: That's a little bit more touchdown.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_05: That was a live football, and out of 22 people, Corey Redding seemed to be the only guy that realized it.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_07: So Podemar gets a touchdown because so what happens is Ben Rothesberger gets hit, the ball comes out, and everyone just kind of stands around thinking it's an incomplete pass, but it's actually a fumble, it's a live ball, and like Dan Deerdorf said there, the the Corey Redding for the Ravens is the only guy that recognizes that.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_03: I think I remember that happening.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_03: Like, yeah.
• 27:24
  SPEAKER_07: And that was a that was a playoff game.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_03: That stayed a fumble, too, didn't it?
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_07: Yes, yeah, yeah.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_07: So Mike Tomlin challenges, but surprise, he loses the challenge because Tomlin has never won a challenge in his life, and the Ravens get a touchdown.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_03: Who win?
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_03: Which game uh was that the blowout?
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_07: No, this one this one actually has a happy ending because the Steors come back and win.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_07: That's the Antonio Brown helmet catch game.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, okay, yeah.
• 27:50
  SPEAKER_07: Yet another another great story you can read about in our book.
• 27:53
  SPEAKER_03: Sweet.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_07: So Steors Ravens, a great rivalry.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_07: You know what else is a great rivalry?
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_07: Pitt, West Virginia, the Backyard Brawl.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_07: The the 2004 edition of that game is played on Thanksgiving night.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_07: Steve, were you at that game?
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_03: I don't remember.
• 28:10
  SPEAKER_03: I I I'm pretty sure I was, though.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_07: So so I was at this game, and to this day, it's the coldest I've ever been in my entire life, and I'm not exaggerating.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_07: I literally kept running to the restroom to attempt to warm up.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_07: My my cousin came to that game with us and she got frostbite on her finger.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_03: Really?
• 28:29
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, it was brutal.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_07: It was brutally, brutally cold.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I thought I thought the Pitt Miami game was colder that one year.
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_03: It would have been like a year before, maybe.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_07: It also could have been that I just it was Thanksgiving night, and so I think I was with family that day.
• 28:46
  SPEAKER_07: I might not have been as you know prepared for the elements as I might have normally been.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 28:52
  SPEAKER_07: But I but I just I know that's the coldest I've ever been in my life.
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_07: So that game is super important too, because it's gonna decide who wins the Big East Conference that season and plays in the Fiesta Bowl.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_03: They needed to win that, yeah.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, and it ends up being a close, low-scoring game given the brutal weather.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_07: Pitt takes the lead in the fourth quarter, but WBU has the ball in Pitt territory with about a minute left.
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_07: And Rich Rodriguez, the coach of West Virginia, decides this would be a perfect time to full pit with a trick play.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_03: I remember this play, yeah, yeah.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_03: And like I remember this.
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_03: I remember this play now.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_13: Double reverse, pass back to Marshall, maybe.
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_13: Throw towards Marshall, hit it!
• 29:41
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know if that was a blunder.
• 29:43
  SPEAKER_03: They just didn't execute it.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_03: Pitt was there though.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_03: It wasn't like a fool to pit defense.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_03: I remember him being I remember that now.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_03: I remember him being open and just dropping it.
• 29:53
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, so they so they so WBU's down by three.
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_07: There's less than a minute left.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_07: They run a reverse option pass that they th that so they have the quarterback, Rasheed Marshall, go out go out as a receiver after he after he hands it off.
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_07: And it it I wouldn't say like he's wide open or anything, but but he's open.
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_03: He was open.
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_03: I remember him being open and just dropping it.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_07: And he drops it in the end zone.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, that would have that would have given them the lead with like 55 seconds left.
• 30:25
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 30:28
  SPEAKER_07: So Pitt Pitt ends up winning the game and the conference.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_07: Fun fact, Rasheed Marshall, the guy, the quarterback that dropped that pass, he actually goes to the NFL as a wide receiver.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_07: He even spent some time with the Steelers.
• 30:41
  SPEAKER_07: But he doesn't have much success.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, he he was like good at West Virginia.
• 30:46
  SPEAKER_03: He was from Brashir, I remember that.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_03: He was one of those City League guys that went to West Virginia.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_03: So he was a good quarterback for them.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_03: He wasn't like, you know, as good as um Pat White or Major Harris, but he was a good quarterback for them.
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_03: He beat Pitt like two years before as a freshman, I want to say.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_03: I or what year was it two?
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, two years before.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_07: Yep.
• 31:08
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, at Heinzfield.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, he beat them like that was an upset too with Larry Fitzgerald.
• 31:13
  SPEAKER_03: That was one of the few times I remember that play, that game more than this game.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_03: And that game I thought the weather was worse, that 2001 game.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_03: Because I wasn't I wasn't in my normal seats.
• 31:24
  SPEAKER_03: We were on the other side of the field, the home side of the field, on in the end zone, and boy, the wind come down like from the closed end and was blowing in me and my dad's face the whole game, and it was like snowing.
• 31:36
  SPEAKER_03: So I remember that 2002 game being colder than this game.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_03: Just because I think we're on the opposite end of the field for this game, and that was right in our end zone.
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_03: I remember him dropping that now.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_03: I do remember that that play.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_07: And you could question Rodriguez running like a like a complicated trick play, but it worked.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_03: Where was it?
• 31:57
  SPEAKER_03: Where was it at?
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_03: Like I remember it was like inside the 20, right?
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 32:02
  unknown: Yeah.
• 32:03
  SPEAKER_07: It was it wasn't quite inside the 20.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, it was like the 35.
• 32:06
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 32:07
  SPEAKER_03: I guess.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, they kind of call that the alumni, you know.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_03: It wasn't a bad spot to run a trick play.
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_03: But I I would have ran that on second down, maybe, not third down.
• 32:17
  SPEAKER_07: They they went for the home run because I think from the 35 at the end.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_03: And that would have been a key.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 32:23
  SPEAKER_07: Back in the open-ended Heinz field days in that weather, they weren't going to make a field goal from the third.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_03: But that was I'm pretty sure that was the closed end.
• 32:30
  unknown: I'm pretty sure.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, but I'm just saying, in the like they weren't yeah, you weren't gonna make like Adam Venateria missed that, missed a kick like that.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_03: Like just like two years earlier.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_07: Okay, so these are forgotten moments.
• 32:45
  SPEAKER_07: Here's a guy I think a lot of people will remember.
• 32:47
  SPEAKER_07: It's Gary Meals.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_07: Steve, do you remember what Gary Meals is famous for in Pittsburgh?
• 32:52
  SPEAKER_03: Well, he says it's safe.
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_03: He called the guy safe when he was blatantly out.
• 32:58
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, yeah.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_07: And in so in 2011, Meals calls a Braves player safe at home plate.
• 33:04
  SPEAKER_07: It was the 19th inning of a game against the Pirates.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_07: And and I've always said if you take out of the equation how important the game was and you just look at that call in a vacuum, it's the single worst call in the history of sport.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_07: Because it's it's like literally the the pirates catch are standing in front of home plate and he like tags them.
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_03: He just tags them.
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_03: Like the guy doesn't even slide, does he?
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_07: Right.
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_07: It's just he just yeah, he just tags them.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_07: And and Jerry Mill somehow says he's out.
• 33:31
  SPEAKER_07: Or I mean he's safe.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_07: Safe.
• 33:33
  SPEAKER_07: And and you know, so anyway, um that incident got a lot of attention and it's and a lot of people remember it.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_07: And this episode's about forgotten blunders.
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_07: So that's not the one we're gonna talk about.
• 33:45
  SPEAKER_07: Let's go back about 20 years before that play.
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_07: The Pirates and Phillies are at Three River Stadium in 1994.
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_07: Wow, Pirates lead five to four in the ninth inning.
• 33:56
  SPEAKER_07: Philadelphia has a guy on third base, and there's just one out.
• 34:00
  SPEAKER_07: So you know what would be really nice here, Steve?
• 34:02
  SPEAKER_07: With one out and a game on play?
• 34:05
  SPEAKER_07: Well, what would be nice for the Phillies would be a fly ball.
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_07: Uh a nice, a nice deep fly ball, right?
• 34:12
  SPEAKER_07: Get the guy home, tie the game.
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_07: So let's see if Phillies outfielder Billy Hatcher can come through.
• 34:18
  SPEAKER_11: Match a row for four in the game tonight with a six-game hitting streak and one last game to make extended linear winning.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_11: field.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_11: Caught out there.
• 34:25
  SPEAKER_11: Tagging third.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_13: He missed the plate.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_13: There's no call.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_13: There's no call.
• 34:31
  SPEAKER_13: There's no call.
• 34:34
  SPEAKER_13: He's out.
• 34:36
  SPEAKER_06: See if we can see it right here on this angle.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_06: Here comes Stalker over the top.
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_06: We're looking at the right hand.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_06: It appears as if the right hand may have caught the corner of home plate.
• 34:47
  SPEAKER_06: Now, did he touch it there?
• 34:48
  SPEAKER_06: Is he looking?
• 34:49
  SPEAKER_06: Look where Mills is at, though, and look where Stalker is at.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_06: His hand, his body is between Meals and where his hand touches the plate.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_06: Meals should be back a little bit deeper where he can see the whole play.
• 35:01
  SPEAKER_06: If the play had taken place out front, he could have seen it.
• 35:04
  SPEAKER_07: So so Kevin Stalker is the guy on third.
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_07: He easily beats the throw home, but umpire Jerry Mills says, Nope, you missed the plate, you're out, even though Stalker clearly touches home plate.
• 35:15
  SPEAKER_07: So Jerry Mill says it's not safe.
• 35:18
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know.
• 35:18
  SPEAKER_03: How clear what I mean, that that was closer than I think you're saying to him.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, that wasn't as brutal as the other one.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, it's not no, it's not.
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_07: That's why it's forgotten.
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, it's not it's not high death either.
• 35:31
  SPEAKER_03: Like, if this was high death and we had the Allegheny, you know, Gregory Polanco slow-mo camp, we could definitely we could definitely see that, you know.
• 35:41
  SPEAKER_07: He he touched he I think for sure he touches home plate.
• 35:44
  SPEAKER_07: I think to the like the announcer made a good point.
• 35:46
  SPEAKER_03: He he he touches it on the black.
• 35:49
  SPEAKER_03: So I guess that counts as part of home plate, right?
• 35:52
  SPEAKER_07: I think the announcer made a good point that Jerry Mills was not in the right position.
• 35:55
  SPEAKER_07: He's like to the side of the catcher.
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_07: Why wouldn't you be beh more behind the plate?
• 35:59
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I think he was expecting like I think he was trying to get a good view for like the guy said in front.
• 36:04
  SPEAKER_03: If the plays in front where it normally takes place, he's in perfect position, you know.
• 36:09
  SPEAKER_03: But because he this guy like dives over I don't know who the pirate is.
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_03: I think it was Don Slaughter maybe.
• 36:15
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, Don Slaugh, Dawn Onslaught Slag is a Chris Bourbon reference.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_03: Um that that maybe, you know, I don't know.
• 36:22
  SPEAKER_03: That's not I in my mind, it's not a great call, but I don't think it's like as egregious as other stuff I've seen.
• 36:30
  SPEAKER_07: No, no, it's not.
• 36:32
  SPEAKER_03: But I just think it's funny that you know He he benefited the Pirates here, so maybe you remembered that all those years later.
• 36:37
  SPEAKER_03: It's like, boy, I really screwed over the Phillies that one time.
• 36:40
  SPEAKER_03: Let me screw over the pirates.
• 36:42
  SPEAKER_03: You know, I'm just I haven't screwed over both the Pennsylvania teams yet.
• 36:46
  SPEAKER_07: Two two decades later.
• 36:48
  SPEAKER_07: Revenge is a dispenser called by Jerry.
• 36:50
  SPEAKER_03: He pulled out his little yeah, he pulled out his little list and like crossed the pirates off.
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_03: Glad I apologize to that guy.
• 36:58
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, that was his amends list.
• 37:00
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 37:01
  SPEAKER_07: All right.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_07: Well, Jerry Mill's not very good in clutch situations.
• 37:04
  SPEAKER_07: Uh, you know who really is good in the clutch?
• 37:06
  SPEAKER_07: It's Steelers kicker Chris Boswell.
• 37:09
  SPEAKER_07: Uh I mean it that's a guy Steve probably just does not get the full credit he deserves.
• 37:14
  SPEAKER_03: Uh they try.
• 37:16
  SPEAKER_03: They try to give him credit.
• 37:17
  SPEAKER_07: Well, at the time of this recording, he is the franchise's second second all-time leading scorer.
• 37:22
  SPEAKER_07: He's a two-time pro bowler.
• 37:24
  SPEAKER_07: I I would say he's probably one of the best kickers of this era.
• 37:27
  SPEAKER_07: Would you agree?
• 37:29
  SPEAKER_07: Yes.
• 37:30
  SPEAKER_07: Uh well, like Mark Andre Fleury, Boz did have a little rough patch in his career.
• 37:35
  SPEAKER_07: The 2018 season.
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, he missed a lot of kicks that year.
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_03: I remember that.
• 37:40
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, lots of lots of misses.
• 37:42
  SPEAKER_07: Uh, it was later revealed he'd been playing through an injury, so that might have been the reason.
• 37:46
  SPEAKER_03: Maybe that's why they were patient with him.
• 37:49
  unknown: Yeah.
• 37:49
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 37:50
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 37:51
  SPEAKER_07: So week 14 of that year, the Steelers are playing at the Raiders, who in those days played in a city called Oakland.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_07: Back in 2018.
• 38:01
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, ironic, I'm wearing my Oakland hat.
• 38:03
  SPEAKER_03: You are?
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 38:05
  SPEAKER_07: The Raiders score what appears to be the game-winning touchdown in the final moments.
• 38:10
  SPEAKER_07: They have a 24-21 lead.
• 38:11
  SPEAKER_07: There's only 15 seconds left in the game, and the Steelers have the ball on their own 30-yard line.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_07: So 15 seconds left.
• 38:18
  SPEAKER_07: Steelers have the ball on their own 30.
• 38:20
  SPEAKER_07: Game's pretty much over.
• 38:22
  SPEAKER_07: Pretty much no chance of Pittsburgh winning, but hold everything because and there's a lateral.
• 38:29
  SPEAKER_11: Smith Schuster down the sideline to the 50, the 40, the 35, the 30, run out of bounds at the 20-yard line.
• 38:36
  SPEAKER_11: Can you believe it?
• 38:40
  SPEAKER_03: The hook and lateral never worked.
• 38:42
  SPEAKER_03: But it did.
• 38:43
  SPEAKER_03: And I've been to the Coliseum, by the way, Tim.
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_03: I have been to the Oakland Alameda Coliseum.
• 38:49
  SPEAKER_03: And it is a dump.
• 38:51
  SPEAKER_03: So did you see any rats?
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_03: No, I didn't see any possums or rats.
• 38:57
  SPEAKER_03: Um it just reminded me of Three Rivers Stadium.
• 39:00
  SPEAKER_03: Like just like for baseball, the sight lines weren't uh I thought for baseball they were better than I remember them being at Three Rivers.
• 39:08
  SPEAKER_03: But you could definitely tell it's awkward because it's one of those stadiums where they try to stadiums.
• 39:13
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 39:14
  SPEAKER_03: And it was never like when you split the difference, you kind of like you know, never really get either one right.
• 39:21
  SPEAKER_07: So so uh I mean unbelievable play there.
• 39:24
  SPEAKER_07: I mean the the Stewart's run the the hook and ladder, it falls the Raiders.
• 39:28
  SPEAKER_07: They now they're in field goal range and they can send the game into overtime.
• 39:32
  SPEAKER_07: They just need Boswell to nail a 40 yard field goal, which for him is a chip shot.
• 39:37
  SPEAKER_07: So let's see if he can do it.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_11: Five seconds left, so here comes the field goal drive, 40 yards out.
• 39:44
  SPEAKER_11: Five seconds left.
• 39:45
  SPEAKER_11: He missed from 39 early on in his contact.
• 39:50
  SPEAKER_11: Good snap, good hold.
• 39:52
  SPEAKER_11: And the kick is blocked.
• 39:55
  SPEAKER_11: And the Raiders have beaten the Steelers.
• 40:00
  SPEAKER_11: It looked like Boswell lost his footing.
• 40:03
  SPEAKER_11: I don't know if that had anything to do with his block.
• 40:05
  SPEAKER_05: Well, first of all, yeah, I think it did, Tom, because it's such a low kick.
• 40:09
  SPEAKER_05: You see that he slipped right there.
• 40:11
  SPEAKER_05: Netball had no chance because he's going to hit the rear end of an offensive lineman.
• 40:15
  SPEAKER_05: Yep.
• 40:16
  SPEAKER_03: That's just unlucky.
• 40:18
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know if that's a I mean, it does look like he's kind of leaning back a little farther than he normally does.
• 40:23
  SPEAKER_03: Maybe that's due to the injury, but boy, that was I remember that.
• 40:27
  SPEAKER_03: That was a rough season for him.
• 40:29
  SPEAKER_03: That was a shame.
• 40:30
  SPEAKER_03: It really wasn't completely his fault.
• 40:33
  SPEAKER_03: Can't help but the Coliseum sucks.
• 40:36
  SPEAKER_07: But it but I mean he k he kicks like he kicks the ball into the rear end of David DeCastro.
• 40:41
  SPEAKER_07: And and that that would have sent the game in overtime.
• 40:44
  SPEAKER_07: The Steelers ended up barely missing the playoffs that year.
• 40:47
  SPEAKER_07: If they win that game, they make the playoffs.
• 40:50
  SPEAKER_07: So so and that was late, that was week 14, that was late in the season.
• 40:54
  SPEAKER_07: So it just yeah, it's a blunder.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_03: For whatever reason, they Tomlin never did Tomlin ever win in Oakland.
• 41:00
  SPEAKER_03: I don't think he ever did.
• 41:02
  SPEAKER_03: I don't remember him ever.
• 41:03
  SPEAKER_03: They had a lot of bad luck out there for sure.
• 41:05
  SPEAKER_07: They've done better in Vegas.
• 41:07
  SPEAKER_03: Like Terrell Pryor running 80 yards on the first play of the game.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_03: I mean that's still I think that's the longest run by a quarterback in NFL history.
• 41:15
  SPEAKER_07: I thought I thought it was more like 90.
• 41:17
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I think I I think you're right.
• 41:19
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, but it's I think that's the longest run by a quarterback in NFL history.
• 41:24
  SPEAKER_03: So that was also at the Coliseum.
• 41:26
  SPEAKER_07: So it was.
• 41:27
  SPEAKER_03: RIP the Coliseum, baby.
• 41:31
  SPEAKER_07: All right, let's go back to pitch football.
• 41:33
  SPEAKER_07: And one of uh Steve and I, our favorite players ever, Shady McCoy.
• 41:38
  SPEAKER_07: In 2007, Pitt is playing at Louisville, and they're down late, and freshman LaShawn McCoy just really turns on the Jets late in the game.
• 41:47
  SPEAKER_07: He rushes for 68 yards in the fourth quarter alone.
• 41:50
  SPEAKER_07: He has this amazing touchdown where it looks like he stopped on fourth and one and he powers his way into the end zone anyway.
• 41:56
  SPEAKER_07: Pitt's down 24-17 at the end of the game, and McCoy basically single-handedly leads them down the field.
• 42:03
  SPEAKER_07: I remember how dumbfounded Louisville was that we kept handing the ball off in that situation.
• 42:08
  SPEAKER_03: There was like a minute left, and like, what are they doing?
• 42:10
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, holy cow, he's really just gonna like I think it was, was it um Bostick or Stall?
• 42:16
  SPEAKER_07: It was Bostick.
• 42:16
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and they're just like, no, we're not letting him throw the ball.
• 42:19
  SPEAKER_03: We're just gonna keep handing it to her.
• 42:21
  SPEAKER_03: It's the most insane thing.
• 42:22
  SPEAKER_03: They ran three draw plays in a row to get down inside, like, what, the five?
• 42:26
  SPEAKER_07: Well, they get down to like the 20, maybe, and then they do let Bostick throw a pass, and he hits because by that point Louisville just doesn't know what to do.
• 42:34
  SPEAKER_07: And he hits O'Darek Turner for the game time touchdown, and we're headed to overtime.
• 42:41
  SPEAKER_07: Or are we?
• 42:42
  SPEAKER_07: On second look, Turner's knee is down at the one-yard line.
• 42:46
  SPEAKER_07: But oh well, whatever.
• 42:47
  SPEAKER_07: Pitt us first and goal from like the one inch line, so we're still gonna go into overtime, right?
• 42:52
  SPEAKER_07: Right?
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_07: Maybe, maybe.
• 42:54
  SPEAKER_04: Pat Boston Derek Turner.
• 42:57
  SPEAKER_04: Nice pass by Pat Boston, but a better catch by Odara Turner sliding into the end zone for the score.
• 43:02
  SPEAKER_04: Now it looked like he scored.
• 43:04
  SPEAKER_04: Have another look.
• 43:05
  SPEAKER_04: He scored.
• 43:05
  SPEAKER_04: Have another look.
• 43:06
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 43:07
  SPEAKER_04: Hey, family.
• 43:08
  SPEAKER_04: He scored.
• 43:09
  SPEAKER_04: Knee down.
• 43:10
  SPEAKER_04: Ball not in.
• 43:11
  SPEAKER_04: Was it a was a call touchdown?
• 43:13
  SPEAKER_04: It was not.
• 43:19
  SPEAKER_04: Louisville's defense makes a play.
• 43:21
  SPEAKER_04: The Ville 24 17.
• 43:23
  SPEAKER_04: Costly a bit of officiating, but the call was correct.
• 43:27
  SPEAKER_03: Uh yeah, Louisville defense did not make a play.
• 43:31
  SPEAKER_03: That was extremely generous.
• 43:33
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 43:34
  SPEAKER_07: Uh of they fell on the ball.
• 43:36
  SPEAKER_03: So I mean, if making a play is like, yeah, falling on the ball on the ground, sure, that I guess.
• 43:42
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 43:43
  SPEAKER_03: Why not?
• 43:44
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 43:44
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, bostick and McCoy bought the handoff.
• 43:47
  SPEAKER_07: Bostick blames himself for that play.
• 43:48
  SPEAKER_07: He said he didn't get the exchange off cleanly, but either way, McCoy fumbles and and yeah, Louisville's defense makes a play, and I put makes a play in error quotes by falling on a ball that Pitt just put right on the ground.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_03: And that that replay's not clear that he wasn't in or out.
• 44:04
  SPEAKER_03: Like I at least the view on that highlight, I can't tell whether he's in or out.
• 44:09
  SPEAKER_03: So I don't understand how they get, you know, but there was Pitt in the Big East, and they Pitt always gets screwed.
• 44:15
  SPEAKER_03: And when they're in a conference, the Pitt needs to go back to being independent.
• 44:18
  SPEAKER_03: If you're going to get screwed, why give all that money to a conference?
• 44:22
  SPEAKER_07: So 2007, there were a lot of egregious questionable calls, including the later in the West Virginia game.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_07: That one, I think, was like his knee looks like it's down at like the one and a half yard line.
• 44:34
  SPEAKER_07: How could you tell, Tim?
• 44:35
  SPEAKER_07: Like Well, they rolled it, they didn't roll at a touchdown.
• 44:38
  SPEAKER_07: So because they didn't roll at a touchdown, to your point.
• 44:41
  SPEAKER_03: They did.
• 44:42
  SPEAKER_03: The the official on the play runs in and calls it a touchdown.
• 44:46
  SPEAKER_07: Okay.
• 44:46
  SPEAKER_07: Well, maybe.
• 44:47
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 44:47
  SPEAKER_03: They overturned the touchdown.
• 44:49
  SPEAKER_07: Okay.
• 44:50
  SPEAKER_07: I it well to me that wasn't egregious.
• 44:52
  SPEAKER_07: And again, it it didn't, it wasn't like that was the last play of the game.
• 44:55
  SPEAKER_07: They still had plenty of time.
• 44:56
  SPEAKER_07: They had like time to run four plays from the one-yard line with a guy that had just run down the field into the Louisville defense.
• 45:03
  SPEAKER_07: That was so what?
• 45:04
  SPEAKER_07: You just run into the end zone from the one.
• 45:06
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, you you can't blame the rest for that loss.
• 45:08
  SPEAKER_07: Like you just have to score there.
• 45:10
  SPEAKER_07: It's an easy, easy way to tie the game.
• 45:13
  SPEAKER_07: But unfortunately, yeah, they fumble because Pitt.
• 45:16
  SPEAKER_03: I remember after that game, me and my dad looked at each other.
• 45:20
  SPEAKER_03: That's when I think Dave once that started to turn it around at Pitt.
• 45:24
  SPEAKER_03: I really, I really thought.
• 45:26
  SPEAKER_03: Because that's that's uh that's 13-9 year, isn't it?
• 45:31
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 45:33
  SPEAKER_03: That's the game where I thought Dave wants that.
• 45:35
  SPEAKER_03: That's another one of those losses.
• 45:37
  SPEAKER_03: Remember like the Virginia Tech loss I was saying?
• 45:39
  SPEAKER_03: I remember me and my dad looked at each other after that.
• 45:42
  SPEAKER_03: We thought, boy, this team is getting better.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_03: We really thought that.
• 45:46
  SPEAKER_03: And they got screwed up in Rutgers on a questionable pass interference call later in the year.
• 45:52
  SPEAKER_03: Like the Big East, for whatever reason, did not want Pitt going to a bowl game.
• 45:56
  SPEAKER_07: The the the thing that few people remember about the 13-9 game, and we we covered it in our episode we did about the 13-9 game, is yes, Pitt was four and seven going into that game, but they were not a bad four and seven team.
• 46:09
  SPEAKER_07: They had lost games like this one, where like they they played a really good game and it's a good Louable team, and they fumbled at the one yard line, right?
• 46:16
  SPEAKER_07: There were there were games there were a lot of games like that.
• 46:18
  SPEAKER_07: The Rutgers game was another one, like you mentioned, where they could have just as easily been like six and six.
• 46:24
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 46:25
  SPEAKER_03: Or you know, I'm not saying they're gonna win ten games, but they could have won six games.
• 46:29
  SPEAKER_07: Easily, easily.
• 46:31
  SPEAKER_07: So, so um it wasn't as bad of a pit game as everybody remembers as the record was coming into that West Virginia game.
• 46:39
  SPEAKER_03: And he was uh just to finish, do you remember LaShawn McCoy after that play?
• 46:45
  SPEAKER_03: No inconsolable.
• 46:48
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, yeah, he was a good one.
• 46:50
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, and I thought I thought that's the sign of a guy that is gonna be a great player.
• 46:57
  SPEAKER_03: Because I mean, he was young, and to see a guy that upset about letting himself and the team down, I thought this guy I knew he was gonna be good.
• 47:07
  SPEAKER_03: I you know, beyond the talent.
• 47:09
  SPEAKER_03: I just yeah, you could tell.
• 47:11
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, and he did.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_07: He had a great career.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_03: Petty had a great career in the NFL.
• 47:14
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, just to put an exclamation point on that.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_07: No, that's a good point.
• 47:17
  SPEAKER_07: And maybe that's a good that was a good learning experience for him.
• 47:20
  SPEAKER_07: And like you said, just showed what kind of character he had.
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_07: All right, for our next one, let's go back to July 4th, 1976.
• 47:28
  SPEAKER_07: It's the bicentennial, Steve, the 200th anniversary of our nation.
• 47:33
  SPEAKER_07: And on that day, the Pirates are playing the Phillies at Three River Stadium.
• 47:38
  SPEAKER_03: Where's this July 4th, 1976?
• 47:40
  SPEAKER_03: Sweet.
• 47:41
  SPEAKER_03: I am not born yet.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_07: You are you are about to be, but you are not yet.
• 47:46
  SPEAKER_03: I'm not even in Pittsburgh.
• 47:48
  SPEAKER_03: I'm somewhere else.
• 47:49
  SPEAKER_03: I'm not even here.
• 47:51
  SPEAKER_07: Well, the Phillies are in Pittsburgh, and the Phillies have a guy named Tim McCarver.
• 47:54
  SPEAKER_07: Steve, do you remember Tim McCarver?
• 47:56
  SPEAKER_03: Where's McAva at?
• 47:59
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 48:00
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, that was a guy Dion dumped water on.
• 48:02
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 48:03
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 48:04
  SPEAKER_07: See, I remember him more as an announcer.
• 48:06
  SPEAKER_03: Uh well, that was during his announcer time.
• 48:09
  SPEAKER_03: I guess Dion didn't he said something disparaging about Dion.
• 48:13
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 48:13
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 48:14
  SPEAKER_07: His playing career ended in 1980.
• 48:17
  SPEAKER_07: So I think his playing days were a little before our time.
• 48:20
  SPEAKER_07: But but he was an announcer for like years and years, so I that's what I remember him as.
• 48:24
  SPEAKER_07: Well, on this day, he's playing for Philadelphia and he's catching for Steve Carlton.
• 48:30
  SPEAKER_07: And the top of the second inning, he is up with the bases loaded.
• 48:34
  SPEAKER_07: And I will let Tim McCarver tell you what happens next.
• 48:39
  SPEAKER_01: The second inning, I got up with the bases loaded, and bang, I hit the first pitch, and I thought, this one's got a chance.
• 48:45
  SPEAKER_01: By the time I hit first base and saw I'd go over, I felt, all right, danger, home run.
• 48:51
  SPEAKER_01: Wrong.
• 48:52
  SPEAKER_01: When I turned around, there was my teammate Gary Maddox.
• 48:55
  SPEAKER_01: Kid tagged up at first base.
• 48:57
  SPEAKER_01: I'd run right past him.
• 48:59
  SPEAKER_01: And when you run past a runner, of course, you're out.
• 49:02
  SPEAKER_01: I looked up at the second base umpire Ed Vargo and said, I didn't pass him.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_01: He lapped me.
• 49:09
  SPEAKER_07: So Tim McAver hits a grand slam, but he's out at first.
• 49:14
  SPEAKER_07: Here's actually how that play is scored, Steve.
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_03: So what happened?
• 49:18
  SPEAKER_03: Why did the guy from first come back to first?
• 49:22
  SPEAKER_07: So the guy at first never left first.
• 49:25
  SPEAKER_03: He was waiting for because he was waiting for the ball to go over.
• 49:28
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, so it's like one of those maybe it's gonna go, maybe it's not.
• 49:31
  SPEAKER_03: Correct.
• 49:32
  SPEAKER_03: And Tim McCarver is not like the new player, like the modern players that'll just sit there and flip their bat and watch the ball.
• 49:38
  SPEAKER_03: He actually hustled down the line.
• 49:40
  SPEAKER_07: He he was running, yeah.
• 49:42
  SPEAKER_07: He was running and then he rounded first.
• 49:44
  SPEAKER_07: And then he cast the guy.
• 49:47
  SPEAKER_07: He was he was halfway to second.
• 49:48
  SPEAKER_07: That's why he said he looked up at the second base umpire.
• 49:51
  SPEAKER_07: Because he's like halfway to second, all his teammates are like still on their bases.
• 49:56
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, that sucks.
• 49:57
  SPEAKER_03: It'd been better if he would have like sat there and done his little bat flip.
• 50:02
  SPEAKER_03: So who scores?
• 50:03
  SPEAKER_03: Does anybody score on that?
• 50:05
  SPEAKER_03: The second and third guy can score, but the guy at first and him can't.
• 50:09
  SPEAKER_07: No, no, no.
• 50:09
  SPEAKER_07: Actually, here's how that play is scored.
• 50:11
  SPEAKER_07: It scored as a single to right field, and all three guys score.
• 50:17
  SPEAKER_03: So the only guy that doesn't score is the guy at first.
• 50:20
  SPEAKER_07: No, is the only guy that doesn't score is Tim McCarver.
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_03: He's at the Because he passed the other runner.
• 50:25
  SPEAKER_03: Oh my god.
• 50:26
  SPEAKER_07: And it's not a home run, it's a single.
• 50:28
  SPEAKER_07: So all three guys on base score, but McCarver's gonna be a little bit more.
• 50:30
  SPEAKER_03: Well, he got three RBIs out of it.
• 50:32
  SPEAKER_07: He did.
• 50:33
  SPEAKER_07: He did.
• 50:33
  SPEAKER_07: So instead of a grand slam that scores four runs, it's a single that scores three runs.
• 50:37
  SPEAKER_07: And he's also out.
• 50:39
  SPEAKER_03: That's that that's a shame because like, well, what was he supposed to do?
• 50:43
  SPEAKER_03: I guess he should have like hustled and at first base just he should have waited.
• 50:47
  SPEAKER_07: He should have watched his teammates instead of watching the like I don't know if he was watching the ball go over the fence, I don't know if he was just running at full speed.
• 50:54
  SPEAKER_07: But he should he should he you have to the first base umpire going, stop and you have to be aware of where your teammates are, and he ran right past his teammate on first base.
• 51:04
  SPEAKER_03: I'd like to see video of that, but apparently there isn't anything.
• 51:08
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I tried to find that.
• 51:09
  SPEAKER_03: There's just Tim McCarver talking about it.
• 51:12
  SPEAKER_07: Right, right.
• 51:12
  SPEAKER_07: And and you can find like a again, I went back and found the box score of the game.
• 51:16
  SPEAKER_07: That's how I found out how it was scored.
• 51:19
  SPEAKER_07: Like Alan, Johnstone, and Maddox, those are the three guys on base, they all score.
• 51:23
  SPEAKER_07: But McCarver is out at second.
• 51:25
  SPEAKER_07: So it's a single, but he's out at second.
• 51:27
  SPEAKER_07: So imagine imagine he hits a single with right field instead of instead of a home run.
• 51:32
  SPEAKER_07: And imagine all three guys come around and score, but then like the right fielder throws him out at second.
• 51:36
  SPEAKER_07: That's basically the equivalent of what happens.
• 51:39
  SPEAKER_03: Where's Mikava at?
• 51:42
  SPEAKER_03: Halfway around first, apparently.
• 51:47
  SPEAKER_07: All right, for our next one, how about the time the field caught on fire during a Steelers game?
• 51:52
  SPEAKER_07: Uh in 2015, the Steelers are playing at the Rams, who in those days played in a city called St.
• 51:58
  SPEAKER_07: Louis.
• 51:59
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, St.
• 52:00
  SPEAKER_03: Louis.
• 52:00
  SPEAKER_03: They have an arch and a baseball team.
• 52:02
  SPEAKER_03: No football, though.
• 52:04
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, back back in those days, the the olden days of 2015, they had a football team.
• 52:08
  SPEAKER_03: Back in Ought 5.
• 52:11
  SPEAKER_07: So here's what happens.
• 52:13
  SPEAKER_09: For those expecting Pittsburgh and St.
• 52:15
  SPEAKER_09: Louis, we've been expecting them too.
• 52:16
  SPEAKER_09: About uh 12.02 local time was the scheduled kickoff.
• 52:21
  SPEAKER_09: But during the introductions of the Rams, here's what happens.
• 52:26
  SPEAKER_09: Power Technic's going off.
• 52:27
  SPEAKER_09: Watch to the lower right part of your flyer off the inside of 500.
• 52:32
  SPEAKER_09: line.
• 52:33
  SPEAKER_09: By the time that was put out, some damage had been done.
• 52:36
  SPEAKER_09: Groundskeepers came out to take a look.
• 52:38
  SPEAKER_09: The officials took a look.
• 52:40
  SPEAKER_09: The coaches took a look.
• 52:41
  SPEAKER_09: A little vacuum cleaning and a little cleanup.
• 52:44
  SPEAKER_09: The teams were sent back to their locker rooms, and they have since returned to the field.
• 52:49
  SPEAKER_09: And we are told that the beginning of the game is uh getting fairly close.
• 52:53
  SPEAKER_09: Let's go down to Jamie Urdal.
• 52:54
  SPEAKER_09: Jamie.
• 52:55
  SPEAKER_00: Well, Greg, you mentioned that first round of cleanup wasn't as successful as they thought it would be with that vacuum because the pellets had actually melted when they caught fire.
• 53:03
  SPEAKER_00: They were too fine for the vacuum to pick up, which is why they sent the teams back in the locker room.
• 53:08
  SPEAKER_00: They knew it was going to be a little longer.
• 53:10
  SPEAKER_00: As I mentioned before, another worry was with the fire extinguisher, the chemicals that were going to be an eye or a skin irritant for the players.
• 53:17
  SPEAKER_00: So they wanted to make sure the field turf got wet enough and they truly cleaned off those chemicals.
• 53:22
  SPEAKER_00: Now, before the team hit the field, I was able to walk over there and get my hand on the part that caught fire.
• 53:27
  SPEAKER_00: It does have a different texture than the rest of the field turf.
• 53:30
  SPEAKER_00: None of the players have checked on it yet.
• 53:32
  SPEAKER_00: Defensor hasn't come to look at it, but it's about a two-foot wide circle, and it does feel just a little bit different.
• 53:37
  SPEAKER_00: We do wonder if that's going to have an impact when those guys run over that spot.
• 53:43
  SPEAKER_07: So the field catches on fire.
• 53:45
  SPEAKER_07: They the Steelers and Rams do end up playing this game.
• 53:47
  SPEAKER_07: They just do their best to avoid the spot on the field that's burnt to a crisp.
• 53:52
  SPEAKER_03: Wasn't that big.
• 53:53
  SPEAKER_03: Jeff Fisher, Nick Foles, Mike Tomlin, Ben Ron.
• 53:57
  SPEAKER_03: I think the Steelers win this one.
• 53:59
  SPEAKER_07: They do.
• 54:00
  SPEAKER_07: And I Ben ends up getting hurt in this game, but it was not because of the fire.
• 54:05
  SPEAKER_07: The fire, yes.
• 54:06
  SPEAKER_03: Uh yeah.
• 54:07
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 54:08
  SPEAKER_03: It's the Rams.
• 54:09
  SPEAKER_03: I you know, I like the Rams' new uniforms that they've gone back, which are really their old uniforms.
• 54:16
  SPEAKER_03: Are much better than these uniforms.
• 54:18
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 54:19
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 54:19
  SPEAKER_07: I didn't like the gold.
• 54:20
  SPEAKER_07: I like when they went back to the yellow instead of the gold.
• 54:22
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 54:23
  SPEAKER_03: Like the yeah.
• 54:24
  SPEAKER_03: Like I know that's a very confusing thread.
• 54:27
  SPEAKER_03: Like the old, like original Kurt Warner Rams, like when he won the Super Bowl.
• 54:32
  SPEAKER_03: And then remember after the Super Bowl, they changed their logo.
• 54:35
  SPEAKER_03: Like the color, like you said, to that deeper gold.
• 54:39
  SPEAKER_03: This is much better.
• 54:40
  SPEAKER_03: Much better, much better.
• 54:42
  SPEAKER_03: And uh, you know, I mean, now they play in SoFi.
• 54:45
  SPEAKER_03: I guess maybe they won't light the field on fire there.
• 54:48
  SPEAKER_03: Los Angeles.
• 54:49
  SPEAKER_03: Los Angeles, they probably not allowed to set off pyrotechniques.
• 54:52
  SPEAKER_03: They probably have to set off like vegan burners or something.
• 54:55
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know.
• 54:57
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, the the the setting off, like they had these huge, like this big fire display.
• 55:02
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, gosh.
• 55:03
  SPEAKER_07: I I don't know.
• 55:04
  SPEAKER_07: Do you really need all that?
• 55:06
  SPEAKER_03: Like, I just Mick Foles requires a sacrifice of field turf.
• 55:11
  SPEAKER_07: I I just this is my old guy, you know, voice here, but the the just you know, can't we just play the game?
• 55:18
  SPEAKER_07: Do we need you know, and do we need like club level like loud music between every single play?
• 55:23
  SPEAKER_07: Yes.
• 55:24
  SPEAKER_03: Do we need I mean I have no attention span.
• 55:26
  SPEAKER_03: I can't pay attention or talk to my neighbor.
• 55:29
  SPEAKER_03: I will not be forced to interact with another human being during the game.
• 55:34
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, it just I it just that stuff just goes overboard to me.
• 55:37
  SPEAKER_07: But like I said, uh that's old man speaking, so get off my get off my turf.
• 55:43
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 55:47
  SPEAKER_07: So so that was the time the field caught on fire.
• 55:49
  SPEAKER_07: How about the time where the penguins lost the same playoff game, not once, but twice.
• 55:56
  SPEAKER_07: 2014, we're gonna go back to 2014 where we were last time.
• 55:59
  SPEAKER_07: This is after they'd beaten Columbus, they're in the second round now against the Rangers, and we're in overtime of game one at the Console Energy Center, as it was known in those days.
• 56:10
  SPEAKER_07: And the game is tied two to two in overtime.
• 56:13
  SPEAKER_07: The Rangers have the puck in the Penguins' end.
• 56:18
  SPEAKER_13: Now Pouliot with the puck.
• 56:19
  SPEAKER_13: Out in front of Brasard.
• 56:21
  SPEAKER_13: How do he hit the crossbar?
• 56:22
  SPEAKER_13: Now a drive by Strowman.
• 56:24
  SPEAKER_13: Gets behind Fleury.
• 56:25
  SPEAKER_13: And then a shot score.
• 56:27
  SPEAKER_13: Pullion.
• 56:27
  SPEAKER_13: Rangers win game one.
• 56:31
  SPEAKER_16: Brasard's shot actually went in first to end it.
• 56:34
  SPEAKER_16: Up and over.
• 56:35
  SPEAKER_16: That's it.
• 56:37
  SPEAKER_16: So it actually went in first.
• 56:38
  SPEAKER_16: So Brasard's gonna get credit for the game winning goal.
• 56:42
  SPEAKER_16: Because that one's actually in.
• 56:44
  SPEAKER_16: It was in and out so fast, it doesn't matter.
• 56:47
  SPEAKER_16: But eventually the Rangers get what they deserve the win.
• 56:51
  SPEAKER_16: So it will be Brassard, not Poulion.
• 56:56
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, New York actually scores the game-winning goal twice.
• 57:00
  SPEAKER_07: And they win game.
• 57:01
  SPEAKER_07: Like, well, you didn't see that one, see this one.
• 57:03
  SPEAKER_03: That that'd have to be infuriating for a Rangers fans.
• 57:06
  SPEAKER_03: They probably have a right to be upset over that.
• 57:08
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, I mean they they made them win that game twice, and they did.
• 57:12
  SPEAKER_03: So could you argue argue with either goal?
• 57:16
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 57:17
  SPEAKER_07: Right.
• 57:18
  SPEAKER_07: That ends up being a weird series because that's game one, and then the penguins win the next three, but then the the Rangers win the next three after that and eliminate the Pens.
• 57:28
  SPEAKER_03: And eliminate um, what's his name?
• 57:30
  SPEAKER_03: Mike Johnston.
• 57:31
  SPEAKER_03: No uh French.
• 57:32
  SPEAKER_03: Balzma.
• 57:33
  SPEAKER_03: Or was it Balsma?
• 57:35
  SPEAKER_07: Both of them.
• 57:35
  SPEAKER_07: It was both of them.
• 57:36
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 57:40
  SPEAKER_07: Okay, well, we began this episode with the Bungles, so we're gonna end it with the Bungles.
• 57:44
  SPEAKER_07: And once again, our old friend Jeff Blake is involved, this time as a member of the Cincinnati Bengals, not the Ravens.
• 57:51
  SPEAKER_07: It's 1996.
• 57:53
  SPEAKER_07: Cincinnati is playing at Three River Stadium, and Jeff Blake is having a rough day.
• 57:57
  SPEAKER_07: He has been sacked nine times.
• 58:00
  SPEAKER_03: Oh god.
• 58:02
  SPEAKER_03: Nine nine times.
• 58:04
  SPEAKER_07: Nine times.
• 58:05
  SPEAKER_07: But, but, but, but.
• 58:07
  SPEAKER_07: Cincinnati is still in the game late in the fourth quarter.
• 58:10
  SPEAKER_07: They're only they're only down by three points, and they're driving for a potential game-tying field goal.
• 58:16
  SPEAKER_07: So what happens next?
• 58:17
  SPEAKER_07: Here's Chris Berman doing the highlights that day on ESPN primetime.
• 58:22
  SPEAKER_07: And this is just like classic 1990s goodness right here.
• 58:26
  SPEAKER_10: This is a big play in the game.
• 58:27
  SPEAKER_10: The Bengals in the fourth quarter still have a chance.
• 58:30
  SPEAKER_10: On fourth and one for midfield, they might as well go for it.
• 58:34
  SPEAKER_10: Well, who goes for it?
• 58:35
  SPEAKER_10: Look, watch this.
• 58:36
  SPEAKER_10: Now, they're moving up.
• 58:39
  SPEAKER_10: Now, if I can see it, why can't Jeff Blake see it?
• 58:42
  SPEAKER_10: They're coming up the middle, and he's down, and he fumbles, and Friday Woodson picks it up and it's gone.
• 58:47
  SPEAKER_10: It's as simple as that.
• 58:49
  SPEAKER_10: The 10th sack results in a touchdown.
• 58:52
  SPEAKER_10: 20 to 10.
• 58:53
  SPEAKER_10: The Steelers win it.
• 58:55
  SPEAKER_10: 10 sacks.
• 58:57
  SPEAKER_07: Bungles.
• 59:00
  SPEAKER_03: David Shula, a classic David Shula maneuver.
• 59:03
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah.
• 59:05
  SPEAKER_03: He's got to be the one of the worst coaches in NFL history, right?
• 59:09
  SPEAKER_03: He wasn't good.
• 59:10
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 59:11
  SPEAKER_03: He was there a long time.
• 59:13
  SPEAKER_03: He was there like five years.
• 59:15
  SPEAKER_07: Well, that's that's that's Mike Brown.
• 59:17
  SPEAKER_07: Mike Brown is loyal if nothing with coaches, yeah.
• 59:21
  SPEAKER_03: Well, at least Marvin Lewis was like mediocre.
• 59:24
  SPEAKER_03: Like this guy was never even mediocre.
• 59:26
  SPEAKER_03: Like, look, they're already one and five, it's week six.
• 59:30
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 59:30
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, the Bengals were real, real bad in those days.
• 59:33
  SPEAKER_07: And and nine sacks, and the Steelers, like, like the what you couldn't see there is the Steelers are just moving everybody up to the line of scrimmage.
• 59:42
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, it's the most obvious blitz in the world, and there's no attempt to to audible out of it.
• 59:48
  SPEAKER_07: There's no attempt to get more protection.
• 59:50
  SPEAKER_07: They just come right up the middle and and knock, you know, like there's two guys there to knock the ball out of Jeff Blake's hands.
• 59:56
  SPEAKER_07: And and Rod Woodson picks it up and runs it back for a touchdown.
• 59:59
  SPEAKER_07: It's it's just Yeah, it's classic Cincinnati Bengals.
• 1:00:03
  SPEAKER_03: There was another one in the 90s where the running back for the Bengals just fell over.
• 1:00:08
  SPEAKER_03: Remember that?
• 1:00:08
  SPEAKER_03: They were like just standing there, and he just like it was like at the end of the game, too.
• 1:00:12
  SPEAKER_03: He just just like they're in formation.
• 1:00:14
  SPEAKER_03: I thought it was gonna be that play, but it was just unbelievable.
• 1:00:18
  SPEAKER_03: It's asked out or something.
• 1:00:20
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know.
• 1:00:21
  SPEAKER_07: Yeah, yeah.
• 1:00:22
  SPEAKER_07: I mean, Bengals fans, you know, uh they have a really good team now.
• 1:00:26
  SPEAKER_07: Well, a really good offense, I should say.
• 1:00:27
  SPEAKER_07: I don't know about the whole team, but uh they certainly, I'm sure, happier than they were back in these, back in this era.
• 1:00:35
  SPEAKER_07: So that's our list of forgotten blenders.
• 1:00:37
  SPEAKER_07: Uh, if you have any blenders you can remember that we forgot about, let us know.
• 1:00:42
  SPEAKER_07: You can connect with us on Facebook.
• 1:00:44
  SPEAKER_07: Uh, you can email the show.
• 1:00:46
  SPEAKER_07: Uh all those links to to get to that stuff is in the show description.
• 1:00:50
  SPEAKER_07: Thank you so much for listening, and we will catch you next time.