Old fans, unite!

CCBoy · Jan 15, 2022

Reid1boys said:
1991 cowboys coming off 7 and 9 season, nobody expecting much. I’m in military and now down in NC. NO internet to easily get tickets back then. My father in law is from jersey and tries to get me tickets for cowboys giants. Nocan do, so he gets me week 15 against philly. He gets these in like week 3 so nobody is expecting this game to be a big deal. It turns out the winner of this game wins the east. Philly has Randall Cunningham and the gangrene defense.
My wife’s uncle is supposed to go to game with me...uh oh, he forgets it is his new sons first birthday so I’m on my own.
I get a four day pass from my military boss and make the ten hour drive to jersey. Sunday morning I drive to philly and park in street near the old veterans stadium. I park and get out of car and immediately a guy comments about parking near a cowboys fan.he is cool and takes me to his Tao
Gate, feeds me and gives. Me some beers. He walks me in stadium and shows me my seats. I’m sitting by myself wearing cowboys gear in philly.
Late in game kelvin Martin returns a punt, I think 83 yards for a tad, we win, win the east, win our first playoff game and lose following week.

That was my first cowboys game ever, and in reality, that was the game that started our mini dynasty.

Here I am now on a plane heading to Dallas for this game 33 years later with a few tears in my eyes as I tell this story as my father in-law, who was the best and always supported me as an 18 year old that married his daughter has since passed away three years ago. I have four daughters and know there is now way I’d have been as supportive to any 18year old that married one of my daughters.
The cowboys are more than just a football team to many of us.

Nice share...Go Cowboys!

CCBoy · Jan 15, 2022

From the lips of a Cowboys' leader:

“I think you have to turn your excitement into mental excitement,” offered defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence. “Being excited to learn more, being excited to learn the opposite player you’re going against, learn the team that you’re going against, and also learn more about yourself and your team and how y’all can get better through those moments. Being quiet before the storm and waiting on Sunday and really unleashing the excitement.”

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/veterans-rookies-cowboys-embracing-postseason-200347564.html

Jake · Jan 15, 2022

The first Cowboys home game I attended live was in December, 1995 against the Giants. I didn't make a lot of money back then and lived 1300 miles away (still do). No one else was coming with me (between fiances at the time), so I planned it all out:

Drive to Cleveland the morning of the game (left around 3 am).
Fly from Cleveland to St. Louis, change planes, then on to DFW.
Taxi from the airport to Texas Stadium.
Get to the game, end up sitting surrounded by Giants fans but they were fun-loving and well behaved.
Dallas struggled most of the day, but Chris Boniol kicked his fifth FG as time expired and Dallas escaped with a one-point win, 21-20.
Taxi back to the airport. Repeat the flights in reverse then drive home (got home around 3 am).

Went to work a few hours later. No one believed I'd actually gone to Dallas and back in the same day. Had to bring in my program, and get my pictures developed.

Made several more trips after that but actually stayed at a hotel. The first one will always be the best. Dallas went on to win SB XXX a month later.

CCBoy · Jan 15, 2022

Jake said:
The first Cowboys home game I attended live was in December, 1995 against the Giants. I didn't make a lot of money back then and lived 1300 miles away (still do). No one else was coming with me (between fiances at the time), so I planned it all out:

Drive to Cleveland the morning of the game (left around 3 am).
Fly from Cleveland to St. Louis, change planes, then on to DFW.
Taxi from the airport to Texas Stadium.
Get to the game, end up sitting surrounded by Giants fans but they were fun-loving and well behaved.
Dallas struggled most of the day, but Chris Boniol kicked his fifth FG as time expired and Dallas escaped with a one-point win, 21-20.
Taxi back to the airport. Repeat the flights in reverse then drive home (got home around 3 am).

Went to work a few hours later. No one believed I'd actually gone to Dallas and back in the same day. Had to bring in my program, and get my pictures developed.

Made several more trips after that but actually stayed at a hotel. The first one will always be the best. Dallas went on to win SB XXX a month later.

Great share, Jake ... my wife and I drove up to what is now AT&T Stadium and shared the 1st Cowboys game in the new stadium. It was the Tennessee pre season game. We drove back to South Texas with some great memories...

kskboys · Jan 15, 2022

CowboyinMD said:
As much as I loved Coach Landry, his stubbornness in making Roger the full time starting QB, when he was healthy, always puzzled me.

Landry was a control freak. He preferred calm controlled pocket passers such as Morton. And, BTW, Morton was a very good QB, so it's not like he was switching him out w/ Cooper Rush.

Reid1boys · Jan 15, 2022

So I shared my 1st game, now a 2nd shorter story.

As soon as cowboys niners was determined for 93 nfc title game ib grab the paper, open the classified ad and looked for niners tickets for sale for the division game . I call the number and lock up 4 endzone seats at150 dollars per ticket. I live 80 miles from where old Candlestick was located, so the buildup to the game is incredible. Local sports radio was bigger than, its all they talked about all week. Weather sticks, gloomy, rainy...but whatever.

We are up late but niners have all the momentum and just cut the lead to 23 to 20. Cowboys get ball deep in own territory on kickoff. Crowd is going NUTS. Its so loud and bam, Aikman hits harper ...we all know what he did. Crowd goes SILENT. All us cowboy fans are now up and going crazy...we all knew immediately we were going to the super bowl. Best football experience of my life. It was unreal.

I had just turned 23 years old. Been a long time.

ESisback · Jan 15, 2022

DCwarrior said:
I’m still traumatized just by hearing the name Dwight Clark!

I see better catches in games every week, so why the fuss? Because it’s Dallas losing a big game!

Jake · Jan 15, 2022

ESisback said:
I see better catches in games every week, so why the fuss? Because it’s Dallas losing a big game!

It was much for than that. It signaled a changing of the guard. Dallas owned the NFC in the 70s - won half the conference title games and played in most of them.

Roger was gone, and the Niners stole victory with 58 seconds left to knock out Dallas and go on to win the first of four SB titles in the 80s.

Both teams went in opposite directions for the rest of the decade.

dguinta1 · Jan 15, 2022

Tony D. Monday night football against the Vikings and Howard Cosell doing the Play by Play. Used to love Brent Musberger on CBS, "You are looking live"

Madtowner · Jan 15, 2022

Not sure if mentioned: "The Catch" didn't give me nightmares- it was the strip sack after the Cowboys got down to the 49ers 44-yard line with 38 seconds left and 1 TO remaining that haunted me!

ESisback · Jan 15, 2022

Jake said:
It was much for than that. It signaled a changing of the guard. Dallas owned the NFC in the 70s - won half the conference title games and played in most of them.

Roger was gone, and the Niners stole victory with 58 seconds left to knock out Dallas and go on to win the first of four SB titles in the 80s.

Both teams went in opposite directions for the rest of the decade.

Of course! You’re 100% right, but we all know the details. I just didn’t elaborate. But my point remains—I see better catches all the time, and tons of people celebrated because it was Dallas that lost.

Shane612 · Jan 15, 2022

JustChip said:
There would be no opportunity for a Hail Mary under today’s rules. That last drive was sustained by a 4th down pass ruled a completion even though the receiver (Drew if I remember correctly) didn’t get big feet in. Heck, I’m not sure he got either foot in. But it was ruled a completion because, at that time, they could rule the receiver would’ve come down inbounds had the defender not pushed him out.

Along those lines, Butch Johnson’s TD catch in the ‘77 SB wouldn’t be a catch today.

True. Whenever I see the Butch Johnson catch, I'm convinced that it wasn't a catch... :laugh:

.
.
The actual "hail Mary" pass itself is thinly shrouded in controversy, as well...did Drew Pearson push off?
:muttley:

Htown-Cowboy · Jan 15, 2022

I remember we beat the brakes off of them in Oct. 1980 to the tune of 59-14, so going into 1981 I was fairly confident we'd handle them according... but our trip to Candlestick in Oct. 1981 was a disaster 45-14 SF. Players such as Dorsett said they weren't playing the "real Cowboys" that day. Fast forward to Jan. 10, 1982-- a day which will live in infamy! SF 28 Cowboys 27... Yall know the story

I think my life changed that day...

CrownCowboy · Jan 15, 2022

The 92 NFC Championship game is a good memory for me. I was 11 years old and my dad had a big party at the house for the game. Of course I was passed off to my grandmothers for the weekend. I remember watching the game there by myself. We were down 7-0 in the first when we had to punt. Saxon punted the ball and Dixon Edwards went down and made a great hit on the ball to pop it in the air where Darryl Johnston grabbed it one handed in the air for the recovery.

I went nuts and knew then, even though we were down and it was early, that we were going to win. That play was a big one to kind of change how things had started. I think we kicked a field goal off of that turnover and it kind of got us going.

Of course I vaguely remember the 1-15 season although I remember my dad and I watching us beat the Commanders and him making a big deal about that.

Winning in the wildcard game in Chicago in 91 is a good memory for me. Of course Barry Sanders, Herman Moore and Eric Kramer the next week sucked.

All memories here can't hold a candle to the Super Bowl memories of course but it's fun to think back.

Man I could go on and on about back then....

jnday · Jan 15, 2022

CowboyinMD said:
As much as I loved Coach Landry, his stubbornness in making Roger the full time starting QB, when he was healthy, always puzzled me.

Landry put his system over the players. He thought that any player , including QBs, would be successful in his system if they strictly followed his guidelines for the position. Bill Belichick is a huge Landry fan and he coaches his players to play in his system. Belichick’s coaching and his system is very similar to Landry’s style of coaching.

JustChip · Jan 15, 2022

Shane612 said:
True. Whenever I see the Butch Johnson catch, I'm convinced that it wasn't a catch...
.
.
The actual "hail Mary" pass itself is thinly shrouded in controversy, as well...did Drew Pearson push off?

Well, it was at that time because all that was required was control and breaking the plane. But I hear ya, I don’t think it passes the spirit of a catch. I’ve used the Potter Stewart definition of pornography, I may not be able to define it, but I know it when I see it.

I watched the Hail Mary live and have seen it countless time since and there is certainly enough to question if Pearson pushed off. If that play occurs today, we would all know whether he did and whether it warranted a flag. They just didn’t have the number of cameras and the definition if those we do today. But even so, there would still be controversy because there would be arguments about how much push off and did it warrant a flag, regardless of which way the officials ruled. Case in point is the Gallup OPI against Ramsey in the opening Rams game last year.

lurkercowboy · Jan 15, 2022

JustChip said:
Well, it was at that time because all that was required was control and breaking the plane. But I hear ya, I don’t think it passes the spirit of a catch. I’ve used the Potter Stewart definition of pornography, I may not be able to define it, but I know it when I see it.

I watched the Hail Mary live and have seen it countless time since and there is certainly enough to question if Pearson pushed off. If that play occurs today, we would all know whether he did and whether it warranted a flag. They just didn’t have the number of cameras and the definition if those we do today. But even so, there would still be controversy because there would be arguments about how much push off and did it warrant a flag, regardless of which way the officials ruled. Case in point is the Gallup OPI against Ramsey in the opening Rams game last year.

This catch by Preston Pearson would probably be incomplete today.

JustChip · Jan 15, 2022

lurkercowboy said:
This catch by Preston Pearson would probably be incomplete today.

True. I started to mention that one. Thanks for posting it - I had it in my mind that was down the middle and not the right sideline.

bark · Jan 15, 2022

JustChip said:
There would be no opportunity for a Hail Mary under today’s rules. That last drive was sustained by a 4th down pass ruled a completion even though the receiver (Drew if I remember correctly) didn’t get big feet in. Heck, I’m not sure he got either foot in. But it was ruled a completion because, at that time, they could rule the receiver would’ve come down inbounds had the defender not pushed him out.

Along those lines, Butch Johnson’s TD catch in the ‘77 SB wouldn’t be a catch today.

Rules of the day.
Using the same logic, some of the plays that cost us games would probably not be called in today’s game.
Witten’s first down in the romo bobbled snap game would have been reversed.
The phantom pass interference calls on Benny Barnes covering Lynn swann.
The dez catch probably holds up today.
Even the ice bowl. In that era home field wasn’t determined by best record. At any rate , I guarantee you we don’t show up at lambeau wearing bread sacks on our feet today.

JustChip · Jan 15, 2022

bark said:
Rules of the day.
Using the same logic, some of the plays that cost us games would probably not be called in today’s game.
Witten’s first down in the romo bobbled snap game would have been reversed.
The phantom pass interference calls on Benny Barnes covering Lynn swann.
The dez catch probably holds up today.
Even the ice bowl. In that era home field wasn’t determined by best record. At any rate , I guarantee you we don’t show up at lambeau wearing bread sacks on our feet today.

Yep. The games are played under the rules of the day. Some changes are improvements, some just complicate and confuse.

It doesn’t matter what we think or want, it’s how the rules apply at the time of the play. It’s ridiculous the Dez play wasn’t a catch, but I knew the moment I saw the replay it would be reversed. Didn’t like it, but knew it.

Old fans, unite!

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