Home Team Wins

Posted November 25, 2007 from Tulsa, OK

Y'know, this whole having access to high-speed internet has made me a bloggin' fool. Maybe I should consider rejoining the 21st century.

This afternoon was a great thing. A beautiful thing. After I got used to the idea that my Titans/Bengals game (and if you've read my site, you would know I bleed Black and Orange) would be on an hour later, at noon instead of eleven, I got settled in. Since I'm in Oklahoma, the game that was broadcast was the KC/Oak game. That was a bit of a shocker, the outcome there, but that's not where I'm going.

Since I couldn't watch on TV, like I never can, I went to NFL.com to watch the play-by-play on Game Center, and opened another window for the Bengals message board (Colorado 'Nati Girl). Since I'm at my aunt's house, I have access to high-speed internet. I found a Cincinnati station that streamed their broadcast online. Yay! So while I couldn't see the game, I could see and hear the play-by-play. Sure, I know it could be another 10 years before we have another winning season, I've been a fan since 1981, I know that. But win or lose, I was excited to be there. I mean, let's face it, anyone who follows football knows that the Bengals just aren't doing it this year. The talent is there, they just weren't behaving as a team, and I'm not sure why.
That is, they weren't until today.

Right from the beginning, it was looking good. But I've been burnt by that before. So while I was excited, I was not quite convinced this game would go the way it seemed it would. Before I knew it, though, I'd be in shock. Yes, shock. I almost felt like it was 2005 again.

Sorry, I'm getting all teary-eyed just thinking about it. I'm so happy. Seriously. I love my Bengals, for better or for worse. If I could have applied that same devotion to relationships, I'd probably still be married, but that's neither here nor there.

First, in their first drive, they went three and out. And not for lack of trying. But we held them. Yeah, the Bengals defense. Then we moved the ball along for about five minutes, ending up with a TOUCHDOWN by Rudi Johnson. He hasn't been doing too well, lately, a little beat up. He's good for short yardage, though, much like Jerome Bettis was. Three minutes later, Vince throws a pick, something that in the past meant a score for the Bengals. In the distant past. Sadly, this time it was the same story. The drive went through the second quarter resulting in a missed 26-yard field goal. Now, I personally couldn't possibly manage a field goal of any distance, but Shane Graham, the man who scored all 21 of our points against Baltimore a couple weeks ago, is up there with Vinateri as far as reliability is concerned. S'okay, though, nobody's perfect. Still love ya, Shane.

Sadly, later in the 2nd, Tennesee also got a turnover, and converted it to 3 points. We were still ahead, but how long would it last? There's a lot of heart with the Bengals, obvious by the fact that they get so disappointed when they do poorly that it's nearly impossible for them to recover. Oh well. We answered in our next possession, with OCHO CINCO getting his first TD since game TWO! Yeah, baby! Okay, so he got 15 yards for his celebration, but y'know, like Marvin, I was just thrilled to know Chad was happy. I knew that generally, he wouldn't cost the team yards, money or points.

Tennesse then answered with another FG, 'cuz they couldn't get past the Cincinnati defensive line. You read that right, our D showed UP!

Another rushing TD in the 3rd, and another OCHO CINCO TD in the third. No, he didn't celebrate. Like I said, he's not like that.

The fourth quarter got even more exciting. there was a THIRD CHAD JOHNSON TOUCHDOWN! He's BACK, baby! I knew he had it in him.

To make it even better, though, there was a Titan's TD that was reversed. Marvin tossed the challenge flag, and the review showed the carrier was down before the score. The Bengals Defense held the Titans at the 1 for two more downs. At this point, I was delirious. We weren't just going to win, we were going to win BIG!

I'm so proud of my Bengals. I really am. Even if we'd lost, I wasn't about to get rid of my gear. I still have my 1981 AFC Central Championship T-shirt. I still have my 1988 Who-Dey Hanky. And my newer acquisitions, my sweatshirts (including the 2005 AFC North Championship sweat), 85 jersey, car flags (three of them), and car decal, well, those aren't going anywhere. Win or lose, like I said.

But today, it was easy to be a Bengals fan.

And now, next week, a division game. Steelers/Bengals. And I just found out, it's a SUNDAY NIGHT GAME!

WHO DEY?!? WHO DEY?!? WHO DEY THINK GON' BEAT DEM BENGALS?!?
Yes, I know, I've seen the record. Don't care. Still gonna scream it at the top of my lungs.