Super Bowl XXX

I first became a fan of the Dallas Cowboys as a youngster watching the "Ice Bowl" on TV. I was amazed that anyone could play football under such brutal conditions.

My father had a friend, Ray Renfro, who became an assistant coach in the 1970's under Tom Landry. Texas Stadium had just opened and Ray invited us to come to Dallas and stay in the same hotel as the Cowboys, then attend the game. At that time the team stayed in a hotel, even for home games. Coach Landry felt that the team would be better prepared on game day if they were together the day before to go over game plans and any last minute changes.

We jumped at the chance and headed to big 'D' to see the Pokes take on the Los Angeles Rams in only the third game ever played at Texas Stadium. We met several of the Cowboys at the hotel (I even caught the same elevator as Coach Landry, but was too scared to say anything), and got to join the team Sunday morning for the team breakfast. I bet that would never happen these days!

We had several players at our table, including Mike Ditka and Walt Garrison. Pretty heady stuff for a 14 year old boy.

Later that morning we caught a bus to the stadium. Wow, it was something to see! I had attended several games at the Cotton Bowl, so this was quite an upgrade for the Cowboys. Our seats were on the 40 yard line, lower deck, behind the Cowboys bench. It was a great game, with Dallas beating the Rams 21-7.

After the game, we got to ride the TEAM bus back to the hotel. Talk about fun! Sitting to my right was Roger Staubach and Bob Hayes with Leroy Jordan and Dan Reeves front of me. Needless to say, it was a memorable weekend.

After that experience, I was a huge fan of the team. My father had followed them since their inception, and we always watched the games together on Sunday afternoons. It was a time of bonding as rooted for our favorite players.

Fast forward 20 years. The Cowboys were hosting the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game. Before the game, I gave Dad a call.

"I've always wanted to go to a Super Bowl" I said. "If the Cowboys win, lets go!"

My father answered as he did quite often.

"I'll have to ask your mother."

Fortunately, two things happened. The Cowboys won and Mom gave him her blessing to go to Arizona for Super Bowl XXX.

Our seats were upper deck, end zone, but I didn't care. We were at the Super Bowl! Dad's health had begun to deteriorate due to congestive heart failure and we had to stop a couple times on the way to our seats so he could catch his breath. When we got there, we were surrounded by fans of both the Cowboys and Steelers, plus a few who didn't care either way.

The game was close and exciting, with the Cowboys prevailing. We had taken a shuttle from our hotel to the stadium, with the driver telling us that the shuttle would leave 30 minutes after the game was over. When the game ended, we decided to stick around for the trophy presentation, which was happening right in front of us. Needless to say, we missed our shuttle.

It was late and we were hungry. We caught a city bus to a local cafe and had dinner while figuring out how to make the 20 mile trip back to our hotel.. Dad and I discussed the game we had just witnessed, and also some other games we had attended together over the years.

I still remember the special feeling of having shared this day with him. It's a memory I wouldn't trade for anything in the world!

And it happened 15 years ago today.