Post by TheShadow on Feb 19, 2006 11:16:26 GMT -5
nl.newsbank.com
Published on August 13, 1995
© 1995- The Press Democrat
BYLINE: John Simerman
Staff Writer
Primal howls, belly slams and an all-black fashion craze returned triumphantly to the Oakland Coliseum on Saturday, when 49,000 fans welcomed their Raiders back with a raucous party.
Tailgaters rolled into the coliseum parking lot as early as 6:30 a.m., firing barbecues and tapping kegs for pre-game lubrication before the 1 p.m. contest, the first for the Oakland Raiders since 1982.
``We waited 13 years to get here,'' said Gilbert Villegas, 32, who arrived with 20 friends at dawn to erect a tent in the stadium parking lot. ``It means everything to us.''
The pre-season contest, which they won 27-22, was meaningless to the team's success. But to the throngs in silver and black who filled the entrance tunnels with mad, piercing echoes, it was more than a game. It was a long-withheld pilgrimage to pigskin paradise.
``It's a boyhood dream of mine,'' said Andy Bausoni, 29, of Castro Valley, who painted a silver football helmet on his bald pate for the occasion. ``My dad was a Raiders fan. He sat me in front of the TV when I was 12, and that was it.''
Mike Collins, 27, made the trek from Windsor to witness the homecoming. He said he was glad for the team's return, but lamented the hefty cost of season ticket privileges, which run as much as $4,000 to claim a seat for 10 years, not including game tickets.
``This is our only chance to see them. It's kind of a rook,'' he said. ``But I'm glad they're back. I never thought L.A. would be dumb enough to let them go.''
Fans noted the irony of a matchup that pitted the Raiders against the St. Louis Rams, who also escaped Los Angeles this year. Most thought the hearty Oakland crowd would help the Raiders rise from years of mediocrity.
``It's the whole feeling of it just being back, the persona of the Raiders tradition,'' said Ted Dickerson, 28, of Richmond. ``When I went to a game in L.A. against Dallas, there were more Dallas fans there than Raiders fans. That's the difference.''
Indeed, the crowd was a throwback to the old days, living up to a rowdy reputation forged through a relentless, sometimes painful show of loyalty.
The mistake of the day was made by a man in the crowd sporting a bright red 49ers jersey. He was summarily pelted with ice cubes and showered with beer while suffering through a barrage of unprintable insults.
Concessionaires said the highest demand was for T-shirts adorned with the Raiders' traditional skull crossed with silver swords.
Michael Terhorst of Vacaville shelled out $180 for a pair of caps and three shirts -- a small price to pay, he said, for a day among the faithful.
``They're banging on the walls, screaming epithets,'' he said. ``It's Raiders football.''