Ask the Memphian: Why are there so many Steelers fans in Memphis?
Kym Leach, right, watches the Steelers games along with other fans gathered together at Whiskey Jill’s to watch Sunday’s game against the New York Jets. Pittsburgh won the season opener, 34-32. (Brad Vest/Special to The Daily Memphian)
AutoZone Liberty Bowl executive director Steve Ehrhart remembers when Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium was overrun with Pittsburgh Steelers’ Terrible Towels 28 years ago.
The Tennessee Oilers — expected to play in Memphis for two years before relocating their permanent address from Houston to Nashville — held their final home game of the 1997 NFL season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. It didn’t feel like much of a home game, though.
Most of the 50,677 fans in attendance were rooting for the other side, waving the Steelers’ Terrible Towels all over the place.
This is an excerpt of this story. To read more, please click here and subscribe.
Topics
Ask the Memphian Subscriber Only Calvin Austin IIIThank you for reading The Daily Memphian. Your support is critical.
Did you know we are a 501(c)3 nonprofit news organization? We rely on a mix of revenue from subscriptions (50%), advertising, events and other earned income (25%) and fundraising (25%).
Please consider making a fully tax-deductible donation or other contribution to The Daily Memphian today.
👉🏽 Your subscription pays for you to read all our journalism.
👉🏽 Your donation powers the work we do to reach everyone else with the news.
We believe an informed Memphis is a better Memphis. If you agree, join our growing list of donors now.
Frank Bonner II
Frank Bonner II covers the Memphis Tigers. He is a top-10 APSE winner who covered Oklahoma State for the Tulsa World before joining The Daily Memphian in 2021. Bonner is a native of Indiana, where he started his career covering high school sports.
Comments
Want to comment on our stories? If you’re a subscriber, scroll down to the comments. If you’re not a subscriber, only paid subscribers can add their thoughts, so subscribe now. Our commenting policy can be viewed here.