(Editor's
Note: Philadelphia area sports writer Ben Horrow contributes weekly to
Authentically Speaking.)
By Ben Horrow
On September 6th, the NFL lost a giant of the game. Owner Art Modell died at the age of 87.
Modell was the owner of the Cleveland Browns before he moved the team from Cleveland to Baltimore. Cleveland Browns fans were not very happy to see Modell move their beloved franchise, but when the Ravens won the Super Bowl in 2000, he made thousands of football fans in Baltimore forever thankful.
Modell was also a key member in getting the NFL on television and more specifically the introduction of Monday Night Football, which has become a staple of the NFL season.
To commemorate Modell’s life the Ravens, who opened up their season with a 44-13 rout of the Bengals Monday night, will wear a memorial decal on their helmets for the rest of the year. The decal is a black oval with the name Art in white.
While the Ravens will memorialize Modell, the Cleveland Browns have refrained from doing so, but it is more likely due to the fact that Modell hasn’t been the owner of the Browns since the 1990s.
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Authentic Store Buzz: The authentic Nike Elite Eagles green jerseys are expected to arrive at the store any day now. The jerseys are Michael Vick’s number 7 (pictured above) and LeSean “Shady” McCoy’s number 25.
A friendly reminder concerning our Left Field Cards event with artist Amelie Mancini on Thursday, October 4 from 6-8pm at our Center City Philly location (137 S. 13th Street). The event will mark the official unveiling of Amalie’s “Presidents of the United State of Baseball” letterpress baseball cards.
Two days later, Sat. Oct. 6, is the annual Midtown Village Fall Festival in which 13th Street in front of the store is closed to traffic and it’s one giant block party throughout the area in which merchants set up out in front of the stores. We invite you stop by for the day-long event (noon-8pm), they’ll be all sorts of the special proceedings going on in and around the store.
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Authentically Speaking Trivia Time: During what seasons did the Atlanta Hawks become the first NBA team to wear lime green uniforms? Answer coming on Wednesday.
Monday’s answer: The New Orleans Saints (1967) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1976) are the only two NFL teams to wear white jerseys at home for the entire season in their first season in the league.
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