The Life Of A Chiefs Fan: Inside The Superdome
For those of you that don’t really know me, I currently attend school in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I was born and raised in the suburbs of Kansas City. I’ve grown up loving all things KC so when I made the jump to another state, I brought my love for my hometown with me.
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve heard the phrase, “You’re not in Kansas anymore!” Or, “Your professional sports teams are garbage.” For one, I’m not from Kansas, and two, we’re on the up-and-up!
I catch a lot of heat for being a Kansas City fan in the heart of SEC country. The great state of Louisiana loves three things, parades, food, and football. They loooooove their football, especially their Saints. The “Who Dat Nation” is a proud group, and I have to respect them. They have definitely seen their dog days of football, but have been a top dog in the NFC for about 6 years now.
Drew Brees has become a hall of fame player right before their eyes, and they absolutely love him. Honestly though, how could you not? The guy is an amazing quarterback, and even better person. Drew “Breesus” is the face of New Orleans.
So while I respect the Saints and their fans, when it’s go time, I’m 100% Chiefs. Part of the reason I’m brave enough to stand out as a Kansas City fan any where I go, especially the Mercedes Benz Superdome.
This is the second year in a row I’ve been fortunate enough to watch the Chiefs play down in the dome. It’s quite a venue! When you first catch a glimpse of it, you understand why it’s got the title of super. It holds roughly 78,000 people, and just hosted the Super Bowl this past winter.
It’s loaded with tradition. From housing thousands of people during hurricane Katrina, to hosting multiple title games, the stadium shares the personality of its city. It’s a party in there, even when it’s week 1 of the preseason.
The attendance for Friday nights game was around 72,000, which was practically a sell out. I was in section 618, which was on the 10 yard line of the west end zone of the Chiefs sideline. When I first entered, I was immediately heckled. Even when I asked an usher where my section was, he very kindly told me “You go that way,” and pointed at the door from which I just entered. It was actually pretty funny that, that guy really didn’t end up helping us. The kind older woman next to him ended up being the one who pointed us in the right direction.
All the way up the tunnels, fans would pass yelling things like “Chiefs suck!” or “Go home, ya yankees.” See if you’re not originally from the south, you get called a yankee. I hate the Yankees, and I also hate being called one. Anyways, I shrugged it off like like I normally do.
We finally got to our seats and happened to be around a few other Chiefs fans. After a few dirty exchanges from a few Saints fans, not all, the team came running onto the field with their pre-game rituals.
As I called them before, the “Who Dat Nation” has a who dat chant that would give any football fan the chills. A player for the Saints, different one each game, runs out to the field and leads a crowd of 70,000 to their chant. It gives you the same feeling you get when you hear our own sea of red finish the Star Spangled Banner our own way. Very intimidating.
The game was getting closer to kick off, and the trash talk started to elevate from some drunk fellas a few rows down. I just gave them the thumbs up, or occasional fist pump, each time. The Chiefs were able to put together an excellent opening drive, finishing with a touchdown, and the wind was sucked right out of that stadium. I mean you could hear a pin drop.
Saints fans are discouraged about their defense. They were one of the worst defenses in NFL history last year and they’ve been struck with injuries so far in this early preseason. Seeing the Chiefs carve them up on 14 plays and 80 yards wasn’t exactly what they were hoping for.
The trash talk immediately came to a halt, and then the praise started to flow. Fans around me started saying, “I tell you what, you boys are gonna have yourselves a great season up there in KC.” I would simply reply, “I can only hope!”
It was interesting hearing the outsiders perspective towards the Chiefs. There was a lot of optimism towards them, for the most part, from the fans down here. Saints fans are extremely respectful. Sure, they have their moments where they have something to say, but I’m certainly guilty of that myself while I’m in Arrowhead.
Halftime came, and I made my way out to the concessions area. While out there, I met several Chiefs fans from all parts of the greater Kansas City area. One of the guys I ran into was wearing full blown head dress and a red Jamaal Charles jersey. He looked awesome! He stood out like a sore thumb in the sea of black and gold. I went up to him and snapped a photo of him with my roommate. It was great to have talked with fellow Chiefs fans while in the Superdome. There is a certain bond between us, and I learned a lot more about it while watching our beloved team in an opposing stadium. Chiefs fans have each others backs.
Last season was a lot more fun because one, it was a regular season game and two, the Chiefs had an epic comeback. Plus, after last years game, I was able to attend a local bar outside the Superdome and not pay for a drink the entire time. Saints fans paid for shots and beers for me and my roommate just because we had the guts to wear our Chiefs gear in there.
It was almost as if a record scratched, and the music stopped when we first walked through the doors. Everyone stopped an stared, but we were eventually greeted with open arms and didn’t have to spend a dime on the booze.
That spoke volumes to me about how great the fans down here. I highly recommend any football fan to attend a game in New Orleans, or just visit the city in general. Seeing the Chiefs the last two years down here has been nothing short of epic, and I have tremendous memories for the rest of my life!
The Chiefs return to Arrowhead next week against Alex Smith’s former team, the San Francisco 49ers. That will be a great test for the Chiefs and I want to hear that there was a good crowd in attendance. There is no place like KC when it comes to professional football, and I cant wait to come home to Arrowhead and watch them square off against the Indianapolis Colts on December 23rd.
So, I’m curious, has anyone in the rest of the kingdom seen the Chiefs in another stadium? If so which one? If not, which one would you want to go to the most? Thanks for reading.