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You are here: Home / Sports / The DARK PERIOD is Ending

The DARK PERIOD is Ending

by John Cole|  July 27, 20078:39 am| 10 Comments

This post is in: Sports

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There is a long, dark, dank, period every year from the end of the Superbowl until August when the NFL begins again, and it is coming to a close:

Forty-five minutes into the initial session of his first training camp as a head coach, Mike Tomlin pressed his fingerprint onto the future of the Pittsburgh Steelers by returning to the past, and unwittingly offering an homage to the legendary Hall of Fame sideline chief for whom the team’s primary practice field was recently christened.

Nah, Tomlin didn’t put his charges through the dreaded Oklahoma drill, a hallmark of Chuck Noll summer camps. There isn’t a team in the league that still runs the Oklahoma drill, a onetime ritual here that used to draw boisterous crowds to the far corner of the practice field at St. Vincent College, and created the kind of bloodlust atmosphere typically associated with the Roman Coliseum.

But he did call for a “back-on-‘backers” blocking session — with running backs attempting to pass-protect against blitzing linebackers — that instantly stoked the level of intensity at a Tuesday morning practice that already ranked as one of the most physical workouts in recent franchise history.

And with that drill, acknowledged wide receiver Hines Ward, who had worked his entire nine-year NFL career under one boss, Bill Cowher, the franchise’s coaching calendar was officially flipped forward, and a rare Steelers transition was essentially complete.

While some unsuspecting veterans, who hadn’t worked in full pads in the opening practice of any camp under Cowher, appeared poised to pass out, the baton was passed to Tomlin. And his players, even the most grizzled stalwarts who might have been eyeballing the rookie coach with skepticism, were keenly aware of the significance of the moment.

“Basically, that very first contact let us all know that this is Tomlin’s team and this is his blueprint,” said Ward. “I mean, you can go through the minicamps and all the OTAs and stuff, and think you know what a coach is going to be like. But you don’t really know until you get into camp. He didn’t leave any doubt about who’s in charge. There’s a feeling, when you’ve done things one way for so long and been successful at it, that’s like, ‘Why should we let go of the old way?’ Well, there are no options like that around here. The old way is definitely gone.”

Steeler football is almost back!

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10Comments

  1. 1.

    Tim F.

    July 27, 2007 at 8:51 am

    Will we get the real Ben Roethlisberger this time, or another year with his evil twin? Place your bets.

  2. 2.

    Punchy

    July 27, 2007 at 9:28 am

    There is a long, dark, dank, period every year from the end of the Superbowl until August when the NFL begins again

    It’s called baseball, you snobs.

    As for Tim’s question….Worthlessberger is a shell of who he was. He really just caught….I hate cliches….lightning in a bot…cant do it. He got fucking lucky.

    You’ll be looking for his backup by week 5. Please quote me on this and write it down.

  3. 3.

    Robert P.

    July 27, 2007 at 10:14 am

    I was one of those crazed kids that crowded around to see Jack Lambert do the Oklahoma. Growing up in Central PA in the 70s and 80s, EVERY team did Oklahoma. Heck, it was a daily drill when we did two-a-days in high school.

    Loved it!!!

  4. 4.

    IanY77

    July 27, 2007 at 10:26 am

    Go….sigh….’Skins (!, I guess)

  5. 5.

    Dave

    July 27, 2007 at 11:03 am

    Niners, yeah baby. Looks like a good team this year, and well hell we can’t do any worse than the last couple.

  6. 6.

    Jimmmmm

    July 27, 2007 at 11:12 am

    Giants fan here. Thus, there is no end to the long, dark period. But we still have the best pizza and Chinese take-away.

    Wunnit it be funny if Tomlin also worked out to be “coach for life”? That’d be one team, three coaches, at least five championships in the span of a half-century. We’re into Toe Blake Canadiens/Alston-Lasorda Dodgers territory for longevity and success…

    Wife’s from ‘Burgh. Couldn’t happen to a nicer city, IMO.

  7. 7.

    Jake

    July 27, 2007 at 4:03 pm

    Go….sigh….’Skins (!, I guess)

    Oh come on, think of how happy the other teams are when they know they’ll be playing the Deadskins.

  8. 8.

    Punchy

    July 27, 2007 at 4:16 pm

    But we still have the best pizza and Chinese take-away.

    Odd…a Giants fan in Chicago…hmmmm….

  9. 9.

    Gus

    July 27, 2007 at 4:38 pm

    That’s exactly how I feel about the time from the end of the World Series to the day pitchers and catchers report.

Comments are closed.

Trackbacks

  1. The DARK PERIOD is Ending — Goth and Rock blog says:
    September 18, 2007 at 12:24 am

    […] There is a long, dark, dank, period every year from the end of the Superbowl until August when the NFL begins again, and it is coming to a close: … runs the Oklahoma drill, a onetime ritual here that used to draw boisterous crowds to the far corner source: The DARK PERIOD is Ending, Balloon Juice […]

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