Goodbye to Sun Devil Stadium (at least professionals)

On this Christmas Eve 12/24/2005 The 4-10 Cardinals played the 6-8 Eagles in a game no one cared about. Except it had one very big meaning: It was to be the last professional football game ever played at Sun Devil Stadium, the last Cardinal game (they move into a new stadium next year for any of you that have just returned from Mars). I'm not going to sugar coat it, there have not been many good times in the 16 years the Cards have been here. A sign at the game yesterday said: Thanks for the Memories: Both of Them. Anyway I have alot of memories from the Cards days at SDS, most of the bad, a few of the good, all of them awesome. I would like to share them with you:

1995- It was the last home game of the season for the Cardinals and it was Monday Night Football vs the Cowboys. I went to the game with my dad and uncle and the Cardinals got KILLED. I think it was like 28-3 or something. Then head coach Buddy Ryan (the white Denny Green?) had to be escorted off the field by security after the game as fans threw stuff at him and booed him. Shortly after that game Ryan was fired (its not often you have a complete nut job running your team, Buddy Ryan created the famed 46 defense for the 85 Bears, ran the defense on some good Houston teams in the early 90s and went to the playoffs with Randall Cunningham and the Eagles in the early 90s as well, yet after that game with the Cardinals capping a 4-12 season he has never even sniffed an NFL job ever again.)

1997- This was an interesting year, the year before the Cardinals had their only good year. They lost an amazing amount of games by 7 points are less and they finally beat the Cowboys for the first time since the Truman administration (just kidding, sort of. Speaking of that game, the Cards won it 25-22 on an overtime FG that Kevin Butler almost missed and the fans stormed the field and tore down the goalpost. Thats right, Cardinal fans tore down the goalpost after a REGULAR SEASON game and the team went 4-12.) Anyway I went to a game that year with my dad vs the New York Giants and the Cardinals just got smoked. Kent Graham got hurt during the game and everyone wanted to see rookie Jake Plummer enter the game. One guy behind us even yelled "bring in the rapist!" (if you remember correctly shortly before he was drafted some crazy girl accused Jake Plummer of raping her. Nothing ever came of it.) Anyway the Cardinals brought some hack in named Stoney Case and continued to get killed (just for the record Plummer came into the game vs Philly next year and dominated and his legend was born sort of.) Anyway that is not the real story of the game. Since the game was such a blow out some guy behind us decided to rip on Giant's punter Brad Maynard the whole game. He kept yelling stuff at him, stuff like he was a homo because he held balls (during FGs, ya know). Anyway Maynard was rattled by this because who heckles a punter? Anyway Maynard was practicing punting by kicking a ball into a net right infront of us and the guy was just screaming at him. On his next practice kick Maynard whiffs the punt and kicks the top of the net and it comes crashing down on him. Priceless comedy, the whole section cracked up. Now that is a memory.

1998- Cardinals one good year. Everyone knows about the FG by Chris Jackie and everything so I am not going to touch on it.

1999- This was a wired year. The Cardinals were hyped up big time and expected to be one of the NFL's best teams. Management gave Plummer a HUGE contract that proceeded to release anyone around him that he relied on last year (i.e Larry Centers) so basically Plummer had to do it all by himself and we all know he cant do it all by himself. He hurt his thumb in the preseason and it effected him all year. He put up maybe the worst QB year in the history of the NFL (9tds and 24ints), 1998 1,000 yard rusher Adrian Murrell aged about 10 years by the end of 1998 to the start of the 1999 season. They were riddled with injuries and started 2-6 yet somehow managed to get back to 6-6 and had a HUGE game vs Washington for first place and they laid an egg and the Cardinals were never even close to be competitive ever again (Save the 4-2 start in 2002, but I do no think anyone thought they were a real threat). Anyway my SDS memory this year was going to the home opener vs San Fransico on Monday night football. It was Steve Young's last game and Jeff Garcia's first. I still remember the play that ended Young's career. The game was so lopsided that the only thing Cardinal fans had to cheer about was when the jumbotron showed a graphic of the Diamondbacks being 1999 NL West Champions. Another memory I have from that year was an epic Cardinal comeback vs the Eagles late in the season that evened their record at 6-6, man was I pumped up after that game.

2000- Just a terrible year. The last SDS sellout for a Cardinal game occurred this year vs the Packers. 2000 was either the year the Cardinals were supposed to get back to playoff form or prove that 1998 was a fluke. Well they lost like 30-3 or something and we all knew it was not happening with this crew. Plummer had a rough year and rookie Thomas Jones could not do anything. Dave McGinnis took over this year when the Cardinals were just terrible and managed to coax some inspiring performances out of the Cardinals, a win over Washington which included a 103 yard fumble return for TD by Aneas Williams. After the game prop 302 passed and the Cardinals were going to get their new stadium (it only took 6 years). In McGinnis first game they were beating the Saints in almost every facet of the game (this was the one good Saints team that went 10-6, you know the only reason Jim Haslett and Aaron Brooks have lasted so long) before they blew it on turnovers, and when they were about 3-11 and probably the worst team in football management said McGinnis would be head coach next year and the Cards went out and played the soon to be champs, the Baltimore Ravens, so well that it was an inspiring 13-7 loss (when you do not have that many wins, losses can be inspiring).

2001- This was weird year, but aren't they all? The Cards sucked it up and started 2-6 and then made started to play really good football in the second half, at one point even getting into the playoff talk. Plummer had his best satistical year as a Cardinal and David Boston had his one good year. I remember going to a game verse Washington when the Cards were 5-6 and a win would be HUGE for playoff reasons, however they suffered a heartbreaking 20-10 loss and I was crushed, again. Just for the record they finished the year 7-9 and had a 5-3 second half (hey these things mean something when you are a cardinal fan. 7-9 is considered one hell of a year).

2002- Ah what a tease this year was. They started out 4-2, but mainly because they played an easy schedule. Went into a HUGE game with the 49ers with first place on the line and got, you guessed it, killed. They lost 38-28 but the game was not even that close. However their 4-2 start coupled with their 5-3 finish in 2001 made the cardinals 9-5 in a 14 game strech (and this means nothing I know). The Cards finish the season 1-9 and its another down year.

2003- What a year. They sign Emmit and he has a terrible year. They got rid of Jake and brought in a Jeff (Blake) who throws the best deep ball in the league (its so pretty that no one can catch it. How many times did this guy overthrow a wide open WR? too many). It was also Anquan Boldin's first year. My memories from this year include going to a 38-0 blowout by the Seahawks. I was at the game with Justin and Baker and we were so freaking hot we left at halftime. That's just about all that happened that year. Oh wait Josh McCown did throw a TD pass to Nate Poole with no time left in the season to knock the Vikings out of the playoffs which led to two great things: The Viking's announcer halrious call, and the drafting of Larry Fitzgerald.

2004- Denny's first year and the most fun year I had watching the Cards in a while. This team had no talent yet they stayed in every game but one or two. At one point they even looked like they could make the playoffs. They had a great draft that included three of my favorite players of all time: Fitz, Dansby and Dockett. They finally made a good free agent signing (Bert Berry). If Denny had not decided to play musical QBs in the middle of a winning streak who knows what would have happened. SDS highlight includes going to the Cardinal-Patriot game. The halftime tribute to Pat Tillman was awesome. Then there was the drunk Cardinal fan who heckled me (I was wearing my Cardinal stuff.) He kept telling me to stand up and cheer and I kept declining. He kept bugging me to the point were I yelled, "Heckle a freaking Patriot Fan." (I was sitting next to like 8 patriot fans.) About a quarter later security removed the guy, he was hammered as shit. Also a highlight from the game is when some drunk guy pointed at Justin's shirt that read Arizona Sports Camp in red letters, the drunk patriot fan thought it was a cardinal shirt and pointed at the shirt and then pointed to the ground (as if the Cardinals were going down). However it was not a Cardinal shirt which prompted Justin to say, "I guess Arizona Sports Camp is going down."

2005- What a disappointment. The most hyped season since 1999 and it played out just like that season. The only real highlight of the season was a preseason game we, justin and baker went to in which Ed brought us free hot dogs and gave us a ride back to our car! It was fun watching Kurt Warner throw to Fitz and Boldin, who had great years. This team also featured the worst offensive line in football history. Oh well there is always next year.

So there you have it. You might be sad right now and you might be thinking "poor Aaron" but do not feel sorry for me. I have enjoyed watching Cardinals football. I have removed myself from thinking the team will win and from taking losses to seriously. I just watch it for fun now, if the Cards win I am happy if they lose I am not happy but I let it go easily. Its just fun to be apart of something and hoping one year when they do win again I will be able to say, "I stuck with this team every year." (Because when the Cards do have a winning season, you will see an amazing amount of bandwagon fans, I am telling you it will blow your socks off. Because as Bjorn says, "we are all Cardinals fans deep down")

Here is to the new stadium and hopefully to better years, but if not that is cool. Even though its another losing season this year it feels different then most. The Cardinals actually have some good, fun players to watch like Warner, Fitz, Boldin, Dansby, Dockett, Berry, Wilson and Rolle. I'm not saying they are gonna be good, but at least they have some good players.

On an unrelated note, Merry Christmas everyone!

Remember when I said Thanksgiving was an underrated holiday? Well its true but X-mas still trumps it. Not only do you get to sit around and eat all day, there is more sweets, there is also football and the added bonus of basketball, plus you get gifts! No wonder its the most wonderful time of the year. So Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.