It was quite the welcoming party the Bengals 'thought' they were getting when they arrived at Pittsburgh's Marriott City Center shortly before 5 p.m. Saturday. Throngs of people lined the lobby with crowd control stanchions separating fans from the players.
It turns out though, most of the audience was there hoping for a glimpse of the Notre Dame players, who met Pitts' Panthers Saturday night at 8:00 at Heinz Field. They just happened to be checking out of the hotel as the Bengals were checking in.
And indeed it dawned on them upon further review that many of those assembled were decked out in the Fighting Irish colors. But football fans being fans, they nevertheless descended on the Bengals who strayed beyond the velvet ropes.
Eventually some of the Notre Dame players took the opportunity to introduce themselves to members of the Bengals and their traveling party. With an 11:00 p.m. curfew, Chinedum Ndukwe, himself a Notre Dame grad, told me he hopes to be finished with meetings in time to go to the game with some old friends.
A couple current Irish players clustered around Chad Ocho Cinco to have their pictures taken for posterity. Former Elder Panther standout Kyle Rudolph approached me with his good hand extended for a sinew testing handshake. The strapping ND tight end's left arm and shoulder are in a sling as he nurses a separated shoulder. He says that he hopes to be back next week but certainly will rejoin the team for their showdown with Stanford.
His first question after we exchanged pleasantries, "How do you think the Panthers will do tonight against St.Xavier?"
Gotta love those men of Elder who always have their priorities in order.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are also played Saturday night so the streets were abuzz with fans of all allegiances.
