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Fervent Fans Bleed Team Colors

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By ROB SHAW

rshaw@tampatrib.com

Published: February 2, 2009

TAMPA - Don Kelly couldn't wait for Valentine's Day to give his sweetie her gift: two tickets to the Super Bowl at $1,500 a pop.

That's a tad better than roses when you're a die-hard fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers like Deanna Holman.

"He's such a sweetheart," Holman said of Kelly, her husband for almost two years. "This is a life event."

Holman, of Tarpon Springs, grew up about 50 miles from Pittsburgh. "I have Steelers blood in my veins that I can't get rid of," she said.

Jim and Kristy Taylor don't have any Steelers blood to speak of. They bleed red - as in Arizona Cardinals red. The couple, from St. Louis, plunked down $2,900 for two second-row seats in the southwest corner of Raymond James Stadium.

Jim Taylor's father grew up in Pittsburgh, so he has to love the Steelers. His wife, however, married into the madness. It was their first time at a Super Bowl.

"This is very overwhelming in a good way," she said. "I just about ran over Steve Young earlier; he was on the phone."

Another Cardinals fan in the crowd was Rick Perez, 49, who wears his colors on his sleeve - along with an autograph from the team's coach.

Perez, who wore red pants, red shoes, a red wig and face paint, has the signature of Coach Ken Whisenhunt on the left sleeve of his red jacket, and the autograph of two other players - he can't read or remember who they are - on the right one. He also has Kurt Warner's autograph on his jersey.

"It just feels great to be here," Perez said. "I never dreamed they would make it here. Hopefully, it's the first of many."

For Hope Eckenrode of Westchase and Gina Hazelet of Pittsburgh, it was another in the many Super Bowls they have watched in person. It marked the fifth for Hazelet and the fourth or fifth for Eckenrode - when you've been to so many, it's hard to remember the exact number.

"It's awesome, we've been excited about the Super Bowl being here," Eckenrode said. "We're just thrilled to be here in our hometown."

Hazelet carries a color photograph of her and Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger from a celebrity golf tournament in May when she told the player he would be the Super Bowl MVP this year. She had told the same to Hines Ward and to Eli Manning, she said, in years when they went on to win the award. She hopes ESPN will do a feature on her if this one comes true.

Warren Zatezalo came all the way from Tel Aviv, Israel, arriving at 6 a.m. Sunday, to catch his beloved Steelers in the Super Bowl. A pilot for Delta Air Lines, Zatezalo lives in Atlanta but grew up in the Steel City.

He ranked the Super Bowl experience in the top five of his lifetime - the birth of his first son being No. 1 and then his third marriage being No. 2. He was a little cloudy on the rest of his top five.

His friend and neighbor Bob Somers said being in Tampa for the Super Bowl was much better than being in Detroit two years ago. "We froze our ... off," Somers said of the Motor City experience. "This is much warmer. It's great to be here in the middle of it all. It looks like Heinz Field with all of the Terrible Towels."

For Zachary White of Lincoln City, Ore., the Super Bowl was a dream come true - literally - made possible by the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The 17-year-old suffers from a mental disorder and told organizers he wanted to go to the Super Bowl, sit on the 50-yard line and hang out in the ESPN booth as well.

White, sporting a No. 7 Steelers jersey, had to settle for an end-zone seat, but he was not complaining.

"It's very exciting," he said with a big grin. "It's what I always wanted to do."

Editor Rob Shaw can be reached at (813) 259-7999.

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