Arlington Mayor Reminding Everyone Game Is In His Town
ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) - The two teams headed to Super Bowl XLV, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers, are excited about being in the big game February 6th. But many of the players and sports analysts are not factually correct about the location of the game and that has some members of the Super Bowl Host Committee unhappy.
After the AFC Championship, Pittsburgh Steelers Coach Mike Tomlin yelled from the podium "See everybody in Dallas!"
The Mayor of Arlington wants to make sure that everyone knows the game will be played in his city. When asked if his feelings are hurt by the references to Dallas, Mayor Robert Cluck said "I don't ever get hurt feelings. I get anger."
Cluck says he has received reassurances from Cowboys owner Jerry Jones that sports analysts covering the Super Bowl will correctly state that it's being played in Arlington.
"It's like taking fingers and rubbing it on the blackboard and the screeching sound" says Drew Pearson, former wide receiver for the Cowboys and current member of the Super Bowl Host Committee. Pearson says when football players say the game is going to be played in Dallas, it "gets your attention."
The entire region is expected to benefit from the Super Bowl and all of the events tied to the game. But Irving Mayor Herbert Gears can relate to the confusion. The Dallas Cowboys headquarters is in Irving. The team used to play at Texas Stadium in Irving and Gears points out that the team's practice facility is still in his city.
"The players, they come out to Irving, punch their time clock, take their lunch bucket over here to Arlington and do their work, come back to Irving and pickup their paychecks" says Gears. "So tell us where's the home of the Dallas Cowboys" he says.
No matter where the players and coaches say the game is being played, both mayors say this is an exciting time for North Texas.
