Stuck in a Moment I Didn't Want to Get Out Of

On December 23, 1972 I was eleven year old and walking with my family through downtown Charleroi, Pennsylvania, twenty-five miles south of Pittsburgh. At the time, Charleroi was a bustling small town alive with the spirited yuletide hustle of holiday shoppers.

As a young football fan, I couldn't believe the recent good fortune of the Pittsburgh Steelers. They enjoyed a winning season and advanced to the NFL playoffs for the first time in nearly thirty years.

Some time before 4pm on that brisk winter day, I made a break from my parents and took my brother with me so we could do our own shopping.

Upon getting free, my brother and I snuck over to the TV section of Montgomery Wards to check out the Steelers playing the Raiders in the AFC Conference Playoffs. The Raiders were up by a point late in the game. It didn't look good so we left the store and were able to listen to the game on the streets, thanks to the many speakers that were hung throughout the town courtesy of the local radio station.

I paused under a speaker as radio announcer Jack Fleming set up the last play of the game. He grimly explained that Steelers Quarterback Terry Bradshaw was flushed out of the pocket and, as a last ditch effort, heaved the ball downfield. For a millisecond, I thought the pass was incomplete. I looked around as the shoppers passed by. No one stopped. Surely their conditioning of losing Steelers seasons prepared them for the moment.

Suddenly, Mr. Fleming's vocal timbre changed from grim to joyful. He couldn't figure out where rookie tailback Franco Harris came from and how he hustled more than fifty years for an apparent score.

Moments later, the catch was ruled a touchdown and the Steelers won the game. I remember looking along Fifth Street and Fallowfield Avenue as the shoppers seemed frozen for a moment in time. We collectively realized that the Pittsburgh Steelers were but one win away from the Super Bowl.

The hoots and the howls and the smiles instantly shook off the cold and dampness of the day.

The catch was later dubbed the "Immaculate Reception," which was a "neologism" based on one of the most prized biblical moments. The phrase hastened the controversy. Instant replay did not exist in those days. That didn't stop the many that were on the field and in the stadium from weighing in on whether or not Harris' catch was official.

The play was voted the most controversial in NFL history.

The Steelers lost the next week to the Miami Dolphins who went on to create history of their own.

A few short seasons later, the Steelers went from a hard luck crew to the elite of the NFL.

There have been many incredible moments since then but for me none matched up to being in the heart of town who suddenly realized that great things were at hand.