Philadelphia eagles santa claus incident

Olivo, known as the Santa who was booed and dodged snowballs during halftime at a Eagles game, believes the infamous snowball episode launched the Philadelphia Eagles reputation for boorish fans.

Yes, the NFC East title is still in sight for the Eagles when they host the New York Giants — but the date alone is enough to make fans at the Linc cringe at reminders of a bad rap and a bad Santa. It's Christmas in Philadelphia and you know what that means: Santa and snowballs and a time of month that cursed Philly fans for almost six decades with a reputation that they are the most belligerent, boorish ones in all of sports. You've surely heard the tale before: how fans near the end of one of the worst seasons in Eagles history dipped their fingers into snow at Franklin Field on a frigid December afternoon, cupped their hands and pelted poor ol' Santa Claus with snowballs — long before anyone was beaten at Dodgers Stadium, or a Kansas City Royals coach was assaulted on the infield, or the "Malice at the Palace" occurred, or any of the other countless incidents of abominable behavior that surely would stain any other team's fanbase — except they weren't from Philly. The Eagles, only six years removed from an NFL championship, started in under coach Joe Kuharich and seem poised to finish with the worst record in the league and earn the No. That meant a chance at selecting USC running back O. Only once the Eagles won two straight games — hadn't anyone heard of Tankadelphia? And when the Eagles needed a pinch-hit Santa to fill in for the real-deal halftime act either stranded elsewhere in a snowstorm or simply no-showing because of one, they plucked a fan out of the stands who happened to dress as Saint Nick to toss candy canes into the crowd.

Philadelphia eagles santa claus incident

The Philadelphia Citizen series Your City Defined breaks down the language, institutions, rules of thumb, traditions, quirks, and rituals that are unique to Philly. BY Larry Platt. It is the stuff of legend. You hear it during Philadelphia Eagles , on sports talk radio, in the national media : The Philly boo-bird is so heartless, so hard to please, we once even booed Santa. Possibly pelted him with snowballs. But, as is so often the case, there was more to the story. Thanks to Anthony Gargano and Glen Macnow , we now know the details and the context. On December 15, , the last-place Eagles, with a record of , were facing the Minnesota Vikings at Franklin Field before 54, fans in a gusting snowstorm with 30 mile per hour winds. Simpson, who, long before committing a double homicide, could actually run really fast. Anyway, the fans were in a foul mood. There were three inches of slush on their wooden seats and they were seeing their chances of drafting Simpson slipping away. Mid-game, one fan came onto the field and ran up to coach Joe Kuharich to give him a piece of his mind. Another ran out carrying a giant effigy of team owner Jerry Wolman. Only there was no Santa to be found. He was either late due to the weather, or too drunk to go on.

Santas in the stands at Eagles-Giants. The Philadelphia Citizen will only publish thoughtful, civil comments. Philly resident Frank Olivo came to the game in costume, hoping he would get on TV.

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From Philly and the Pa. Let us know! The year was — a disastrous season for the Philadelphia Eagles. The team ended with a record and lost its final game of the season in disappointing fashion exactly 55 years ago Friday. But the reason the contest has gone down in the history books is due to unusual half-time festivities. But even that showing was just good enough to guarantee they would not get the first pick in the college draft, a star running back called O. Simpson, because the Buffalo Bills had only a single victory that season.

Philadelphia eagles santa claus incident

Philadelphia has a reputation across professional sports for having the roughest fans. Nobody knows that better than Frank Olivo. The Eagles were bad that season. They went into the game with a record, but they were coming off two wins in a row, which hurt their odds at the No. So fans went into the stadium annoyed — if they were going to be bad, the least they could do was get the top pick. In that draft, it would have been O. Fans arrived to the stadium that afternoon with snow in their seats to watch a poor team in unfavorable weather. Philadelphia fans throwing snowballs at Santa Claus is a topic that can come up during any Eagles broadcast, and maybe even other professional Philly sports games, too. Cinderella Stories View team list. Soccer Fantasy Soccer View team list.

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Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description is different from Wikidata. Retrieved 25 November Buried deep in the Philadelphia Inquirer game story was a note that "fans amused themselves by pelting both benches with snowballs. This was film of yesteryear -- black and white, not colorbut the scene was unmistakable. When you do an unusual news story, it is common to check other media outlets to see how they handled it if they did. It was my job to handle the last four months of the year and not mess things up until a replacement for Harry was free of his contract in Atlanta. Fans among the 54, listed at Franklin Field would shoot video of the snowball hurlers, social media haters would take off like Rudolph in the sky and local newspapers and websites would blast tabloid headlines like "Rough Sledding" with a photo of Santa taking one on the chin. The Daily Pennsylvanian. The year was — a disastrous season for the Philadelphia Eagles. When it came to the Eagles feet of film, we did a double-take. He went onto the field only as a favor.

The incident occurred on December 15, , in Week 14, at the time the final week of the NFL season, with the struggling Eagles sitting at 2—11 on the season. Tied 7—7 at halftime, the team brought out Santa Claus as part of the halftime Christmas parade; but Eagles fans upset by the poor season pelted him with snowballs. The affair has gone down in NFL and sports lore as a representation of the passion, but also the outrageous behavior of Philadelphia sports fans.

Only a funny thing has happened over the decades since fans had the best arms in Philly and a jail cell was needed at Veterans Stadium, and diehards packed DieHards with each ticket purchased, Philly crowds have become — nice. It is December and Eagles fans are angry. Another ran out carrying a giant effigy of team owner Jerry Wolman. That season culminated with one of the most storied events in the citys sports history: the fans throwing snow balls at Santa Claus. When shown on the jumbotron, he was greeted with cheers. First it was snow. Possibly pelted him with snowballs. Details with film coming up next. Most Read. There are many versions of what actually happened that day. Here is Pierrons letter: NFL. Only a funny thing has happened over the decades since fans had the best arms in Philly and a jail cell was needed at Veterans Stadium, and diehards packed DieHards with each ticket purchased, Philly crowds have become — nice. Fans among the 54, listed at Franklin Field would shoot video of the snowball hurlers, social media haters would take off like Rudolph in the sky and local newspapers and websites would blast tabloid headlines like "Rough Sledding" with a photo of Santa taking one on the chin. More from CBS News. The incident occurred on December 15, , in Week 14, at the time the final week of the NFL season, with the struggling Eagles sitting at 2—11 on the season.