Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

Hey Guys:
I've often thought about the many different tunnels in NFL stadiums which connect the playing field to a team's locker room. I saw glimpses of these as a kid watching NFL Films. When I was in my early 20s, I snuck in to Baltimore's Memorial Stadium and (without a flashlight, unfortunately) tried to traverse the darkened walkways leading from the field to the Colts and Orioles locker rooms. It was actually strange, as it led down a small set of stairs, then up a small set of stairs, then curved around a to a point where I was just feeling my way around in the dark. Even though I was in my early 20s, I still thought this was really neat. Does anybody out there have similar stories about checking out stadium tunnels? I always wondered about the older stadiums, and the narrow passageways that the players had to walk through to get to the field. I know that Kansas City's Municipal Stadium had a long corridor for the visiting team, and I know that Three Rivers Stadium had players zig-zagging a few times until the locker room was reached. I'd love to read your stories on this topic. Take care!
Sincerely,
Joe Zagorski

When I was a kid I went on a tour of Anaheim Stadium, we went everywhere in the stadium and got to walk the outfield - it was during baseball season - and locker rooms and such.

Family business has long history of holding it's events in both the Kingdome and then Seahawks Stadium/CenturyLink Field so I've walked the locker room tunnels and pretty much everywhere in both, besides going in the actual locker rooms.

A different family business was one of the companies involved in building Safeco Field, so I went pretty much everywhere as it was built from the ground up. Also got a cool "original builders" limited edition baseball out of that deal.

I went to Oregon State football camp all four years of high school and we went everywhere in the stadium and the offices, locker rooms, weight room, stayed in the dorms, etc ... and played on the field at Reser (one letter off!) Stadium for our passing league (7o7) games and for our scrimmages (note: my freshman year it was still Parker Stadium.)

After our practice one day at Phoenix College one of the receivers and myself went to Tempe, AZ to check the city out. We were walking by Sun Devil Stadium and the gates were open so we just walked in. The security and the people that were setting up some on-field banquet stage/tables at the far end of the stadium didn't say anything and, as always, I had my football with me so we threw the route tree a couple times on Frank Kush Field, before taking our own tour of the stadium which we walked under the stadium (can't confirm if it was to locker rooms though, we were just walking around and went up into the stands) and pretty much walked the entire stadium from bottom to top. Always liked being able to say I threw passes on a field that had the Super Bowl, decided National Championships, etc ...

Been other stadiums/arenas I've walked not including the locker room tunnels, most fun was probably the Rose Bowl, which I was there and there was only about 1,000 people in the stands and maybe two security guards in the entire stadium so I did my own tour of the stands and around the field.

There was no tunnel.
Just beyond and to the left of Willie, you can see a flight of stairs. Those stairs led to the home team locker room. Not visible, is another set of stairs on the other side of the vehicle(s) entrance that led to the visitors' locker room. Back in the day, there was never a police line circling the field. Fans from the stands could walk onto the field and exit through the garage roll-up doors. If the game ended near the other goal line, you could walk with the players to the stairs. In the sixth grade, I was allowed to go to the games with a kid from the eighth grade. Kick-off was at 2:00 so we'd leave right after 9 o'clock Mass and take the subway to the Polo Grounds. Then we were herded like cattle around the outside of the stadium in groups of about 200-or-so. That was for the 50-cents bleacher seats (which were just benches.) Those that didn't get in were just turned away or, if they had the price of general admission, went to one of the ticket windows at the home plate end of the stadium. We never did. I usually had a buck. If I could jump the turnstile at the subway, I saved 15-cents. If there was a cop there, I paid (unless it was someone we knew and he looked the other way.)
So, I had a dime for a hot chocolate and a dime for a program.
One time, John Q (the kid I went to the games with,) said to follow him and keep my mouth shut. We went to the foot of the stairs and just as the guard was about to say something, John looked up the stairs and yelled "Okay! We're coming." Up the stairs we ran and into the locker room. We didn't dare ask for autographs because we were "supposed" to be there. After about 15 minutes, our game was over. When someone asked what I was doing, I told him I was trying to find my way out. He helped me. So, we waited outside with the mob until the players started to trickle out.
Never! on the 40 or 50 days that I went to the Polo Grounds, never did I see a member of the New York Giants or the New York Football Giants refuse an autograph. Ever! The same was true at Yankee Stadium (except for Joe DiMaggio.)
A one-time gambit... once, for some reason, there was an "affair" after Mass and we got a late start. We were among those turned away when the bleachers were filled. We went to the other end and asked people if they had an extra ticket. (I had heard from other kids that this worked. It did not - not for us anyway.)
So, it was getting close to game time and we were gonna head home. I had an idea and told my friend to come with me. I picked a lonely door on the 1st-base side that did not service a ticket window. I asked the cop if he knew where my uncle Danny was working. He looked at me like I was nuts and asked how would he know my uncle. I told him they worked together and Danny was in the 23rd Precinct. (They wore these little numbers on their collars with their precincts. This guy was from the 40th.) He immediately softened. I told him I screwed up and was probably at the wrong place but was supposed to meet my uncle about a half-hour ago. He looked at us and opened the door and told me to go inside and see if I could find my uncle. At the time, there were probably only 25,000 guys on the NYPD but none of them knew everyone. (Three "Our Fathers," three "Hail Marys," and a good "Act of Contrition" got me off the hook.)