Ian Meets Steelers Legend / Our Boy Ian and his impact on people!
The Strength of Child
A Day to Remember:
2 Saturday's ago started out like any other Saturday. We had a plan to go and watch the Pittsburgh Power in their 1st scrimmage of the year. Boy would it turn out to be different.
The First sign the day would be different:
As the players completed their warm ups and fans entered the field in the fan area, we were approached by a man in Pittsburgh Power
attire. He looked as if he were a coach and he carried himself as a
coach. He walked over to Ian and introduced himself and then looked at
Natalie, my Father and I and introduced himself to us. He thanked us
for being there and said the Power needed good fans like us. He was
drawn to Ian and even expressed concern as to how close we were to the
wall and that footballs and players would come flying into the wall and
that we should be careful. We were impressed by his genuine concern,
personality and overall approach. It was clear to see he came up to us
because he wanted to meet Ian! When he left us we watched where he
went. He is the Head Coach of the Pittsburgh Power; Derek Stingley. We were impressed!
The Scrimmage:
The scrimmage was held at Southpointe Field-house in Cannonsburgh, PA.
A very nice indoor facility with field turf. The Arena game is fast
with huge collisions. We witnessed many players getting hit into the
inflatable walls. It looked fun and I believe the players felt the
same. The layout of the day was a typical scrimmage with the 2 teams
practicing together for the first hour and a half:
*Pass rush 1 on 1 drills
*1 on 1 WR vs. DB drills
*Blitz pick up & perimeter pass drills.
The Surprise:
As the scrimmage was going on and we were engaged in the speed and pace
of things as they were happening we noticed a gentleman entering the
field-house to our left. He would have been very easy to miss, but we
did not! In walked Lynn Swann, the Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Fame WR
and we would later find out the owner of the Pittsburgh Power. He
entered with one of his sons. He walked over to the teams and instantly
was a celebrity. We for the moment just thought he was out to see the
day's event. He blended in and we just went back to watching the
scrimmage.
The Scrimmage continued:
The competition was entertaining and the players were competing against
each each other which created a great atmosphere. There were a lot of
people in attendance so the players were excited to see the fans and
their play on the field showed great effort. As a coach I respected and
enjoyed their efforts as I know the coaches from both teams had to be
pleased.
The 2nd portion of the scrimmage was a live scrimmage with officials,
chains and game like situations. This lasted for almost an hour and a
half. Both teams had big moments with long passes, short quick screens a
few timely runs and of course the defenses were aggressive with big
hits and QB sacks.
The Surprise continued:
The scrimmage ended and the players and coaches greeting each other with
hand shakes in the middle of the field. The Power staff then took down
the inflatable walls and immediately the fans, players and coaches
mingled. At the moment we were talking
with some folks, Lynn Swann began to walk near by us. He was drawn to Ian as
was the head coach earlier. He came over to me, I introduced him to
Ian & Natalie. We spoke for a moment. He was
polite and gracious to us. When he left us we looked at each other and
said, "That was Lynn Swann!" He is one of the all time greats! We
watched him as he walked to the door and fans began to approach him for
autographs, pictures and hand shakes. Everybody wanted a moment with
the Hall of Fame Steelers legend. He was gracious to all but you could
see he had experience with crowds and was able to exit out the door.
We continued to talk with some of the folks as there was a buzz in the air. Football was here! Out of nowhere Lynn Swann returned to us with a
member of the Power staff and a camera. He walked over to us and asked
us if he could get a picture with Ian. He then went to gather a number
of Power players and directed them to come over and introduce themselves
to us. He was teaching his players to interact with fans and Ian was
who he wanted his players to meet. It was a great moment and just
another incredible opportunity to see the impact that Ian has on people,
even a 4-time Super Bowl winner and Hall of Fame WR Lynn Swann.
The Day ended:
Overall the day was very entertaining and we enjoyed the moment to be watching professional Arena football.
We look forward to the season and would recommend that Pittsburgh fans support the Power by going to the games. It
is great entertainment, the players and coaches are professionals and
the atmosphere is energizing.
One of the WPIAL's most versatile and highly recruited
players...contributed at no fewer than five different positions during
his Shaler Area varsity career, including running back, receiver, tight
end, linebacker and punter...played quarterback as a
freshman...considered one of the country's top tight end
prospects...rated the nation's No. 10 tight end by Scout...as a senior,
rushed for 337 yards on 72 carries, caught 19 passes for 332 yards and
scored 15 touchdowns...Pennsylvania Football News All-Class
AAAA...Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Fabulous 22"...Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
"Terrific 25"...All-Northern Seven...selected to play in the Big 33
Football Classic...rated Pennsylvania's No. 10 overall prospect by Scout
and No. 24 by Rivals...led Shaler to the WPIAL Class AAAA playoffs as a
senior...played under Coach Neil Gordon...a four-year varsity letterman
in both football and basketball...played center on the basketball team
and helped Shaler to a 20-2 regular-season mark, the WPIAL Section 3
title and PIAA Class AAAA playoffs as a senior.
