’Goldbergs’ show throwback love to Super Bowl champs

PHILADELPHIA » The Eagles might want to make room on the shelf for some Emmys next to the Lombardi Trophy.

The real Philly Special was throwing it back to the ‘80s on an episode of “The Goldbergs.”

The casting call for an Eagles ensemble came last year when “Goldbergs” creator Adam Goldberg picked a football theme for his latest Philly sports episode. The furry green Philly Phanatic had guest starred and Flyers gear is much a part of the fabric of the show as Bev Goldberg dropping a “schmoopie” reference. So it seemed fitting the Eagles would eventually get co-billing, and they do, on Wednesday night’s “Hail Barry” episode.

About the only thing Goldberg couldn’t script was a perfect ending: He watched the Super Bowl at a party in Los Angeles and had to skip a hopeful trip to the Eagles’ championship parade because of a time crunch to write this season’s final episodes.

One cool part of being the boss of your own show is getting the chance to invite your idols to the set. His Jenkintown family was part of a group that shared Flyers season tickets from 1985 to 1994 and older brother Barry was a diehard Eagles fan. The 41-year-old Goldberg said his older brother arranged his wedding around an Eagles game, and is still a seasonticket holder even though he lives in New York. “The Goldbergs” featured an episode on Eagles’ game-day superstitions but Goldberg went straight to the source for this week’s homage — 1980s star wide receiver Mike Quick.

Quick, a five-time Pro Bowl pick in the 1980s, was Barry Goldberg’s favorite player and plays an assistant high school coach in “Hail Barry.” Eagles president Don Smolenski, vice president of football operations Howie Roseman and radio announcer Merrill Reese all make cameos. The Eagles executives made an appearance on the set when the team spent a week in Los Angeles in December between road games at Seattle and Los Angeles.