READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL
Robert Jones desperately tried to watch NFL opening day games last Sunday while Hurricane Irma raged outside.
“We didn’t have any power, so we tried watching football games on our phones,” said Jones, a 25-year-old Fort Lauderdale resident, “and it wasn’t working.”
All across South Florida, there were similar stories of football frustration. But the long wait for Dolphins fans ends today, as Miami begins its season with a 4:05 p.m. game at the Los Angeles Chargers — a week after the scheduled opener that was postponed because of Irma.
“This Sunday I’m going to sit down
and consume all the football that I can get to catch up,” Jones said. “And then hopefully watch the Dolphins get a win versus the Chargers, which I was feeling good about, now I’m not as sure.
“We’re going to be prepared, at the least.”
The Dolphins flew players, coaches and their families to Southern California on the Friday before the storm, and the team practiced there this week.
For their fans, who had already spent an anxious eight months waiting to see their favorite team — coming off its first playoff appearance since 2008 — they had an extra seven days of anticipation.
“It wasn’t a good week,” said Eric Dugue, a 29-year-old Miramar resident.
Hurricane Irma forced the Dolphins and Buccaneers to push their scheduled Sept. 10 opener at Hard Rock Stadium to Nov. 19, which had been a bye week for both teams.
That means Dolphins fans won’t get to see a home game until Oct. 8. After facing the Chargers in Los Angeles, the Dolphins play in New York against the Jets on Sept. 24, and then in London against the New Orleans Saints on Oct. 1.
“Horrible,” Dugue said of the wait.
That said, local fans will get their long-awaited football fix today, albeit on TV.
Dugue, sitting in a booth at Duffy’s Sports Grill in Fort Lauderdale one night this week, said he’ll cook some steaks and drink some beer as he watches the games.
“I think it’s going to be a good Sunday, a good Dolphins game Sunday,” he said. “Definitely.”
Curtis Chance, a 42-year-old Pompano Beach resident, said he’s “all-in with the football this weekend” after he lost power last Saturday and didn’t regain it until Friday.
Chance was so excited to have his power back that he spent part of Friday afternoon scouting the Dolphins’ opponent by watching a replay of last week’s Chargers-Broncos game. He wasn’t impressed with the Chargers and thinks the Dolphins should prevail.
“I know we’ve got them,” Chance said, before pondering his statement and adding, “I hope so, anyway.”
Wesley Duncan also has plans to watch the Dolphins-Chargers game after spending last Sunday in his house, hurricane shutters closed, hoping for the best, with no electricity and no football.
“Probably out at a bar,” the 58-year-old Fort Lauderdale resident said. “I’ve been at home enough.”
Typically, the NFL’s opening weekend is like a holiday for football fans. “Especially with the Dolphins playing, you know, you’re hyped up,” Jones said.
Omar Shields, a 41-year-old North Lauderdale resident, was particularly excited because he’d just purchased the NFL Sunday Ticket package on DirecTV, which allows viewers to watch almost every game. He lost power about 3 p.m. last Sunday.
“I tried to watch a little of the games on my phone,” he said, “but it wasn’t showing as good.”
Some fans found comfort in gallows humor.
Matt Letourneau, a 30-year-old Fort Lauderdale real estate investor, joked he was disappointed the Dolphins game was postponed due to a “little wind.”
“I thought the O-line would be up to it,” he cracked about the Dolphins’ beefy offensive linemen, who weigh about 300 pounds per man.
Letourneau, a former Minnesota Vikings fan who has lived here five years, was among those who fled ahead of the storm. He joined his three brothers in an SUV and embarked on a journey to Orlando, normally a three-hour drive that took nine hours. “It was gridlock,” he said. His frustration was eased greatly when the foursome decided to go “a little bit west, to Biloxi, Miss., and had some fun. Did a little gambling.” And watched football. That wasn’t the Sunday experience for most, however.
Jones considers himself lucky. He regained power about midnight and was able to enjoy football the next day.
“Monday Night Football was our solace,” he said. “It’s all we had. It’s Week 1, and you’re trying to get some football.”
Just as South Florida has been putting things back together, so too are Dolphins fans with their Sunday football-watching plans for Week 2.
“I’m going to go probably to a local establishment, like a Bokamper’s or something,” Letourneau said, “watch all the games, and hope for the best.”