Fan fervor boiling over: Pats camp a huge hit

TDJets72027 · Aug 10, 2007

Here are some of the acts that have received raucous applause at Patriots [team stats] training camp over the last two weeks: Bill Belichick twirling his whistle, Junior Seau taking a lap for jumping offsides, Tom Brady [stats] walking to the sideline for a breather.
It’s fair to say interest has never been higher in the Pats, who reloaded this offseason, are everyone’s chic pick to win it all, and have assembled the most star-studded squad of Belichick’s tenure.
The Pats open their exhibition schedule tonight in Tampa, and judging from the turnout at training camp, where fans have arrived in record numbers, the TV ratings could end up being more like a regular-season tilt than a preseason one.

“I know the Patriots are going to bring their fans out,” said wide receiver Randy Moss early in camp. “I love to see them.”
Pats fans have been everywhere this month. Last year they averaged 2,926 per practice session, with just under 12,000 season ticket-holders attending a separate VIP night. This year, the average has pushed 5,000, with a record 7,975 attending practice on July 29. This year’s VIP night drew 16,247 fans, an increase of 37 percent over 2006.
The Patriots Experience, an interactive theme park located next to the practice fields, was a hit during its two-week run.
“We’ve been getting our largest crowds. Every practice has been greater than it’s ever been on the similar days previously,” owner Robert Kraft said last week. “Obviously people are excited about the team. But not more excited than the Kraft family. We can’t wait for the season to start. To see what kind of crowd was here, it’s just tremendous support.”
The fans have made themselves heard over the last two weeks, crazily cheering every completion to Moss before he tweaked a hamstring and basically rewarding almost every action with a standing ovation.
“When we run out in practice and when we run laps because we’re getting in trouble, we get cheered for that, so I don’t know if they know why we’re running,” Brady joked. “I don’t think they’d be cheering us if they did.”
The reasons for the heightened interest are obvious. The Patriots have been synonymous with winning since 2001, but they’ve never loaded up with the kind of freshly signed marquee talent dotting this roster, from wide receivers Moss, Donte’ Stallworth and Wes Welker to linebacker Adalius Thomas. Add holdovers like Brady, defensive end Richard Seymour [stats], linebacker Tedy Bruschi [stats] and running back Laurence Maroney [stats], and the Patriots appear deep at virtually every position.
The result is a fan base that has turned out in droves and is attempting to do the unthinkable: push the Red Sox [team stats] off the back page of the newspaper. On the message boards at fan site Patsfans.com, seven of the 10 most-viewed threads since 2005 have been composed this year.
“I just see the excitement and that’s what makes me happy,” Moss said. “Just seeing the excitement of the fans, players and coaches. You can see how family-oriented this organization is, including the fans.”
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http://patriots.bostonherald.com/patriots/view.bg?articleid=1016368

fumetti · Aug 11, 2007

Methinks Foxboro and the sports media are acting like NE's already got the Superbowl won.

There's a lot of football left to play (as in, all of it). Anything could happen.

How many preseason favorites actually win it all? Very, very few.

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Fan fervor boiling over: Pats camp a huge hit

TDJets72027 Rex Ryan baby

fumetti Fan Since 1980!

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Fan fervor boiling over: Pats camp a huge hit

TDJets72027 Rex Ryan baby

fumetti Fan Since 1980!

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