Pittsburgh fans love post season

Alex Meckley, 11, of Littlestown and Kolby Howe, 16, of New Oxford, left, both lifelong Steelers fans had the privilage of sitting in two original seats from Three Rivers Stadium to watch the game Sunday with their parents at Scozzaro's Old Mill Inn. (Evening Sun photo by Dick Bloom)

By SETH GOLDSTEIN
Evening Sun Reporter

With the Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs, Carl Scozzaro is all smiles.

The owner of Scozzaro's Old Mill Inn has made his restaurant and lounge the go-to place for Steeler fans who want to watch every game. He's even created a club for them.

"Right now the Steelers Fan Club has 53 members," Scozzaro said. "We play every Steelers game, so members come to watch the game with family and friends. It's really a great atmosphere."

Sunday, more than 40 Steelers fans from across the area filled Scozzaro's Old Mill Inn, outside New Oxford on Route 30, to watch the Steelers crush the Cincinnati Bengals.

On game days, club members receive discounts on drinks and after every touchdown there's a raffle, Scozzaro said.

"We give away all kinds of memorabilia," he said. "Steeler hats, jerseys, coats, you name it."

One of Scozzaro's prized possessions are the two seats and a slab of Astroturf he bought at an auction after Three Rivers Stadium was demolished.

"During the playoffs the winner of each raffle gets a chance to sit in the seats and watch the game," he said.

Scozzaro, who is originally from Massachusetts, said he became a Steelers fan when he moved to the New Oxford area and bought the Old Mill Inn eight years ago.

"My grandparents are from Pittsburgh and my daughter goes to Pitt, so I have some pretty strong ties to the area," he said.

People from all over the York-Adams area come to the Old Mill Inn on game days to watch the Steelers take to the turf.

Some of the fans have ties to Pittsburgh, some don't, he said. The Steelers Fan Club has been growing every year since he started it four years ago.

For many, the love for the Steelers spans generations.

Sitting at the bar, clad in a Troy Polamalu jersey, Lisa Arcuri, of New Oxford, said the love for the Steelers is a family affair.

From her grandfather to her 25-year-old daughter, the whole family is made up of Steelers fanatics.

"I've been a member of the Steelers Fan Club since it started four years ago," Arcuri said, sitting at the bar with other like-minded Steeler fans. "I'm a huge fan of Polamalu, because he's an awesome player. His eyes are always on the ball."

Suddenly the crowd began chanting "Here were go, Steelers. Here we go!"

After three or four rounds of chanting, the crowd cheered wildly as the team took to the field.

"This is the place to be when the Steelers play," Arcuri said. "The camaraderie is great. It's so much fun to watch a football game with so many other Steeler fans."

Terry Hynes, of Hanover, came to the bar with his wife Barb and their friends Jen Mastervich and Craig Prieber.

"I've been a Steelers fan all my life," he said. "I'm originally from the Pittsburgh area. There's nothing better than the Steelers in the playoffs. They're going all the way to the Super Bowl."

Prieber, who admitted he's a Baltimore Ravens fan, said he came along with his girlfriend, Mastervich, for moral support.

"I was told I was to be on my best behavior," he said. "So far, so good."

As the game got underway, the bar erupted with cheers when the Steelers made the first tackle.

Across the room from Hynes, Greg Wacker, of Hanover, and his posse of Steeler fans start cheering wildly.

"I was born and raised a Steeler fan," Wacker said, screaming over the hoots of fans angry with a referee's call. "I've always lived in Hanover, but my family has always loved the Steelers."

Being a diehard Steeler fan means you have to be willing to take to the road, he said.

"My sister owns a bar in the Baltimore area," he said. "When the Steelers played the Ravens this year, I rented a 15-person van and took my whole Steelers group down and we infiltrated her place. They weren't expecting us. We just walked in with a boom box blaring 'Let's go, Steelers!' It was completely unexpected, but hilarious."

Even as a young kid, Wacker had Steelers fever.

"I used to have little Steeler footsie pajamas," he said, with a laugh.

From Steeler pajamas to more than $50,000 in team memorabilia, the fever comes in all forms.

Tom Brenner, of Littlestown, who was watching the game with his fiancée Lee Shoop, started collecting Steeler artifacts when he was little.

"I just started collecting stuff," he said. "I had to rent a shed to hold all my stuff. When me and my fiancée buy a house this summer, I'm taking over the basement."

His collection includes more than 100 autographed helmets.

"I had close to 850,000 football cards," Brenner said. "I traded all of them for other types of memorabilia. I will never sell any of my stuff, ever."

Born and raised in Littlestown, Brenner said at age 7 he decided he liked the Steelers and never looked back. He's owned season tickets since 1992.

"I'm loyal to the end. That was 1974." he said. "Every home game, I'm there cheering on my team."

Contact Seth Goldstein at sgoldstein@eveningsun.com.