Steelers Fans Find Home in Hoboken

While many  in the AFC Championship game two weeks ago, one group of Hobokenites is elated to see the Pittsburgh Steelers play in Superbowl XLV on Sunday.

Steelers in Hoboken was founded in 2000 by Pittsburgh natives Benjamin Stern and David Kovscek, who shared an apartment in Hoboken at the time. The pair originally held their Steelers gatherings at , which only required that the friends bring in 15 or 20 fans to watch the game. When Stern and Kovoscek left the Hoboken area, they handed the club over to friends who would keep the tradition alive.

The club was in Hoboken on Thursday morning to be interviewed by 1010 WINS Talk Radio and to "rally" and hang out before the big game on Sunday. 

Now in its eleventh season, the Steelers in Hoboken group has moved to , after outgrowing Liberty Bar. Some nights, they fill Texas Arizona to capacity.

“The walls were bulging (at Liberty Bar), so we knew we had to move,” said Ray Powers, president of SIH, of the 2004 move.

A fan of the Steelers since the 1970s (they were a “powerhouse,” he said), he watched in dismay as many of his friends growing up soon discarded their black and yellow jerseys for trendier teams.

“They were the underdog for awhile,” he said of the Steelers. “But thick or thin, we’re here.”

John Metzler, a member from Jersey City, dubbed “The Professor” for his knowledge of all things Steelers (and everything else), remembers getting kicked out of Hobson’s Choice by some Jets fans, and finding solace around the corner, at Texas Arizona.

Stan Lubowicki, another hardcore fan and group member, lives in Brooklyn, but comes from a coal-mining family from Pittsburgh.  He says he makes about 10 trips out to Pennsylvania per year, mostly for Steelers games.

He relayed a story from years ago when the Steelers were playing at Giants Stadium, and he couldn’t afford a ticket. A friend with an extra told Lubowicki that if he could pick up two friends from Brooklyn, and two from Hoboken, the ticket was his. Lubowicki awoke to 15 inches of snow that morning, but made the trek anyway. 

“It looked like you were in Alaska,” he said.

Members David Brandl and wife Kim, Lodi residents, also traveled to Hoboken to watch their beloved team.

“When I was a kid, there was Lynn Swan and Terry Bradshaw, just being the best at the time,” said David. He and Kim were alerted to the Hoboken group by a friend.

“It’s the biggest group in the north that we know of,” he said.

On Sunday, the group predicts that Texas Arizona will reach capacity quickly, with a line down the block. Doors will open by noon, and SIH members receive entry into the bar with a $25 cover charge that includes a commemorative t-shirt and gift. They will raffle off prizes, including a Steelers bike.