PITTSBURGH — Sunday’s Steelers game was meant to be a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the franchise’s first Super Bowl-winning team.
But this is 2024 and everything, even football, is touched by politics.
Former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee for president — and onetime owner of the now-defunct USFL’s New Jersey Generals — attended the game at the invitation of a private suite holder, after a weekend of campaigning in Pennsylvania.
The NBC broadcast of the game showed Trump in the suite just before the end of the first quarter.
Dok Harris, son of late Steelers running back Franco Harris, who was MVP of Super Bowl IX , on Sunday endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris (no relation). He said his father would have been thrilled to see a President Harris, and seemed unfazed by Trump’s plans to attend the game.
“Trump showing up to Acrisure Stadium, I don’t think it’s that big a deal,” Harris told the Capital-Star on Sunday. “The Cleveland Browns come one time a year. So we’re used to losers being there, we’re not scared by it.”
Harris said the legacy of the Super Bowl IX team remained intact regardless of who attends Sunday night’s game.
“Super Bowl IX was really what changed Pittsburgh, you know, created a city of champions, yeah, the ability for people to say, ‘Hey, I’m from Pittsburgh,’ with pride in their voice again, after, you know, some rough years, right?” Harris said. “So it doesn’t matter who shows up to cheer.”
Steelers tailgaters gathered outside Acrisure Stadium Sunday afternoon, as a plane circled overhead with a banner reading “Trump & Jets Fans: Both Jagoffs from NYC,” using a Pittsburgh pejorative to describe the former president and the visiting team.
Trump’s weekend in Pennsylvania: Praising Arnold Palmer’s anatomy and making fries at McDonald’s
Most tailgaters weren’t too keen to talk politics with a reporter on a beautiful October day; excuses ranged from “my boss doesn’t know I’m taking off for this game” to “I’ve got a job where I can’t talk about it” to “I’m not into politics.”
And those who were willing to share their thoughts — regardless of who they plan to vote for next month — didn’t seem too thrilled at having a presidential candidate show up at the game.
“If I knew [Trump] was going to be here three days ago, two days ago, I wouldn’t have come,” David Klan, 74, of Dillonvale, Ohio told the Capital-Star. He said he’s a Kamala Harris supporter, and was dismayed that Trump would be making an appearance, although he acknowledged it was a savvy move by the candidate to reach voters. “I don’t even want to be around him, he degrades people all the time. He has no respect for anyone but himself.”
Former Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, who was outside Acrisure Stadium helping register voters on Sunday, also attended a Trump rally in Latrobe on Saturday. Klan said he was not surprised that the former Steeler was supporting Trump.
“Antonio Brown hasn’t been right since he got hit in Cincinnati by that middle linebacker they had, he hasn’t been himself ever since,” he said. “He threw furniture off that balcony in Miami.”
Dave Stevick, 62, of Trafford, described himself as a Trump supporter.
“We bought tickets for the game. I’m here for the excitement of everybody around the game,” Stevick said. “I don’t dislike that he’s here, but I just think it might be a distraction.”
As for Brown, Stevick said he expected the former Steeler to be booed if he’s seen at the game.
But he said he understood why the candidates were spending so much time in the Keystone State. “Pennsylvania may decide the election,” he said. “But everything’s politics, it’s a business too. But once you get on the field, there’s no business, no politics.”
‘At least we can agree on cupcakes’
A group of about 50 to 60 Kamala Harris supporters joined the tailgate to give out cupcakes to celebrate her 60th birthday.
The “Tailgate for Kamala” event came through a partnership between the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, Allegheny County Young Democrats, College Democrats at Pitt and “Cakes for Kamala,” an initiative of “Founders for Kamala,” a private pro-Harris group of business owners. Harris turned 60 years old Sunday.
Around 6 p.m., “Tailgate for Harris” joined the middle of a large crowd of Steelers fans decked out in black and gold (and some in “Make America Great Again” hats), eating food off the grill and tossing footballs. The Harris supporters found a section of one of the parking lots to set up tables with hundreds of cupcakes, in addition to sodas, water and other snacks. The crowd united college Democrats with older Democrats motivated to support Harris.
“This thing all came together, literally Friday we thought of doing it,” said PA Dems Executive Director Mitch Kates. “Put it into action quick.”
He fondly referenced Franco Harris, who he recalled as a vocal and strong supporter of the Democratic party, including the ticket of President Joe Biden and Harris.
“We worked together for years, one election cycle after another,” Kates said. “It’s strange not having him here with us today, although he’s with us in spirit. This is definitely, in our opinion, this is Harris country.”
Pat Francis, press secretary for Pitt Dems, noted that more and more University of Pittsburgh students have become engaged in the election since Harris became the nominee.
“This event was organized to show that Pittsburgh isn’t Trump country,” Francis said.
Austin Wise, the political affairs director for Pennsylvania College Democrats, referenced a similar event at a Pitt Panthers college football game. He cited subsidies for first-time homebuyers, legalizing recreational marijuana and middle-class tax cuts as popular Harris 2024 policies among young democrats who run in his circles. He also said that more and more young people seem to be interested in unionizing.
Wise socialized with other young Democrats at the tailgate.
“We’re talking about winning,” Wise said. “Winning, winning, winning. We have our eyes on the prize. Especially college students are more energized than ever to win this election.”
A few groups of college students took boxes of cupcakes around the various tailgate parties to hand out to anyone interested. One squad offered cupcakes to a nearby group doing the synchronized dance of Chappell Roan’s “Hot to Go!”
Another, led by Pitt Dem co-president Henry Cohen and Carnegie Mellon University College Democrats president Avalon Sueiro, handed out about 50 to 60 cupcakes, by their estimation. Many turned them down, but others happily accepted a free treat. After giving someone a cupcake, the two would explain that the cupcakes are to celebrate Harris’ birthday – if someone said they planned to vote for her, Cohen would remind them to vote on Nov. 5. “We may not agree on everything,” Cohen would tell them, “but at least we can agree on cupcakes.”
One supporter of Trump accepted a cupcake and offered a hot dog in exchange, Cohen said. A woman asked why the two decided to give away free cupcakes, and after Cohen’s spiel, replied, “do you have vanilla?” She happily accepted one.
“At the end of the day, everyone likes cupcakes, and it’s good to find something that we can find common ground on, especially in a time that is this divisive,“ Sueiro said.
Cohen contrasted Trump watching the game in a private, luxury suite to Harris supporters like himself working on the ground.
“You have us here, out, actually doing stuff, actually talking to people,” Cohen said.
Dok Harris said he endorsed Kamala Harris because she more closely aligned with his family’s ideas of what a presidential candidate should be. He said he would be working to persuade other men to support her candidacy — recent polling suggests there is a large gender gap with women favoring Harris and men favoring Trump.
“What our job is on this team is to say, come on and join the team, because on the team, everybody has a role, everybody has a responsibility, but everybody comes together,” he said. “And when we all move ahead, the team wins.”
Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kim Lyons for questions: info@penncapital-star.com. Follow Pennsylvania Capital-Star on Facebook and X.