Conquering the Black Hole

I remember listening to my first Chiefs/Raiders game. I had only been in Kansas City about two months. It was pouring down rain in Oakland. Mitch Holthus was describing the Raiders’ field to me, and I could hardly believe his words. Holthus dubbed the Oakland Coliseum as the “Black Hole” of football fields. Not only was this field completely flooded on this particular day, it was covered in mud and possibly human sewage. Sparks flew in the tunnel the players ran out of due to the storm. 

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

For better or worse, the Oakland Coliseum has a rich history, both in football and in baseball. The Oakland Coliseum is the last of its kind housing both the Oakland A’s in baseball and the Raiders in football with both teams sharing the field two months out of the year. For years now Raiders home games during September and parts of October are played on the infield and part of the pitcher’s mound. Not only is it confusing for football spectators but for NFL players it was like playing on “a cement parking lot” and running as fast as you could only to “jump in the air and do a belly flop on the pavement.”

This and many more factors have made the Oakland Coliseum one of the worst and most notorious out of all 32. Raider Nation, however, has learned to embrace it, coining the term “Black Hole” with a positive connotation to it that ensures that it live up to its reputation. The team and the rest of the NFL however, do not embrace this part of Raider culture. In 2017 it was announced that the team would call Las Vegas home beginning in the 2020 season – making them the first NFL team to call the city home.

But until then, the Raiders will continue to play on this dual purpose, yet dangerous field until baseball season concludes for the A’s. And yesterday’s game was no exception. The “Black Hole” of Raiders’ Nation nearly threatened to break the spirit of Chiefs’ Kingdom. This was a big game for the Raiders. They wanted to end their last home game in Oakland by stomping their AFC west rivals. And Raider Nation had the same sentiment for as soon as the National Anthem ended and kickoff was about to take place, a rousing rumbling chant of “F*** the Chiefs” began to engulf the stadium.

During the first quarter, it seemed that the angry chants of Raider Nation within the “Black Hole” Oakland Coliseum was getting to our beloved Chiefs. Mahomes still hobbled on his ankle from his injury from the week prior. Tyreek “The Cheetah” Hill watched on the sidelines with his arm in a sling. Eric Fisher left with an injury during the first offensive series. Raiders’ rookie running back, Josh Jacobs, showed them up with chunk plays – even one as long as 51 yards at one point. With the sting from the venomous rumblings of Raider Nation in their ears, the Chiefs ended the first quarter 10-0. It was a moment all of Chiefs Kingdom had feared – that Andy Reid had finally run out of plays and our super human quarterback lost his luster.

I slumped on my couch – already dejected so early in the game, resigned to the fact that we might lose and give the Raiders one final home opener victory in Oakland. 

But as first quarter turned into second quarter, my hopes were restored...with a vengeance.

Patrick Mahomes put together a second quarter rarely seen in football today, finishing the quarter with 278 yards passing, four touchdown throws – making him only the second in league history to do so. This left Raiders Nation silent as a tomb at halftime with the score being 28-10 Chiefs as the teams left at the half. 

The second half proved to be easier than the first but not without its share of challenges. The Chiefs’ defense used a mix of interceptions and sacks to make sure the Raiders didn’t reach the end zone. By the end of the day, Mahomes had thrown 443 yards – making him the first player in NFL history to throw for over 800 yards in the first two games of the season with NO interceptions.

What had seemingly looked to be the last opening day victory for the Raiders in Oakland – turned out to be the Chiefs’ last opening day victory in the “Black Hole.” While the “Black Hole” will now be a thing of the past for football fans, the intense rivalry between these two teams will last for lifetimes to come. 

Next up is the Chiefs’ home opener at Arrowhead against the Baltimore Ravens with their own form of a super hero quarterback.

Stay tuned.