‘Hope is all you need:’ In Miami, Chiefs fans revel in come-from-behind victory
David Lee stared at the field of Hard Rock Stadium, tears streaming down his face as the Kansas City Chiefs were presented with the Vince Lombardi trophy.
The 46-year-old former season ticket holder found himself overwhelmed with emotion, and grateful to Andy Reid, as he processed the the team’s first Super Bowl victory in 50 years.
The win, he said, made him feel closer to friends and family who didn’t live to see this moment.
“It’s a little too much to take right now,” Lee, who is from St. Joseph, said. “If you reflect back on all the years and you would say no (they couldn’t come back in the fourth quarter.) But if you look at what this team’s done.
“Sometimes hope’s all you need and hope can be very powerful.”
All around Lee fans exchanged high fives and hugs, reveling a moment many had waited for their entire lives. One fan lit a cigar while another jubilantly yelled out “world champions.”
As the Beastie Boys’ “Fight for Your Right” came across the speakers fans joyfully sang along, echoing the team’s tight end, Travis Kelce.
You’ve got to fight! For your right! To party!
A few rows up Gwen Warden and Suzie Bailey watched in shock. The women, both in their 70s, remembered Super Bowl IV but said LIV meant more. They were especially happy for Chiefs coach Andy Reid and the Hunt family.
“It’s something I’ve waited for,” Warden said. “It’s about the best thing that could have happened to them.”
Nervous, but still optimistic
The come-from-behind victory placed the team on an emotional rollercoaster.
Chiefs fans had arrived from all over to see Super Bowl LIV in Miami Gardens, Florida, filling the stands with red and cheering on the team in its first appearance in the big game in 50 years. Some carried family ties to the team or the tradition, and nearly all professed to feeling it was their year.
“The 49ers fans are nice, they’re really nice, polite people,” said Chris Comfort of Colorado. “But the Chiefs fans? We know what’s up.”
The gates had opened at 2 p.m. and the stadium, with a capacity of 65,000, slowly filled. Fans stopped to take photos of the brand-new turf with a Chiefs logo painted in the endzone.
Cheers — and boos — erupted when the Kansas City Chiefs ran out onto the field to warm up ahead of kickoff.
Fans young and old said this Super Bowl was a once-in-a-lifetime moment they had been waiting for their whole lives.
Dan Robson said he was so certain this was the year he and his friends booked their Super Bowl tickets three months ago.
“They remind me of the Royals going to the World Series,” he said.
Ahead of the game, Brandon Gentz, of Wichita, said he was excited but nervous.
“We hope there’s more to come, we’re confident there will be,” he said. “Coming down here makes it worth it but it wouldn’t feel quite right if we didn’t bring home the Lombardi Trophy.”
The feeling of being at a Chiefs Super Bowl was surreal, many said.
“(The Chiefs) are what we live and breathe for every how many months out of the year,” Rusty Drewing of Columbia, Missouri, said.
“It still hasn’t totally sunk in today, but hopefully when the clock hits zero today we can take a big sigh of relief and jump up and down and like Travis Kelce said, ‘You’ve got to fight for your right to party.”
By the end of the first quarter the fans were confident their team would walk away with the Lombardi Trophy.
In the concourse, fans who had stepped away from their seats stared intently at TVs placed around the stadium. As the team scored its first touchdown, fans high-fived and hugged complete strangers.
They watched as the game stayed close. At halftime, the tied score made them nervous but still optimistic. One fan commented that his nerves were so high he just might barf on his shoes.
“You hear them sing the national anthem and you hear them say home of the Chiefs it means we believe that they are going to bring home a victory back to Kansas City,” said Chris Mehl from St. Louis.
By the third quarter as last call was called for drinks, fans were less sure. When asked how they were feeling they shrugged or suggested there was always next year before wandering away.
The sense of optimism diminished but stayed present in the stadium.
“It’s been stressful but you know what don’t count us out we may be behind right now but at any minute I think we’re going to turn the corner,” said Joyce Furnell, of Sedalia.
She was right.
Within 10 minutes the Chiefs would score one touchdown and pull ahead. Shortly later they earned their second.
Concerned looks of apprehension quickly turned to hope and from hope to elation as it became abundantly clear that a victory was in reach.
“That was about as good of a feeling as I’ll have all night,” said Corey Schrodt as he watched the referees call in favor of the Chiefs on the touchdown that gave them the lead.
‘It’s everything’
Watching the team win, many had a closer connection to the team. Even more were reminded of family and friends who didn’t live to see the victory.
Dorain Rakwaun Scott came to support his son, Chiefs linebacker Dorian O’Daniel.
Scott said his son is confident, and always believed he could make it to the Super Bowl. Still it’s been incredible to watch it actually happen.
“To see him handle it the way he’s handled it with composure and humbleness is really a dope experience,” Scott said.
“I’m a big fan of him, I’m a fan of Kansas City. I kind of felt it. I knew they were going to do it.”
Kathleen Alexander and Renee Gardner traveled from Kansas City to Miami, each attending on behalf of their fathers, longtime season ticket holders who did not live to see the Chiefs return to the Super Bowl.
Alexander said her father purchased season tickets as soon as the Chiefs first made them available. When the Chiefs made it to the Super Bowl, she said, her daughters insisted she and her husband make the trip.
“Every year my dad would say it’s OK, it’s OK kiddo, we’ll get ‘em next year,” Alexander said. “It’s everything.”
Gardner came to the game with her son, Isaiah. She said she started going to games with her father when she was 8 years old.
“We’re really excited and the Chiefs are going to win tonight,” she said.
This story was originally published February 2, 2020 at 5:05 PM.
