Punter Kevin Huber will break Ken Riley’s 39-year-old record to become the franchise’s oldest record when the Bengals open the season at Peicaw Stadium against the Steelers on Sunday (1:00 p.m. – Cincinnati’s Local 12). close the book with one of the
But there is no doubt that his 208th game will start like any other. Special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons will run down the stadium steps before the game and then go to Hoover to discuss the weather.
According to weather.com, there is a 24% chance of rain at kickoff and a 37% chance of rain by 2pm.
“I don’t know if I’m wet because it’s raining or I’m wet[because I’m sweating],” Simmons said.
A superstitious Type A Kansas farmer, Simmons has run down the stadium steps before games all but two times in his 25 seasons as an NFL coach. His 14 of his season was spent with long-snapper Clarke Harris at Huber, an unexpected East Coaster in the 202nd game against the Bengals and his fourth pick on the list.
If they sound like an odd trio, it’s because the laid-back Cincinnatian Hoover just doesn’t fit right in. fits his role perfectly.
“He can’t fly. It’s an easy win,” Simmons said after Friday’s practice. “That’s a good trait for his position. You have to have a bad short-term memory. You have to forget good punts as well as bad punts. It only works in the last punt.”
For the first time since linebacker Reggie Williams had three tackles in the 1989 season opener in Chicago, the Bengals acquired a player for the team’s 14th season. Hoover and Harris only go after Riley, 15, and quarterback Ken Anderson, 16.
“It’s not getting older that derails people’s careers, especially professional careers, it’s the loss of ability. They fail more at their jobs than their bodies fail.” ‘ said Simmons. “Kevin said he was able to stay strong, not only physically but also mentally. It’s probably going to be a little bit harder against me and Clarke.”
The three of them give it to each pretty good. Simmons’ massive superstition is notorious, but he claims his two others have superstitions as well. They won’t tease him about running up the stairs, but they’ll make him realize he’s running slowly now.
“We’re different. We feed each other that way. We butt heads, but in a good way,” Simmons said. That doesn’t mean I admire and don’t appreciate his achievements, he’s a friend.”
Huber, 37, has nothing special planned. He might play his No. 208 and take his wife out to dinner. This may have been him 20 years ago at McNicholas High School in nearby Anderson Township.
“It’s a business. He’s got a job to do and that’s what he thinks. I think that’s why he’s been around for this long,” said dad Ed Hoover.
There seem to be about 10 family members in the stadium at any given time, although some have season tickets, so I’m not sure of the exact number. His wife goes when she can. Ed and his mom, Cathy, watch every home game. At one point during the warm-up, Ed, a retired car salesman and recognizable basketball coach, seeks a spot along the railing in front of the stands behind the Bengals’ bench. He’s done it in every home game for the last 13 years. Before that it was at the University of Cincinnati and before that it was McNick.
“He’ll make friends with the guards and hold court,” Kevin Hoover says. “Then he’ll come down and see how it goes.”
