Royalty returns to Foxboro for the AFC Championship Game!

Patriots win , 23-20!

Early Sunday morning I went to Avis to rent a car for the day so I could drive the King and I back to Foxboro to see the New England Patriots play the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game.

The winner will be represent the AFC in the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

On the way, we stopped off in Providence, Rhode Island where we picked up our pal Andrew Van Cleve aka the Ultimate Sports Fan who left his wife Nicole and their baby Dylan there while he went to the game with us. Nicole got to take Dylan to the Children's Museum so they were entertained too.

We all needed tickets for the game but once we arrived at the Stadium we went right to the box office and they had some tickets available so we were able to buy them there surprisingly.

Everything worked out well for all of us. We all proceeded to go inside and we saw the game and history in the making.

As for the game, it reminded me of a heavyweight fight as the Patriots and Ravens slugged it out on the gridiron.

It was a close game all the way through. The Patriots led, 23-20 with time running out in regulation. The Ravens were forced to try a field goal attempt after wide receiver Lee Evans dropped what appeared to be the go ahead touchdown in the end zone.

So the Ravens trotted their kicker Billy Cundiff onto the field to attempt a 32 yard field goal to tie the game and send it into overtime. Unfortunately, Cundiff hooked the ball wide left with 11 seconds left which enabled the Patriots to survive another scare as they held on to win and they earned a trip back to the Super Bowl for the fifth time in the last 11 years.

Since we arranged to meet up with Nicole and Dylan aka the Ultimate Sports Baby back in Providence, we didn't need overtime because we all had a long drive home.

Regardless of the outcome, we saw a great game and we were part of history.

Unfortunately, somebody had to lose. I feel for Billy Cundiff. That was a hard way for the Ravens to end their season.

As the Lamar Hunt Trophy which is given to the AFC Champions was presented to the Patriots after the game, quarterback Tom Brady said and I quote "I really sucked today." He's lucky that Cundiff & Evans sucked more as it turned out.

We went back to the car after the game and we drove back to Providence where we met up with Nicole and Dylan for dinner at a Greek restaurant called Andreas by Brown University.

We all enjoyed a great meal together. It was very royal as Nicole made a sound decision. It was nice to see the Ultimate Sports wife as Andrew calls her and the Ultimate Sports Baby, Dylan who's always so playful when we've seen him.

After we ate, we said our goodbyes and we all went on our way home.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty debuts on the FDH Lounge on Internet TV!‏

Last night was a first for Royalty as I was interviewed live on Internet TV.

I want to personally thank Ira Lieberfarb aka Ira from Staten Island for ultimately making this happen.

Back on November 14, 2010 the King and I were in Cleveland to see the Jets play the Browns.

Before we went to our seats we stopped off to say hello to Ira.

It should be noted that Ira has seen the Jets play all their home and away games for the last 5 seasons which includes the pre season and the post season.

Ira is a great guy and lifelong Jet fan who doesn't go out of his way to be recognized like Fireman Fraud.

Ira's claim to fame is that he calls all the local sports talk radio stations in the area.

For example, on Saturday he called ESPN radio 1050 in NY. He told the hosts that the Jets were going to beat the Patriots. The hosts sounded like Ira was crazy based on the reaction I heard from them. Ira was right on Sunday. He wasn't crazy after all.

Apparently he calls other parts of the country as well.

When we saw Ira from a distance he got our attention and he rapidly waved us up. We were in the right place at the right time.

Ira was speaking to a gentleman named Rick Morris. He proceeded to introduce the King and I to him. We briefly told him about our adventures. Upon hearing a few stories, Rick was left in awe. Before we parted ways, we exchanged contact information. He told me he hosts a talk radio show on the internet. He said I want to put you guys on my show.

Last night marked the four year anniversary of his Great American Radio Show live on Internet TV which is called the FDH Lounge, "Where nothing is off-topic".

The last few months I've been in contact with Rick e-mailing him my current schedule and past credentials to prove we weren't making this stuff up.

The King caught his attention when he told him about the time he saw the Washington Capitals and the Tampa Bay Lightning play a home and home series on a Friday and Saturday night back in the day I believe in 1997 or 1998. Rick was left speechless when he heard that story.

Unfortunately last night the King was unable to join me because it was in Philadelphia watching the Capitals play the Flyers. It should be noted he's a Red Wing fan. Our friend Frankie Centola called him late last week to tell him he had an extra ticket for him so off he went to see yet another sporting event. The countdown to 400 is on again.

As for me, I came home from work after finalizing a deal for a pair of tickets for the Jets/Steelers AFC Championship game on Sunday in Pittsburgh.

After I got home I had to eat and get ready for my for 30 minutes of fame thanks to Ira and Rick.

As I told Rick on the air I cherished the moment from the bottom of my heart.

I look at this as only the beginning of better and better things to come for Rick and Royalty.

I want to personally thank Rick for giving me the opportunity to "scratch the surface" of what Royalty is all about.

In addition, I want to thank those who were able to get access to the show on the internet. Those who couldn't I know you were there in spirit.

I did my best to acknowledge a number of people who I've been blessed to meet in my life who have made my lifestyle what it is today. Without them, this blog would have never happened.

I said 2010 was a great year but 2011 is going to be even better.

So far I look like I know what I'm talking about and the year has just started. I can only imagine what the future holds.

Please keep abreast with me and my blog so you know what's going on in the Life of Royalty.

If and when you want to meet and greet me just let me know so I can arrange to make it happen. Hopefully the King will be around as well. If not, he could be at a game near you.

Thank you for your continued support in the past, present and future.

I hope you enjoyed Rick's show. If so, you can tune in every Tuesday night from 7-10PM. I plan to be apart of a future show.

I want to thank everybody for spending their precious time on me.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty witnesses the 2011 Boston Massacre‏ in Foxboro!



I'm in the house



After seeing the Jets get embarrassed back on December 6th against the New England Patriots it was time for a payback.

The King and I found our way into the building with a little help from my good friend James Gabriele who was there with his son.

I was able to get us one ticket for the game on Ticketmaster when they went on sale.

We still needed another ticket so we both could be in.

James went out of his way to do whatever he could to accomodate us. At the last minute, he called us and he said his NBC station, WHDH, in Boston had an extra ticket. I wound up getting in touch with Marcy and Chris who had the ticket. I met them by the gate and I went into the building.

The King wound up sitting upstairs and I lucked out into a seat just 14 rows from the field behind the Jet bench by the 25 yard line.

What a view I had. I can't thank James, Marcy and Chris for making this happen. Needless to say, I'm very grateful.

During the week, Jets coach Rex Ryan talked all week long and on Sunday night his team executed his game plan to perfection as the Jets got their revenge on the Patriots.

For the second year in a row, Royalty was in the house to lock the doors on Gillette Stadium.

Last year the King and I saw the Baltimore Ravens and Ray Rice run all over the Patriots as they ended their season.

This time the Jets confused Tom Brady most of the game after he started out on fire. Then David Harris picked off a pass and put the Jets in position to score.

Unfortunately Nick Folk missed a 31 yard field goal that would have gave the Jets the early lead. The Patriots came down the field and had to settle for a field goal after Alge Crumpler missed a pass in the end zone for a touchdown.

After that the Jets went to work, they pressured Tom Brady a number of times and they sacked him 5 times. He was forced into making bad passes. In addition, he didn't seem in sync with receivers on a number of occasions. His receivers went one way and the ball went another.

Rex Ryan wrote a masterful blueprint that the Patriots couldn't figure out.

On offense, Quarterback Mark Sanchez was brilliant. He had no turnovers and he got everybody involved.

There were great catches by Jerricho Cotchery, Braylon Edwards and Santonio Holmes.

In addition, there were timely runs by LaDainlian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene which enabled the Jets to control the clock as they dominated the line of scrimmage.

It was an amazing performance as they beat the best in the business in their own building.

Next stop: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for the AFC Championship Game

To quote Jets coach Rex Ryan "Same Old Jets".

It's going to be the Jets year. After seeing all those miracle wins, they're destined to win it all.

We'll wait and see.

One step at a time.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman