Royalty goes to New England in January for a three sport weekend!‏

Saturday morning January 11th I woke up early & I took a ride via public transportation out to Avis on Long Island so I could pick up a car rental for the weekend. I wound up getting a Toyota Corolla. After I got it, I went back to Astoria so I could pick up the King & our pal Paul Derrick who stayed over with us. 

I drove us to New Britain, Connecticut which is ten miles south of Hartford. We went to see the Central Connecticut Blue Devils play the Red Flash of St. Francis of Pennsylvania in a college basketball game at the William H. Detrick Gymnasium. As for the game we saw, the Red Flash beat the Blue Devils, 75-67.

 

William H. Detrick Gymnasium in New Britain, Connecticut

After the game we drove towards Foxboro, Massachusetts where we went to see the Patriots host the Colts in the AFC Divisional Playoff Game. Since we had some spare time, we decided to check in to our hotel first. We stayed at Super 8 in West Greenwich, Rhode Island. After we checked in & got situated, I drove us to Foxboro. We parked by the golf course like we always do when we go there for $20 which is the cheapest you're going to find along Route 1. On the way to Gillette Stadium, we stopped off for dinner at Papa Gino's which is on the way. 

 

Live action from AFC Divisional Playoff Game in Foxboro

When we finally arrived at the Stadium, Paul Derrick had to go to the box office to pick up the tickets we ordered from Ticketmaster. Since they only accept Visa, Paul who has one was willing to use his card to get the tickets for all of us. It worked out well. As I like to say, teamwork makes the dream work. We barely made the opening kickoff but thankfully we did. The Patriots capitalized on an early turnover by Andrew Luck as they scored first to go up, 7-0. They added another touchdown on their next possession to make it, 14-0. The Colts like they did the week before fell behind. With that being said, I knew the game was far from over. The Colts did come back but when it was all said & done, the Patriots prevailed, 43-22. We did meet up with our pal Sean MacDonald  who took Megabus to Boston where he was staying for the weekend. He then took a train to Foxboro from South Station so he could join us. During the game, we all met up. After the game, we went back to our hotels.

 

Warm ups at Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence

Sunday the King, Paul & I drove to Providence to see the Providence Bruins play the Manchester Monarchs at the Dunkin Donuts Center. On the way there we stopped off for breakfast at P.J.'s Diner in Coventry, Rhode Island which turned out to be a great decision. It looked like a house on the side of the road. We got there just before noon. Luckily for us, they were closing up but they let us in so we could enjoy a late made to order breakfast. After we finished eating, we continued on to downtown Providence.

As for the game we saw, the hometown Bruins lost to the Monarchs, 2-1. It should be noted that it wasn't a total loss because Paul Derrick & I got to meet up with another roadtripper, Paul Baker who was at the game with his wife. We got to say a quick hello to them between the second & third period intermission. They live in the area & they have season tickets. It was nice to meet & greet them. Hopefully our paths will cross again down the road.

After the game, we drove Paul Derrick to the nearby train station. He arranged to meet up with Sean MacDonald since he planned to spend a few days in Boston with him before he returned home to Houston Wednesday morning.

 

On our way back to NYC, the King & I stopped off at Texas Roadhouse in West Haven, Connecticut where we enjoyed another great meal. It's conveniently located off of I-95 exit 42. After we ate, I drove us home. 

 

It turned out to be another memorable weekend. I want to personally thank Paul for coming back to the Northeast to see us again. 

Stay tuned as I will continue to recap the rest of our adventurous month of January when time allows me to do so.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty sees the Jets play the Patriots at MetLife Stadium!

Back on Sunday October 20th after I went back home after returning the car I rented from Dollar rent a car early in the morning,I went to sleep for a few hours. After I woke up, I made myself breakfast. After I ate, I took a shower. When I got done, the King & I took the subway into Midtown Manhattan & we met up with our pal Larry Peim who drove us out to MetLife Stadium as the Jets were hosting the Patriots that Sunday afternoon. We did see the Red Sox win the American League Pennant at Fenway Park the night before. We were hoping that the Jets could find a way to beat another New England team on this day. Before the game started, we got to meet up with a few friends of ours who were also there. I'm referring to Alan Gimpel who sold me one of his season tickets in section 306 & our buddy Rich Wolber aka Staten Island Rich. Later on during the game we got to see fellow roadtripper & pal of ours, Sean MacDonald who was there as part of his ultimate NFL Stadium Journey. Sean was in the midst of season long excursion to see every NFL Stadium. As always, it was great to catch up with him again. 

As for the game we saw, it was a good one. The Jets hung tough with their division rival. The game wound up going into overtime tied at 27. The Jets emerged victorious as they got a game winning field goal from Nick Folk. Moments before he made that kick, he missed one. The Jets appeared to have caught a break as the Patriots were penalized for trying to get leverage to block the kick by climbing up on another player's back . With a new rule in effect this season, the officials decided to enforce it on this particular play. Controversial or not, the Jets were given a reprieve. As a result, they took full advantage of their second chance as Nick Folk booted the ball through the uprights to give the Jets an improbable 30-27 victory. Being a Jet fan, I was happy with the result. Let it be know I do have the utmost respect for the Patriots. I actually love watching them play. They always give you your money's worth if they win or lose.

Stay tuned for another special post that will recap the Monday Night football game we saw the very next night at Met Life Stadium.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 12/10 in review

Upon returning from Jacksonville late Sunday night, I wisely took off Monday from work so I could rent a car and drive to Foxboro, Massachusetts to see Monday Night football as the New England Patriots were hosting the Houston Texans in what was deemed a preview of the AFC Championship game come January.

I went to Avis and I rented a Ford Fusion for the day. I went back home and I picked up the King and away we went. We wound up driving in some horrible rain which lasted most of the ride. We stopped off in Warwick, Rhode Island to pick up our pal Steve Fekete aka the Padre Punk who was staying at the Comfort Inn there. He just finished driving from Cincinnati where he saw his Dallas Cowboys beat the Cincinnati Bengals that Sunday afternoon. I know he needed a break from driving and it made perfect sense for us to pick him up. We know a back way in and out of the Gillette Stadium area so I preferred to handle the driving.

Thankfully as we were approaching Foxboro the rain was letting up. When we parked the car at 6:53PM it stopped. With that being said, we were now ready for some football. It was a warm night for this time of year especially in New England. We got out of the car and we walked over towards the Stadium. Along the way, we made a pit stop at Papa Gino's which claims to have the best pizza in New England. I like to believe that's true because I think it's really good myself. Steve also approved of it as well. After we finished eating, we finished walking over to Gillette Stadium.

We got inside just before the game started.

As for the game we saw, it didn't exactly live up to the hype. Apparently the Texans had stage fright. The Patriots scored early and often. Tom Brady hooked up with tight end Aaron Hernandez for a 7 yard touchdown pass with 9:27 left in the first quarter. The Patriots extended their lead to 14-0 with 2:49 to go in the quarter when Tom Brady connected with wide receiver Brandon Lloyd for a 37 yard touchdown pass to make it a 14-0 game.

In the second quarter, Tom Brady and Aaron Hernandez found the end zone again. This time a four yard touchdown pass to make it 21-0. That's how it stayed as the teams went into the locker room at halftime.
In the third quarter, Tom Brady aired it out as he hit newcomer and former Patriot Donte' Stallworth on a 63 yard bomb to give the Patriots' a 28-0 lead with 9:49 left. The Texans finally got on the scoreboard on their next drive as running back Arian Foster ran in from a yard out to make it a 28-7 game. The score stayed that way after three quarters.

In the fourth quarter, the Patriots' Brandon Lloyd recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown which made the score 35-7 with 14:15 left. The Patriots' offense wasn't done yet. They got another touchdown on a 14 yard run from Stevan Ridley with 7:23 left to make it 42-7. The Texans found the end zone one more time as back up quarterback Tyler Yates ran in from a yard out with two minutes to go to make it 42-14. That's the way it ended as the Patriots showed the Texans who the best team is in the AFC. For the Texans' sake, they're hoping for payback to come in January. We'll wait and see how things unfold then.
After the game, we drove Steve back to his hotel and the King and I came home. We arrived around 4:30AM.

Tuesday morning I took off from work so I could get some sleep. I went and returned the car I rented. I drove 449 miles safely. After I returned the car, I went to work for the afternoon.

After work, I went to the Barclays Center to see the Battle of the Boroughs part two as the Brooklyn Nets were hosting the New York Knicks.

Steve also drove back to Brooklyn and he joined us for the game. After the game, he was heading towards Charlotte, North Carolina where he was going to see the LA Clippers play the Bobcats.

As for the game we saw together, the Nets raced out to a 26-9 lead in the first quarter. They led, 30-16 after the quarter.

In the second quarter, the Knicks made a comeback and they trailed only 53-49 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Nets maintained their slim lead as they led, 79-74.

In the fourth quarter, the Knicks found a way to overcome the Nets as they left the Barclays Center with a 100-97 victory. The Nets had chances in the closing seconds be they came up empty and they fell short this time.

Wednesday night after work I came home made dinner and I did my laundry.

Thursday I went to work in the morning. I took off in the afternoon so I could go to the dentist and I rented a car so I could drive down to Philadelphia to see the Eagles play the Cincinnati Bengals in Thursday Night football at Lincoln Financial Field.

I wound up renting a Ford Focus for the day. After I went to the dentist where I got a good report on my teeth, I went to pick up the King and our friend Frank Anichiarico who joined us for the football game.
We left later then I wanted to but luckily traffic getting out of NYC was better than I expected so we were able to get to Philadelphia without a problem. We stopped off at McDonald's on the way and we ate in the car as we headed to Philadelphia.

I parked the car around 8PM and we walked over to the Stadium. We barely made the opening kickoff. I knew it was going to be a close call. Thankfully it worked out well in the end.
As for the game we saw, the Bengals' running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis scored on a 1 yard touchdown run with 11:10 left in the opening quarter to make it 7-0. Kicker Josh Brown booted a 24 yard field goal to extend the lead to 10-0 with 7:51 left.

In the second quarter, the Eagles responded as they got on the scoreboard thanks to an eleven yard touchdown pass from quarterback Nick Foles to wide receiver Riley Cooper with 11:40 left until halftime to make it a game at 10-7. The Eagles tied at the game at 10 with 7:37 left as Alex Henery kicked a 22 yard field goal. With 17 seconds to go in the half, Alex Henery gave the Eagles a 13-10 at the intermission.

In the third quarter, the Bengals regained the lead with 1:10 to go as quarterback Andy Dalton ran in from 11 yards out to give the Bengals a 17-13 lead. Moments later with 21 seconds left, the Bengals scored again as defensive end Wallace Gilberry recovered a fumble and he returned it 25 yards for a touchdown to extend the Bengals lead to 24-13.

In the fourth quarter, the Bengals got the ball back again and they capitalized as kicker Josh Brown kicked a 32 yard field goal with 14:12 left to make it 27-13. They scored another touchdown with 12:47 left as wide receiver A.J. Green caught a 5 yard pass to make it 34-13. That's how it mercifully ended. The Eagles were competitive for most of the game then they self destructed and it made the score more lopsided than it should have been.

Friday morning I returned the car I rented from Avis before I went to work. I drove 273 miles safely.
After work, I went back to the Barclays Center to see the Nets play the Detroit Pistons. Before the game, I stopped off at McDonald's at the Atlantic Center Mall and I had my pre game meal.

After I finished eating, I went inside the arena and I meet up with my pal Phil Butleman who was also there.
As for the game we saw, the Pistons lead, 25-23 after the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Nets took the lead, scoring the Pistons by 14 points to lead, 59-47 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Pistons roared back and they went back ahead, 77-73 after three quarters.

In the fourth quarter, the Nets out scored the Pistons by four to even the score at 90 to force overtime.
In overtime, both teams scored 10 points to remain tied at 100. By doing so, they were forced to play a second overtime.

In the second overtime, the Nets outlasted the Pistons as Joe Johnson hit the game winning shot at the buzzer to break the tie at 105 to give the Nets a dramatic 107-105 win.

Stay tuned for a few special posts that will recap the memorable weekend I spent in Western New York and North of the Border.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 11/19 in review

After returning from St. Louis late Sunday night, I got a few much needed nights off after work Monday and Tuesday night. Thankfully it was a short work week but I still had plenty of work to do before the long Thanksgiving weekend kicked in.

Wednesday after work I went up to Manhattan College to see some college basketball. I met up with the King and we took the subway up to Riverdale, NY. It's the last stop on the number one train which is 242nd Street. When we got there, we met up with our pal Al Linderman. We walked over to the Draddy Gymnasium which is where the Manhattan Jaspers play. When we got inside, we had more company. Our friends Frank Anichiarico and Bryan Gilligan who went to school there joined us. In addition, our pal Eddie Pelle was also in attendance. He got out of work early and he knew we were going to be there so he decided to come. It was great to see everybody again. We were one big happy family.

As for the game we saw, the Jaspers played the Hofstra Pride. The game was close in the first half as the Jaspers lead by one, 29-28 at halftime. In the second half, the Jaspers pulled away thanks to guard Michael Alvarado who hit three treys during a stretch to help his team earn their first victory of the young season, 67-56.

After the game, Bryan who drove there, gave us a ride back to Queens. We wound up going to Donovan's Pub where we were celebrating some birthdays. Frank's was on the 16th, the King's is on the 24th and Bryan's is on the 27th. Charlie Casiano, the King's brother met us there too. It turned out to be a very festive occasion for all of us. Eddie also took part in the festivities. In preparation for Thanksgiving, I enjoyed my Turkey dinner early. I knew on Thanksgiving day, I may not have any so I made sure I indulged. We all had a great time gathering together. It was really nice of Charlie to take part. We don't see him too often but it's always a pleasure when we do.

Thanksgiving day the King and I watched football on TV until it was time to go out to MetLife Stadium for the Jets and Patriots game in prime time.

We sat up in section 312 with Ira Lieberfarb aka Ira from Staten Island who was there with his son Robby.
As for the game we saw, it started off slow as it was scoreless after the first quarter. The Patriots got on the board just six seconds into the second quarter as wide receiver Wes Welker caught a 3 yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to give the Patriots' a 7-0 lead.

With 9:43 left in the second quarter, the Patriots took a 14-0 lead on the first play of the drive as Tom Brady connected with Shane Vereen on a pass that turned into a 83 yard touchdown. Shortly thereafter, things started to turn for the worst for the Jets. They got the ball back but they fumbled and it was recovered by free safety Steve Gregory who ran it in for a touchdown from 32 yards out with 9 minutes to go in the half to give the Patriots a 21-0 lead.

The Jets fumbled again on the ensuing kickoff and they lost the ball again as Julian Edelman ran it back for a touchdown from 22 yards out to extend the Patriots lead to 28-0 with 8:51 left.

To recap the Patriots scored 21 unanswered points in a 52 second span. What a turn of events it was.
With 3:08 left until halftime, the Patriots scored another touchdown as Tom Brady and Julian Edelman hooked up on a 56 yard touchdown pass to make it 35-0.

The Jets finally broke the shutout with 2 seconds left in the half as kicker Nick Folk booted a 32 yard field goal to make it 35-3 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Jets added two points when Stevan Ridley of the Patriots was called for a penalty in the end zone which resulted in a safety that made it a 35-5 game with 6:47 left in the quarter.
The Jets continued to make a comeback as running back Bilal Powell scored on a four yard touchdown run to get the Jets within 23 at 35-12 with 4:41 left in the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter, with 12:02 left in the game, Tom Brady ran in from a yard out to extend the Patriots lead to 42-12. The Patriots added to their lead with 11:07 left as Stevan Ridley scored on a 9 yard touchdown run to make it 49-12. The Jets finished the scoring for the night with 2:21 left when Dustin Keller capped off an 80 yard drive with a 1 yard touchdown pass from Mark Sanchez to make it 49-19 which is how it mercifully ended.

Friday during the day I relaxed and caught up on things around the house. At night, the King and I went to downtown Brooklyn to see the Nets host the Los Angeles Clippers.

We met up with our friend Phil Butleman who was there too.

As for the game we saw, the game was tied at 25 after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Clippers outscored the Nets by seven to lead, 47-40 at halftime. In the third quarter, the Nets came back and they evened the score at 63. In the fourth quarter, the Nets pulled away as they went on to beat the Clippers, 86-76.

Brook Lopez lead all scorers with 26 points. Joe Johnson finished with 19 to carry the Nets to the victory. As for the Clippers, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul had 14 points each in the losing effort.

Saturday was the King's 60th birthday. We went to Philadelphia with Vincent Ascanio on Megabus to see the Philadelphia 76ers as they hosted the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Upon arrival, the King decided he wanted to have a gourmet meal at Popeye's. So that's where we went. After we got done, we took the subway over to the Sports Complex.

We got to the Wells Fargo Center home of the 76ers when the gates opened. We walked around the building before the game started.

As for the game we saw, the Thunder got off to a fast start. They lead, 29-21 after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the 76ers came back to cut the lead to one, 50-49 at halftime. In the third quarter, the Thunder padded their lead to six, 85-79. In the fourth quarter, the 76ers came back and they tied the game at 98 after regulation time. In overtime, the Thunder pulled away to beat the 76ers, 116-109.

Kevin Durant of the Thunder lead the way with 37 points including many down the stretch with the game on the line. He's a special player and a joy to watch play live. His teammate Russell Westbrook added 30 points. The Thunders' dynamic duo outscored the 76ers' tandem of Thaddeus Young who had 29 points and he grabbed 15 rebounds while his teammate Evan Turner contributed 26 points in the losing performance.

Sunday afternoon the King and I went back to downtown Brooklyn to see the Nets play the Portland Trailblazers at the Barclays Center.

As for the game we saw, the Trailblazers lead 27-25 after the first quarter. They extended their lead to four, 50-46 at halftime. In the third quarter, the Nets came back to even the score at 70 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, the Nets turned it up a notch as they pulled away from the Trailblazers as they escaped with a 98-85 victory. Joe Johnson scored 21 points to pace the Nets to the win. Deron Williams had 15 points and he handed a dozen assists to help the cause. Wesley Matthews had 20 points for the Trailblazers in the defeat.

After the game, the King and I went to Penn Station where we got the NJ Transit train to Secaucus and then we changed for the train to MetLife Stadium so we could go out to see the Giants play the Packers in Sunday night football.

We didn't have tickets yet. Shortly after we got out there, we ran into a few young guys who had an extra pair of tickets. We wound up giving them $70 for the pair. It worked out well as we were able to go right inside and we saw the end of the late games.

It was a cold, windy night. We decided to stay downstairs instead of going up to our seats in the upper level.
As for the game we saw, the Giants scored on their first drive of the game which set the tone. Running back Andre Brown ran in from two yards out to give the Giants a 7-0 lead with 12:38 to go. The Packers came right back as they got a 61 yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers who found wide receiver Jordy Nelson with 10:44 left to tie the game at 7. With 2:38 left, wide receiver Rueben Randle caught his first career touchdown pass from 16 yards out to give the Giants a 14-7 lead. With 23 seconds left, Lawrence Tynes extended the Giants' lead to 17-7.

In the second quarter, the Giants added to their lead as Eli Manning hit Victor Cruz for a 9 yard touchdown pass to make it a 24-7 game. The Packers got a 28 yard field goal from kicker Mason Crosby with 3:37 left to make the score 24-10. The Giants found the end zone again with 44 seconds left as running back Ahmad Bradshaw scored on a 13 yard touchdown run to make it 31-10 at the half.

In the third quarter, the Giants' Eli Manning entered the record books as he threw his 200th touchdown pass as a Giant to Hakeem Nicks, a 13 yard pass with 3:36 to go to make it 38-10. Manning passed Phil Simms in the process. That's the way it ended as the Giants dominated.

With that, another week of sports travel was in the books.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

The Prince sets a record for football games attended during the 2011 season!

After having a monster 2010 season of seeing 36 total football games (27 NFL and 9 College), I managed to surpass that in total in 2011. After all, living in the Northeast has its privileges.

In 2010, I saw more quality if you will and almost as much quantity.

I went to more venues and other parts of the country in 2010 which in some ways is much more impressive in my eyes.

In 2011, once the NFL lockout was officially over, I was able to follow through on my game plan. I knew I could see as many as 25 regular season NFL games. I usually shoot for 20 depending on how the schedule works out.

Thanks to many of the Northeast teams getting prime time exposure, I was able to take full advantage of the opportunity. I saw four NFL doubleheaders and I went to ten prime time games five on Sunday, four on Monday and one Thursday night during my recording shattering season.

In addition, I got to see four playoff games as well. One Wild Card, two Divisional Playoffs and the AFC Championship Game.

By doing so, I was able to keep my playoff streak of attending at least one every year since 1997 alive. I now have seen 38 total.

14 WC/15 DP/7 Championship Games/1 Super Bowl (Giants/Ravens) and 1 Pro Bowl.

Furthermore, I tied my 2010 record total of nine college football games too.

Here's the breakdown by home team and/or school:

NFL (29)
8 Jets
6 Eagles
5 Giants (Wild Card Game)
4 Ravens (Divisional Playoff)
3 Patriots (Divisional Playoff and AFC Championship Game)
1 Redskins
1 Browns
1 Vikings

College (9)
Kansas State
Temple
Columbia
Penn
Towson
Navy
Princeton
Buffalo
Pinstripe Bowl

Based on the NFL opponents for 2012, it looks like a tall order for me to break it again. I'll wait and see what happens.

When it comes to football, I'm the King.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

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 and company enjoy AFC Divisional Playoff Games in Foxboro and Baltimore!

Prince is in the house tonight

During the week leading up to the divisional playoff games, I got a call from Steve Fekete aka the Padre Punk who lives in Anaheim, California. He told me he wanted to come East for some royal treatment. He prides himself on seeing quality as he likes to say.

Once the matchups were set for the divisional playoffs, he booked a flight to come to NYC. We went back and forth during the week to coordinate his surprise visit.

Our friend Vincent Ascanio decided he wanted to make a royal road trip for the first time with me.
So with that being said, I had already booked a car rental from Avis anticipating going away for that weekend. Now the King and I had some additional company too.

Here's how it turned out. I woke up early Saturday morning and I went to Avis to pick up the car. I wound up getting a Crown Victoria which was perfect for this getaway.

After I got the car, I went near JFK airport to pick up Steve who flew in late Friday night. I went to his hotel and picked him up. I proceeded to go back home to Astoria to get the King. Then we drove to Queensbridge where we met Vincent.

With everybody in the car, we went on our way towards Foxboro. We arranged to have an appetizer if you will. We stopped off at the University of Rhode Island which is located in Kingston, Rhode Island. We went to the Thomas Ryan Center for the very first time to see the Rams of URI play the Dukes of Duquesne University.

What a beautiful arena it was. It was a perfect way to pass time on our way to see the New England Patriots play the Denver Broncos in prime time.

As for the game we saw, the Rams lost to the Dukes, 78-71.

After the game, we drove to Cranston, Rhode Island which was about 25 miles away going towards Foxboro. We went there because I arranged to meet a guy named Rick Forcino who I got in contact with on Craigslist earlier in the week. He had a pair of extra tickets so he was kind enough to sell them to me. It worked out perfectly as the King and I used them. They were located on the upper level halfway up at the 35 yard line.

Steve and Vincent were able to secure tickets through Ticketmaster so it worked out well for all of us.
We arrived in Foxboro shortly after 6PM. We parked the car in the $20 lot which is the cheapest you'll found in the area. We proceeded to walk towards Gillette Stadium.

We stopped off at Papa Gino's to have some pizza on the way before we braved the elements to watch the game.

We all indulged in a hearty meal. We then continued about a mile to get to the Stadium.

We all went in and picked a place to meet after the game.

As for the game we saw, it was over early for all intent and purposes, the Patriots scored a touchdown on the first drive of the game. It took them a mere 1:51 to drive down the field to take the early 7-0 lead. That drive set the tone for the rest of the evening as the Broncos couldn't get out of their own way.

The Patriots' defense stifled them the whole night. Tim Tebow wound up getting hurt in the second quarter but he showed heart and he continued to battle through it but his team proved to be no match for the Pats on this night. The Patriots cruised to an easy 45-10 victory as they will host the AFC Championship Game against the winner of the Ravens and Texans.

It should be noted that the King hinted that we could leave early but he knew that was going on deaf ears as I had no intention of checking out early despite the lopsided score.

As a result, we got to see Tom Brady even punt the ball late in the game.

We met up with Steve and Vincent after the game and we all walked back to the car together.

We pulled out of the parking lot at 12:14AM as we headed towards Baltimore which was 400 miles away where we were going to see the Baltimore Ravens play the Houston Texans at 1PM Sunday afternoon.

We arrived in Aberdeen, Maryland at a Super 8 at 6:14AM where we got some sleep. We checked out at 10:45AM and we continued the drive to Baltimore which was 30 miles away.

Everybody was amazed that I was able to stay awake overnight to drive us all safely to our destination.
I made sure I got enough sleep and rest during the week so I would be up to the task. Thankfully I was.
We parked the car on the street in the neighborhood upon arrival in Baltimore. We then walked over to M&T Bank Stadium which was nearby. We all went to the will call window where we picked up the tickets we ordered during the week from Ticketmaster.

In addition, we met up with our pal, Andrew Van Cleve who took the train down from Philadelphia. It was great to see him again.

After the game, we went out to eat with Andrew and we drove him home on our way back to NYC.
Before the game, I went upstairs to section 500 so I could say hello to my friend, Nib Pirrung who's been a Raven season ticket holder since day one when they moved to Baltimore. It was great to see him again as well.

As for the game we saw, the Ravens fell behind 3-0 as their defense clamped down after the Texans got a nice return on the opening kick off.

The Ravens proceeded to take the lead. The Texans battled back all day but they couldn't get over the hump as the Raven defense came up big when they needed to as the Ravens escaped with a 20-13 victory to advance to the AFC Championship Game in Foxboro.

After the game, we all ate in Baltimore then I dropped Andrew off in Philadelphia at 9PM. We drove back to Brooklyn where Vincent lives. I dropped him off at 11:15PM.

Then I took Steve, the King and I back to Astoria. We arrived there a few minutes before midnight. Steve spent the night with us.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 11/7 in review

After enjoying a memorable weekend in Annapolis and Washington DC, I went back to work Monday. I left early so I could go back to the car I rented. I met the King and we drove down to Philadelphia to see the Eagles play the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football.

We met up with our friend Frankie Centola in Philly who arranged to get us tickets for the game.

As for the game we saw, it was a good one. The Eagles and Bears battled it out but when it was all said and done, the Bears escaped the City of Brotherly Love with a big win, 30-24.

As a result, our friends from Chicago, the Van Cleves were thrilled and relieved that their Bears' rose to the occasion on enemy territory. Nicole, Andrew and Dylan aka the Ultimate Sports Wife, Fan and Baby were there with us in spirit.

After the game, I drove the King to the Post Office at Grand Central Station here in NYC where he started work at 2AM. I then took myself home. I got some sleep then I had to go to Avis and return the car before it was my turn to go back to work.

Tuesday night after work tired and all I went to the Prudential Center in Newark to see the Devils play the Carolina Hurricanes. We wound up seeing a decent game as the Devils came out on top as rookie Adam Henrique scored the game winning goal with 3:19 left in third period to give the Devils the 3-2 decision in regulation time.

Wednesday and Thursday after work, I got to catch up on rest which was much needed after the busy weekend and start to the week I had.

Friday night after work I arranged to meet my Cousin Andy who joined me, the King and our friend Bryan Gilligan for the Devil game against the Washington Capitals. It was great to see him again. He always enjoys our company and the royal treatment we provide.

As for the game we saw, the Devils broke through first as they scored the first goal of the game when rookie Adam Larsson scored his first NHL goal to give them the early lead. The Devils were shut out the rest of the night as the Capitals turned it up a notch. They scored the equalizer late in the second period when their superstar Alex Ovechkin put the biscuit in the basket to tie the game at one.

In the third period, the Capitals' got a shorthanded goal early from Jason Chimera to take the lead for good. They added an insurance goal as they won the first game of the home and home weekend series, 3-1.

Saturday morning I woke up early and I went back to Avis to rent another car for the weekend.

I drove back and I picked up the King and we drove to Princeton, NJ for a college football game as the Yale Bulldogs were visiting the Princeton Tigers.

The King and I had company as we got to see some of the many sports fans we know. I'm talking about Steve Tepperman aka Princeton Steve as we call him. In addition, we also had our pal Pat Gorman there as well as Richie Iannotta who happened to be present too. Last but not least we got to see a guy from Philadelphia we know as Sleepy Bob, who we haven't seen in a very long time. We all enjoyed each other's company.

As for the game we saw, the Yale Bulldogs held on this time as they beat the Princeton Tigers, 33-24 unlike when we saw them lose to Penn last month. The one bright spot for the Tigers was that we got to see history as their true freshman running back Chuck Dibilio ran for 178 yards on the ground and he scored three touchdowns. By doing so, he got himself into the history book as he became the first true freshman player in the history of the Ivy League to rush for over 1,000 yards.

After the game, the King and I drove down to Washington DC so we could the back end of the Devils and Capitals home and home series at the Verizon Center where tickets these days are hard to come by.

Thankfully our good friend Peter Agnew who has Capital season tickets was able to accomodate us. Since he was going to see Notre Dame play Maryland in a college football game at FedEx Field that night, his club seats were available. With that being said, the King and I decided to buy them from him.

It was our first time seeing a game there on the club level. It was a treat as we had a great view of the action. This time the Devils fell behind early 2-0 in the first period. They came back and tied the game at two after two periods. They played a scoreless third period and overtime.
The game was decided by a shootout which lasted four rounds before the Devils outlasted the Capitals, 3-2 to split the weekend series.

After the game, we drove to Aberdeen, Maryland where we spent the night.

Sunday morning we stopped off at the Waffle House for breakfast before we went to Philadelphia to see the Eagles try to keep their season alive. After losing to the Bears Monday night, the Eagles couldn't afford to lose again. This time they were hosting the Arizona Cardinals who I saw a few weeks prior in Baltimore where they blew a 21 point lead as they lost to the Baltimore Ravens.

This time the Cardinals fell behind by a touchdown early. They fought hard all game long despite their place kicker Jay Feely missing a few field goals. They persevered and when it was all said and done, the Cardinals delivered the knockout punch as they beat the Eagles, 21-17.

After the game, the King and I drove back up to MetLife Stadium in the Meadowlands to see the Sunday night game between the Jets and their division rival, the New England Patriots.

The Jets' place kicker Nick Folk followed former Jet Jay Feely's lead as he missed a field goal on the Jets' first drive of the game after they went down the field like it was nothing. That miss set the tone for the evening as it turned out. The Patriots came into the game looking like they were beatable but the Jets couldn't find a way to beat them.

The Jets' hung tough in the first half. The second half proved to be a different story as the Patriots' made the necessary adjustments as they exploited the Jets on their way to a 37-16 triumph over their nemesis who knocked them out of the playoffs back in the middle of January. As a result, it appears the Jets hopes of winning the AFC East are a long shot now at best.

With that another royal week is in the books for the King and I.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 12/6 in review

Upon returning from Cincinnati Monday at Noon at LaGuardia Airport I went home quickly to drop off my bags. After doing so, I proceeded to go to Avis to rent a car for the day.

I drove to pick up our buddy Al Linderman aka "Big Game Al" who took the King's place since he had to get back to work so he reluctantly couldn't make the trip. Al and I went to Foxboro, Massachusetts to see the AFC East showdown between the Jets and the New England Patriots.

On the way up we were listening to sports radio. Mike Francesa, a local host on WFAN in New York said and I quoted "if you plan to stay for the whole game it's going to take you 3 or 4 hours to get out of the area since there's only one road in and one road out."

Royalty laughed at the commentary. Rightfully so, we stayed to the bitter end and we got out rather fast even with plenty of traffic. I drove 3 miles to the highway in 10 minutes. Once I got on the highway it was smooth sailing the rest of the way. I dropped Al off and I took myself home. I got home at 4:10AM.

In addition, Royalty knows where to park cheap. I paid $20 to park as opposed to the other lots that we passed that were charging $30, $35, $40 & $50 to park. We had to walk a mile and a quarter but it was well worth it. If you parked in one of those other lots you still had to walk a mile or more.

As for the game, it didn't live up to the hype for the Jets who failed to show up. They fell behind early and they never had a chance. They went on to lose, 45-3!

After getting an hour and a half sleep I went to work Tuesday. After work, I went to see St. John's play St. Bonaventure in college basketball on my way home at the Carnesecca Arena formerly known as Alumni Hall in Jamaica, Queens.

I managed to stay awake even though it was a struggle in the second half.

I saw a good game and a great ending. The Red Storm as they're called these days got off to an early 13-2 lead but that disappeared as the Bonnies from St. Bonaventure stormed back to keep it close the rest of the way. In the end, the Bonnies won 67-66 as Andrew Nicholson who had 19 points and 13 rebounds scored the winning basket with just 5.2 seconds to go. His teammate Michael Davenport added 22 points.

Dwight Hardy of the Red Storm led all scorers with 24 points in the losing effort.

Wednesday night after work I went to Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks take on the Toronto Raptors. The Knicks won in dramatic fashion as Raymond Felton hit a three pointer that bounced off the rim a number of times before dropping in with 2.7 seconds left to give the Knicks a 113-110 decision over the visiting Raptors. The Knicks were paced by Amar'e Stoudemire who poured in 34 points. Raymond Felton finished with 28. The Raptors got a career high 41 points from Andrea Bargnani in the defeat.

Thursday & Friday night I went home to catch up on sleep and I prepared for the busy weekend ahead.

Saturday I went to Manhattan College to see the Japsers take on the Bearcats from Binghamton. Both teams came in with horrible records. Despite that, the game turned out to be a good one including another stunning ending. The visiting Bearcats came away with the victory as guard Jimmy Gray scored his only basket of the game with just 5.6 seconds to go to give the Bearcats a 70-69 win. Mahamoud Jabbi led the Bearcats with 20 points. George Beamon paced the Jaspers with 20 points and 10 rebounds in the loss. 

After the college basketball game, the King and I went to the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ to see the Detroit Red Wings, the King's favorite team play the NJ Devils.

The Red Wings got a few goals early and never looked back as they beat the Devils, 4-1!

Pavel Datsyuk led the way with a goal and two assists.

It should be noted this game was the King's 400th sporting event he has attended this calendar year.

Sunday we had another double dip as we saw the Knicks play the Nuggets at the Garden at Noon.

The Knicks continued their winning ways as they notched their eighth straight win for the first time in 16 years. In addition, they've now won 13 out of their last 14 games.

Amar'e Stoudemire was a monster again especially in the second half as he scored 30 points again for the eighth straight game. Wilson Chandler added 27 while Raymond Felton had 19 points to go along with 17 assists.

As for the Nuggets, they were led by Carmelo Anthony who had 31 points and 13 rebounds and Nene who scored 26 points in the loss.

After the Knick game, we went to the New Meadowlands Stadium to see the Jets try to rebound after Monday night's nightmare against division rival the Miami Dolphins.

Before mother nature made things ugly the Jets got a head start. They had some costly turnovers that gave the Dolphins an early 10-0 lead which the Jets couldn't recover from.

As the game wore on the weather got worse. As a result, Santonio Holmes missed a sure touchdown pass in the end zone as the Jets had to settle for a field goal to get on the board late in the second quarter.

The Jet defense played well as they shutdown the Dolphins the rest of the game. Unfortunately, the Jet offense couldn't get going all day as they failed to get in the end zone for the second straight game.

They went on to lose again, 10-6!

Their season has taken a turn for the worst. The way they're playing they may miss the playoffs. We'll have to wait and see if they can get it together again.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman