Pittsburghers didn't see the Immaculate Reception on TV

[snopes]

Comment: I live in Pittsburgh, PA, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers and home of the
greatest play in sports history (well, at least football history), the
Immaculate Reception (you know, the Franco Harris catch). Almost everyone
in the city of Pittsburgg claims to have seen this world famous play on
TV. However, upon further review, the game was blacked out in the town,
and unless you were there, no one saw it.

[pinqy]

I have never heard of a playoff game being blacked out. The very idea is ridiculous.

pinqy

[MattPHS2002]

I live here, its true. I just read it somewhere I think it was a local paper.

[snopes]

The NFL blackout rule (i.e., games blacked out on local TV if they don't sell out 72 hours in advance) used to apply to playoff games.

- snopes

[Ali Infree]

I believe that is true, I know that I was not watching the game at the time, and I think I would have been. The Steelers in a playoff game was a very new thing.

I know people who were at Three Rivers who did not see the play either, they had given up and were in the tunnels, leaving what they assumed was a lost cause when it happened. It makes for a funny story though.

I know I didn't see the play because I was listening to it on the radio heading for Pittsburgh to pick up a college friend at the old bus station on Liberty Avenue. We got to downtown Pittsburgh minutes after the end of the game and the town was already going crazy.

Ali "Myron Cope on Sports" Infree

[zman977]

I know people who were at Three Rivers who did not see the play either, they had given up and were in the tunnels, leaving what they assumed was a lost cause when it happened.

This is why I never leave a game early no matter what the score because you never know what could happen.

I saw the Immaculate Reception by accident. I was flipping the channel tuner (remember those things?) and just caught the football bouncing off the other Steeler's chest into Franco's hands. The clock ran out and he went in for the TD. Don't know if the game was blacked in PGH, but it was on here in NW PA.