Jock Itch Waving the Terrible Towel with ESPN’s Dave Dameshek

The Pittsburgh Steelers are a storied franchise with six Super Bowl titles that also comes loaded with a gaggle of celebrity fans—Michael Keaton and Burt Reynolds still count, right?—including, perhaps most famous of all, our 44th president. (Barack Obama got cozy with Steelers owner Dan Rooney during the last election and backed the team over the Arizona Cardinals in the last Super Bowl.) But if there’s an even bigger Steelers fan out there—one that doesn’t have Johnny Dangerously, Sharky’s Machine, or high-fiving Hamid Karzai on his résumé—it’s got to be Dave Dameshek, an ESPN Page 2 stalwart and host of the Dave Dameshek On Demand podcast. The Steelers and the Denver Broncos face off next Monday in a crucial clash at Invesco Field, and in advance of that, Dameshek talked sports with The A.V. Club, including Terrible Towel fandom and why he thinks the Nuggets won’t be going all the way this season.

The A.V. Club: What would you like the people of Denver to know about Pittsburgh?

Dave Dameshek: Pittsburgh produced most of the steel used by the U.S. to build battleships, tanks, etc., during World War II. In other words, if you don’t love Pittsburgh, you don’t love America.

AVC: Do you think the Steelers will take the game this Monday against the Broncos?

DD: I do give the Steelers the edge because they’ll be coming off their bye. Teams seem to be faring especially well this season after the two-week break. Plus, the Broncs just played the Ravens. [Editor’s note: The Broncos got beaten senseless 30-7.] You ever try playing football with a stab wound? Neither have I, but it’s got to be tough.

AVC: You are unabashed in your love of all things Pittsburgh. Have you ever been asked to tone that down?

DD: My friends from outside the ’Burgh have asked me to tone it down countless times. Professionally, I’ve never positioned myself as anything other than a diehard fan. Hiding my bias would be disingenuous. Matter of fact, it’s the source of my credibility. Because of my black-and-gold obsession, I’ve spent more time in front of the TV watching sports than 99 percent of the ex-players and insiders who comprise the bulk of the sports media.

AVC: How would you rate Steeler's safety Troy Polamalu’s Head & Shoulders commercials?

DD: I think they’re surprisingly funny. More importantly, I’m glad he’s found a product that controls his dandruff problem. Can you imagine if he hadn’t? The field would be covered in more snow than that Titans/Patriots game a few weeks ago.

AVC: Both Pittsburgh and the state of Colorado have shared Kordell Stewart. Who gets to claim him when all is said and done?

DD: If you try to make me claim him, this interview’s over.

AVC: Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson just got in a spot of trouble for his controversial tweets. As a noted tweeter yourself, shouldn’t the NFL institute some sort of media training that concentrates on the pitfalls of social media?

DD: Heavens no! We’ve only just begun benefiting from the loony remarks of LJ, [Ron] Artest, and [Chad] Ochocinco. This well runs deep. Shame the devil if it ends anytime soon.

AVC: Let’s talk some NBA. We’re predicting the Denver Nuggets to win its first NBA championship this season. What do you think?

DD: You’ve clearly been spending too much recreational time in Boulder. The Nugs are really good, but I don’t see them getting past the Lakers or Spurs. Even if they did, they’d still have to beat the Celts, the Cleveland LeBrons, or the Orlando Tricks to win it all. 

AVC: You’re also a big hockey fan. How do you gauge this crazy start by the Avalanche?

DD: The first 20 minutes of Transformers was good, too. Just saying. No, I think there are some great pieces there. [Paul] Stastny’s for real, [Wojtek] Wolski seems to be having his breakout season, and Craig Anderson’s more than held the fort for [Peter] Budaj. The Avs are one of the many reasons the NHL is so compelling right now. There’s lots of young skill in the league. If [NHL commissioner Gary Bettman] stays out of the way, the next decade ought to be dandy.

AVC: On the Avs front, let's talk about your fan conduct policy. Rule number three: When a team leaves one city for another, the abandoned town’s fans may no longer root for that team. The Seattle/Oklahoma City Thunder situation is tragic, but how much of a drag was it for Nordiques’ fans to hand over their team to Denver, only to have them win a Stanley Cup that very year?

DD: Oh, that’s brutal. It’s the sort of thing that might put me off of sports forever. But at least hockey makes sense in Colorado. The same thing very easily could’ve happened to Penguins fans last season. Remember, the team almost moved to Kansas City; their first season there would’ve been last year. How lame for the league would it have been if the mighty Red Wings had lost in the finals to the KC Penguins?

AVC: Pretty lame now that you mention it. We have a lot of transplants here in Denver who feel the need to come to games and root (i.e. be obnoxious) for the teams they left behind. Shouldn’t there be a conduct policy for fans of other teams going to enemy territory?

DD: In theory, yes, but as a Steelers fan, I have to say it was pretty cool seeing so many Terrible Towels in the stands when the Steelers played the Broncos in the AFC title game a few years ago. I guess it’s the price Denver residents have to pay for living in such a lovely town. You don’t hear thousands of screaming Broncos fans in the stands when they play at Cleveland, right?