The color of purple

I had only seen one NFL game at a stadium outside of the boundaries of Foxborough.

Now make that two. I spent the weekend in Ravenstown. That's Baltimore to you and me. I was there for a newspaper union meeting and some of us decided to take in the Ravens-Bengals game at M&T Bank Stadium after the conference was over. What a great time. It was near 70 degrees and the NFC North battle came down to the last play. I was rooting for Cincy (quietly) because the Ravens are a big challenge to the Pats for the #1 playoff seed. Unfortunately the Ravens edged the upstart Bengals 34-27 in a very entertaining back-and-forth game.

One of the best things about being at a game that doesn't involve the Pats? It doesn't really matter who wins so there's no chance of disappointment at the final gun. It's just a chance to enjoy some quality football in person. Something I'll get another chance to do tonight at Gillette. Two NFL games in two days? Yes please.

It was also a chance to see if the much-heralded Ravens fans are louder than their much-maligned counterparts in New England. It was pretty loud when the Baltimore defense took the field to start the game. The Ravens -- with Ray Lewis (who didn't play due to a sore toe) -- have been known for their defense since winning the Super Bowl a decade or so ago. In Ravenstown it's all about the D. The fans love Suggs, Reed, and their leader Ray Ray who was shown on the Jumbotron so much you would have thought he was playing. When the defense stopped Cincy on a three-and-out the stadium, which doesn't have an open-end like Gillette's lighthouse, was rocking. It was impressive.

Then Joe Flacco and the offense took the field. It got loud in the stadium again. Real loud. Only not with cheers and roars. With boos. Lots of boos. And when the offense couldn't move the ball the boos echoed all the way across the parking lot to Camden Yards. The residents of Ravenstown were not too happy with their offense. Cries of "Run it!" "Give it to Rice!" "Flacco you suck!" followed every incomplete pass. The mood soon changed after Flacco connected on a couple of touchdowns and the Ravens opened up what looked like a comfortable lead. Suddenly there was lots of love for the offense. Fans are the same everywhere.

I took advantage of the big lead (which quickly got smaller) to stroll around the stadium to see what Ravenstown had that Patstown didn't -- besides lots of people wearing purple. Prince would love it there.

Turns out they don't have powdered cinnamon to go on their fried dough. They don't have Don Julio margaritas. And most importantly, they don't have bathrooms big enough to prevent a line from snaking out into the concourse. I haven't waited in a bathroom line for ten years. Thank you Mr. Kraft.

What Ravenstown does have is very friendly people working there. Like the young guy who did my security pat-down. "Nice hoodie," he said as he checked my pockets for weapons. "Enjoy the game." Or the transit employee who made sure the drunk purple people didn't wander on the train tracks. "Stay behind the yellow line everyone. I wouldn't want anyone to get hurt." Then she added as people stumbled aboard the train "Have a nice, safe night." Finally there was the Baltimore police officer who led the fans in a "Let's go Ravens" chant as he did crowd control. Not the kind of things you see around Gillette.

Ravenstown has one more thing that Foxborough doesn't. Lots of people of color. I would estimate the number in the stadium to be more than 30 percent. At Gillette you'd be lucky to see 30 black fans total. In Baltimore, fans of different races enjoy rooting for their team together, exchanging high fives and hugs. It made me realize that although we've come a long way as far as football goes in Patstown, we really haven't made much progress when it comes to creating a more diverse crowd.