Eagles fans leave Cav's disappointed

Deep into last night's Philadelphia Eagles 17-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a gray-haired man sitting in Cavanaugh's Restaurant turned his head and was surprised to notice that the Phillies game had been playing on a TV the whole time.

He watched with interest for about 90 seconds, then turned back to watch his Eagles.

Even with the Eagles offense failing to put any points on the board, the approximately 150 fans at "Cav's" -- both West Philly residents and University students -- made it clear which Philly team was first in their hearts.

The normal polo shirts and Abercrombie and Fitch attire that serve as uniforms for Penn undergrads were replaced by green and white football jerseys bearing "5," "22" or "80."

Even one of the Cav's waitresses was donning a midnight green Donovan McNabb jersey at kickoff.

Philadelphia opened its season in the new Lincoln Financial Field against the team that ended its Super Bowl dreams in last year's NFC Championship game with a crushing 27-10 win over the favored Eagles.

This was no ordinary Monday night grudge match.

"The opening game is always packed," said Cav's bouncer Kravitz, who did not want his first name published. "It's the first night of the season and it's the Eagles' opening game in the stadium, so of course we expected it to be busy."

It was obvious the painful memories of last January's playoff match against the Bucs were still strong in fans' minds as the Eagles' second series of the game was a drive reminiscent of their scoring drive to start the game last winter.

However, after advancing to the Tampa Bay one-yard line, the Eagles offense stalled. On fourth down, Philadelphia lined up for a field goal attempt and faked. However, an open L.J. Smith dropped the potential touchdown pass, leaving the fans at Cav's with a bad taste in their mouths and the game still scoreless.

"I could have been poetic, but it was just a case of bad hands," Kravitz said.

That turned out to be the closest the Eagles would come to the end zone, as the Bucs' defense suffocated McNabb and company.

As the game progressed, the fans looked as if they were following a routine they knew all too well. Three-quarters of the standing-room only crowd filed out of the bar by the time Tampa Bay scored its second touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.

After the game, all junior Dave Sermeli could do was shake his head.

"I have nothing to say," Sermeli said.

Most Eagles fans felt similar disappointment.

"I don't have much to say, but it's very upsetting," College junior Mike Shepherd said outside Cav's after the game.

Shepherd, a Philly native, said the key to being a Philadelphia sports fan is to remain positive.

"Cav's is a hardcore bar, so you are going to see that kind of depression here," Shepherd said. "It's tough, but it's the first game of the season, so we can't throw in the towel just yet."

Despite the loss, Kravitz enjoys the football atmosphere on game nights.

"Cav's is the second best place to see the game, and I get paid to be here," Kravitz said.

Eagles-mania is obviously alive in University City, and while the first game ended on a sad note, the fans will have years of watching the team at "the Linc."

Or at Cav's.

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