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Former 49ers QB Smith recalls favorite Candlestick Park memory originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Many 49ers fans won’t ever forget San Francisco’s 36-32 final-second NFC divisional round win over the Drew Brees-led New Orleans Saints in 2011 — and neither will Alex Smith.
Even 13 years later, the former 49ers quarterback confessed he can’t get the image of Candlestick Park out of his head following the thrilling victory that cemented his legacy in San Francisco and beyond.
“I can’t get the image of Candlestick at the end of that game, certainly the back and forth in the fourth quarter. I’ve never heard a place so loud that it did kind of come to life,” Smith said during a 49ers QBs panel at the Dwight Clark Legacy Series event Thursday night at San Jose’s California Theatre. “And Candlestick for me was so different.”
Sitting beside Smith at the panel were former 49ers quarterback Jeff Garcia, Hall of Famer and 49ers legend Steve Young and current 49ers quarterback sensation Brock Purdy, along with host of the event and NBC Sports Bay Area’s 49ers insider Matt Maiocco.
Candlestick Park was home of the 49ers (and San Francisco Giants) until 2013, when the team relocated down to the South Bay at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.
But even though the 49ers haven’t played there for more than a decade now, the memories at the painfully chilly stadium live on. Even the not-so-pretty parts of the stadium are now viewed as beautiful memories that Smith — and those who played or watched a game at “The Stick” — will forever cherish.
“And Brock, you probably don’t know this, but this tunnel Jeff is talking about, it was like a 100-yard tunnel! There are pipes above you that are leaking, it’s all cement,” Smith said. “It’s really creepy. And it had its own weather system. It would be sunny down here [in San Jose] and like 75 [degrees], you go up there [San Francisco] and it was drizzly and windy. And I didn’t understand the nostalgia for a long time. It took me like seven…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/former-49ers-qb-smith-recalls-170705240.html
Author : NBC Sports BayArea
Publish date : 2024-05-17 17:07:05
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