Will Underwood introduced Richard ‘Pete’ Peterson as today’s speaker. Richard is an author and is presenting today on his book titled The Turnpike Rivalry: The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns.The author received a Masters and PhD from Kent State University and spent time in Kent from 1967-1969. He said he and his wife often refer to their time in Kent as one of the happiest time of their lives.
He is now a professor emeritus of English at Southern Illinois University. He is the author of Extra Innings: Writing on Baseball and Growing Up with Clemente as well as the editor of The Pirates Reader and The St. Louis Baseball Reader. His essays have also appeared in the Chicago Tribune and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Peterson’s presentation focused on the rivalry between the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers claiming that he can’t imagine a better rivalry. The reasons he believes the rivalry is so good are the proximity between the two cities, the working class character of both cities, and that the teams have never been good at the same time. He also discussed the relationship of bullies that keep the rivalry going strong.
Questions and discussion wrapped up the program with club members asking Pete about the following: team owners, players both old and new, 2021 prospects, the fate of Ben Roethlisberger this season, Terry Bradshaw and Tim Couch, and team uniforms including the bumblebee uniforms of the Steelers.
