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This one’s for the Towel: The Curse of the Terrible Towel on the Tennessee Titans

Allison Koehler
·5 min read

What better time to revisit the Curse of the Terrible Towel than Tennessee Titans week? The yellow rally towel has been revered by Pittsburgh Steelers fans worldwide since it was invented by the late broadcaster Myron Cope in 1975. That year, Pittsburgh went on to win the first of four Super Bowls in five seasons.

The curse not only condemns the team that disrespects it but also gives some kind of energy to the Steelers. And the curse did just that in 2008.

At the conclusion of the Week 16 win over the Steelers, Titans linebacker Keith Bullock and defensive end Jevon Kearse stomped, spit on and kicked the Terrible Towel. Running back LenDale White would also celebrate their win by stomping on the Towel in front of the cameras.

“They came into the Titans arena waving those ugly yellow flags, and I stomped on one,” White told NFL.com. “If they wave it again, I’m going to stomp on another one. I’m the Terrible Towel Stomper forever. If people don’t like it on this team or anywhere else, whatever.”

Post-stomping, the 13-2 Titans went 0-2 to finish their season.

Meanwhile, Pittsburgh won its next three games and went onto the Super Bowl, which the Titans watched from their couch.

Pittsburgh defeated the Arizona Cardinals (more below on how Phoenix mayor’s dishonor of the Towel may have cursed his Cardinals).

But that wasn’t it for the Titans. The team would go winless for a total of 10 weeks, including a Week 1 overtime loss to Pittsburgh the following season.

In a ceremony honoring former Steelers player and coach Tony Dungy, Titans head coach Jeff Fisher said to an amused Dungy, “I need to know the mystery of this Terrible Towel. Last December, a couple of my knuckleheads stomped on it and we haven’t won a game since… Will you tell the Rooneys I have one enshrined in my office, I have one hanging in my house, I’ll do anything I need to do with that towel.”

At the behest of former Titans tackle Brad Hopkins, White and Bulluck autographed a Terrible Towel and mailed it to Pittsburgh’s Alleghany Valley School. AVS, a nonprofit that provides homes and services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, owns the rights to the towel is (more on AVS below).

The players’ gesture seemed to have reversed the curse as the Titans went on to win their next five games to close the 2009 season at 8-8.

History of the curse

Fisher obviously was not aware of the Curse of the Terrible Towel, though it had been well-observed — in many cases, opponents’ disrespect of the towel led to imminent doom.

The latest victim was the Cincinnati Bengals. In 2016, running back Jeremy Hill found paydirt to put the Bengals up 17-3 over the Steelers. He chose to celebrate by twice trying to rip the cloth in half before throwing it to the ground.

The Bengals promptly gave up a 14-point lead.

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After rushing for 44 yards in the first half, Hill was bottled up with -1 yard on six attempts in the second, and the Steelers won, 24-20.

Later, Hill later posted this tweet:

Hill removed the post after I’m sure what was a firestorm from Steelers Nation. With that, he claimed he was hacked.

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Hill wasn’t the first Bengal to dishonor the Towel. After beating the Steelers in Week 13 of the 2005 season, wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh wiped his cleats with it. The Curse of the Terrible Towel was activated with a single swipe.

At 9-3, the Bengals were favorites to win the AFC. With the curse set in motion, Cincinnati lost three of the next five games, including a Wild Card loss to… the Steelers, 31-17. That same game, quarterback Carson Palmer suffered a serious knee injury.

After Hoosh’s Towel taunting, it would be four years before the Bengals again reached the playoffs after seasons of 8-8, 7-9 and 4-11-1.

The Steelers, however, never lost another game in 2005 and finished off the season as Super Bowl champs.

Washington Football Team

Weeks before Hill attempted to rip the towel, in the 2016 season opener in Pittsburgh Washington punter Tress Way’s mother burned a Terrible Towel. Washington lost, 38-16.

Cleveland Browns

In a 1994 playoff game, Browns running back Earnest Byner stepped on the towel and proclaimed, “We don’t care about your towel. We’re going to beat you this time.” Cleveland lost, 29-9.

San Diego Chargers

In 1994, after the San Diego Chargers beat the Steelers in the AFC Championship game, several players grabbed Terrible Towels and mock-waved and stomped on them. The Chargers then lost the Super Bowl, 49-26, to the San Francisco 49ers.

Arizona Cardinals

One of the most recent incidents harmful to a Steelers opponent was in 2008.

At a send-off rally for the Cardinals, their mascot Big Red wiped his furry armpits with the Terrible Towel. Then things got downright serious. Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon blew his nose into the Towel and threw it to the ground.

Former Steelers offensive coordinator and then-Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt warned Gordon not to disrespect the Towel. Whisenhunt knew all-too-well the power of the curse. But Gordon did it anyway, and Pittsburgh defeated Arizona in the Super Bowl.

Terrible Towel for a good cause

In 1996, Myron Cope gave the rights of the Towel to Merakey Allegheny Valley School, who benefits from Terrible Towel proceeds. Cope held the nonprofit close to his heart — his son, who is autistic, has lived most of his life at AVS. Proceeds from Terrible Towel sales have netted the organization over $3 million.