09/17/26 11:12:00
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09/17 23:10 CDT Fireworks, 2 anthems and a full house: Bills beat Lions in 1st
regular-season game at new stadium
Fireworks, 2 anthems and a full house: Bills beat Lions in 1st regular-season
game at new stadium
By JOHN WAWROW
AP Sports Writer
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) --- Fireworks. Two national anthems. A packed house.
And a win.
Josh Allen accounted for five touchdowns, and the Bills beat the Detroit Lions
41-31 in the first regular-season game at Highmark Stadium. The quarterback
scored the first TD in the $2.1 billion facility on a 1-yard run six minutes in
to open a first half in which Buffalo scored on each of its first four
possessions.
A sell-out crowd arrived early, and about a 1,000 fans still lingered long
after kickoff in cheering on Allen and left tackle Dion Dawkins as they were
being interviewed at the Prime TV booth along the sideline.
As a border city, Buffalo paid tribute to its fanbase by having both the U.S.
and Canadian anthems performed with both country's flags displayed on the field.
The Toronto musical group Barenaked Ladies was greeted by a loud cheer before
singing "O, Canada." They were followed by Hawaiian-born actress and singer
Auli'i Cravalho performing "The Star-Spangled Banner." U.S. pop group
OneRepublic also performed at halftime, while set up on a platform in the
stands at the north end of the field.
Fireworks went off about 90 minutes before game time and then again during the
opening ceremonies.
Fans unfurled three banners with the words Bills and Mafia, and a logo
commemorating the stadium's inaugural season. An elaborate light show then
followed with fans wearing bracelets that blinked, followed by a fireworks
display as the Bills offensive starters were introduced, with Allen greeted by
a roar and chants of "M-V-P! M-V-P!"
And the Bills even rolled out a new green grass carpet, by choosing to resod
the entire field ahead of schedule following their preseason finale against
Pittsburgh on Aug. 27. They did so after the original turf, which had been laid
down in October, showed signs of wear and tear, and with large divots having to
be replaced during two preseason games and two practices.
Bills players indicated after practicing in the stadium on Tuesday that the
grass felt firmer, and noticed a larger infill of sand. That was evident in
pregame warmups when clumps of sand came up when players made hard cuts on the
field.
During the opening drive, an on-field official was spotted having to tamp down
a clump of grass that came up at the 30.
The only other apparent hiccup occurred when the teams lined up prematurely for
the opening kickoff, and then stayed in formation for several minutes during a
commercial break.
The field was painted for the first time, with the word "BILLS" in large white
block letters featured prominently in both end zones over red-painted grass.
The team's charging Buffalo logo was also added at midfield.
The new stadium has a capacity of just over 60,000, about 12,000 less than the
old facility which now lies in rubble across the street.
What's different is the layout, with the new facility's seating structure built
more vertically in placing viewers more on top of the action. The new building
also features a canopy, which helps project crowd noise directly on to field.
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