Chargers Welcomed by 75,000

Some 75,000 jubilant fans jammed Jack Murphy Stadium on Sunday night, welcoming a San Diego Charger team bound for its first Super Bowl.

They screamed, waved and threw toilet paper in celebration of the 17-13 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

So many people showed up, some were turned away. They parked on neighboring streets to hear the festivities and watch the fireworks. The stadium’s giant-screen TV showed the team’s plane arriving at Lindbergh Field.

Fans went wild as the team walked into the stadium.

“I know everybody talked about the Terrible Towels tonight,” quarterback Stan Humphries told the roaring crowd. “Well tonight, they’re using those towels for crying towels. . . . We’re going to Miami, and we’re going to win this sucker.”

Linebacker Junior Seau, stepping to the podium, said: “They thought this was only a tourist attraction. They know about Shamu. Now the world is going to know, not about Junior Seau, not about Natrone Means, not about Stan Humphries, not about Leslie O’Neal, but about the San Diego Chargers.”

Even before the rally, bedlam was the order of the day. Fans swarmed the pier, honked car horns, set off car alarms and screamed with joy through the city.