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The 1970s era Oakland Raiders speak to Ricky Cobb’s soul.
That wonderful group of renegade bad asses and their marauding quarterback are often inspiration for the Illinois college professor’s wildly successful Twitter feed @Super70sSports, which boasts 435,000 followers.
The site celebrates vintage sports — among other pop culture nostalgia of yesteryear — and the Raiders often supply the fuel to Cobb’s mastery.
In one of the most “Raiders” moments ever, Matt Millen just goes and fucking punches the Patriots’ general manager in the face. pic.twitter.com/EkOQwK0b8Z
— Super 70s Sports (@Super70sSports) September 2, 2020
“If you’re going to cycle through and cover ‘70s and ‘80s sports, you don’t want to just tell stories, but the most entertaining stories and the Raiders just keep popping up,” Cobb said in a phone interview with Silver and Black Pride on Wednesday.
“(John) Madden, (Ken) Stabler, (Lyle) Alzado, (Fred) Biletnikoff, (John) Matuszak, Al Davis for God’s Sakes! You try to be funny and try to be entertaining and the Raiders do half the work for you. With the Raiders, the captions just write themselves.”
Legendary quarterback Ken Stabler is Cobb’s favorite Raiders’ folk hero and one of his most prized subjects to feature. He and former Houston Oilers running back Earl Campbell are his favorite NFL players of all-time. The fact that the two played together with the Oilers was almost too much for Cobb to handle.
I could try to explain why Ken Stabler is my all-time favorite quarterback but if you watch this you should goddamn well understand. pic.twitter.com/z7VAGcMXt7
— Super 70s Sports (@Super70sSports) April 15, 2020
“I love Ken Stabler as an idea, for what he represents,” Cobb said. “Speed-boat driving, drinking, hard-living, gunslinging, holy-rolling. What’s not to like about Ken Stabler? I don’t think we can be friends if you don’t like Ken Stabler.”
This tweet is one of Cobb’s favorites of all-time:
Tom Brady: Six Super Bowl rings, one scooter, one helmet.
— Super 70s Sports (@Super70sSports) April 27, 2019
Ken Stabler: One Super Bowl ring, one speedboat, no helmet, no fucks given.
Advantage: Stabler
*No bonus points for Giselle b/c you know the Snake had a hot babe waiting for him too and I bet she was cooler. pic.twitter.com/Q0eTefWHtA
A couple of years ago, one of Stabler’s daughters wrote a personal note to Cobb thanking him for keeping her father’s legacy alive. She told Cobb if he is ever in Alabama, she’d buy him a couple of drinks because that would what he father, who died in 2015, would do.
“That’s the highest blessing to have his daughters to follow the feed,” Cobb said. “and they like it.”
While Cobb celebrates all sports, the NFL has a special place in his heart and as inspiration for his vintage tweets.
“Those Raiders were about as interesting as any team out there,” Cobb said. “They were among the best. I just love what they embody and it’s easy to celebrate.”
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