Owens returning to scene of his signature moment
October 10, 2003
Daniel Brown
Mercury News
49ers receiver Terrell Owens returns Sunday to the scene of his infamous Sharpie celebration for the first time since his end-zone autograph angered the Seattle Seahawks. The incident especially enraged Seahawks Coach Mike Holmgren, who fumed last year, "It's shameful. It's a dishonor to everyone who has ever played this game."
On Wednesday, Holmgren sounded ready to forgive Owens for his penmanship -- and his sportsmanship.
"I think it was one of those things where we got beat and I was ticked off that we lost the football game," Holmgren said, looking back on the 49ers' 28-21 victory on Monday Night Football last Oct. 14. "Let's face facts. That kind of thing happened and I'm not a big fan of those types of things, but Terrell Owens is a great football player. Anybody who faces the 49ers knows that you have to start with him."
Owens' signature moment came after he scored on a go-ahead 37-yard catch, his second touchdown of the night, and pulled a Sharpie out of his sock to autograph the ball. He handed the souvenir to Greg Eastman, his friend and financial planner, who was sitting in the field-level luxury suites owned by the Seahawks' Shawn Springs -- the cornerback whom Owens beat for the touchdown. Springs is another of Eastman's clients.
Springs (shoulder) is listed as doubtful, so chances are against a rematch. Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said the issue is passé anyway.
"If you ask most of the guys in our locker room, we kind of respect what kind of player Terrell Owens is," he said. "If you were to ask any of the quarterbacks here, shoot, we'd throw him the ball all the time. He's a heck of a player. Sometimes T.O. gets a bad rap, but I think we admire him more than anything."
While Owens has faced the Seahawks since that game -- a 49ers victory in December -- this will be his first trip back to Seahawk Stadium. His reception there will be chilly, but at least some people look back fondly at the moment. The folks at Sharpie made a few commercials playing off the incident. Owens wasn't paid for the ads, but the company made a $25,000 donation to the Alzheimer's Association, for which Owens is a celebrity chairman.
For every Owens touchdown this season, Sharpie donates $1,000 to the Northern California Alzheimer's Association.
• Quarterback Jeff Garcia expects the Seahawks to blitz plenty because the 49ers showed a vulnerability to pressure during their victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday. He said the team needs to be better at protection -- not just the offensive linemen but also the backs and tight ends.
The offensive line might get a boost this week from the return of left guard Eric Heitmann, who has not played since the season opener because of an ankle injury. Heitmann practiced Wednesday and has a chance of starting against Seattle.
"We'll kind of wait and see how it feels after pounding on it," Coach Dennis Erickson said. "But he went the whole time and moved around pretty good."
• Owens got the day off from practice because of a strained Achilles' tendon but will return today. "It's precautionary, really," Erickson said. "It's not something that's been lingering, but it bothered him a little bit today."
• Cornerback Ahmed Plummer was the NFC defensive player of the week for his three tackles, interception and three passes defensed against Detroit. Plummer picked off a pass from Joey Harrington on the Lions' opening drive to set up the 49ers' first touchdown.
