A hometown Tep article.

[top dawg]

People seem to genuinely like and appreciate David Tepper. Of course there is something intriguing about a man that rises out of the working middle-class to become one of the richest men in the world, and even more so because Tep's every-day-guy persona is somewhat rare---perhaps even unique. Gene Collier of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tries to capture some of the magic of Tepper in his article before Tep returns to his hometown with the Panthers in hand. And what will it be like for Tep?

 

“It’ll be like bringing my wife to see my mother,” Tepper said. “I’m having, beforehand, a bunch of people with the (Steelers) throwing me a little bit of a party. I’m very excited.

“It was funny, I was talking about going there, talking with Carolina, and they were saying, ‘Oh, what do you want to do, a police escort?’ And it’s like, ‘What?!’ It’s pretty funny. I don’t know what they expect. I do not need a police escort to get around Pittsburgh. I’ll just walk up and do my thing. If you’ve seen me on the sideline at Steelers games, I’m just wearing a shirt with a logo and a Steelers hat. And I’ll be doing the same down in Carolina.”

 

It may feel even funnier to see wifey beat mama down...but we'll happily wait for that until the regular season.

 

Tepper and the Panthers---and the league---may be enjoying a honeymoon of sorts now, but it's only a matter of time befote Tep is going to make his presence felt...and I mean more than just business cards for the security guard and tailgating with fans. 

 

“David’s not bashful; he’s going to say what he thinks,” said Art Rooney II. “If he has something to contribute I’m quite sure we’ll all hear about it, and that’s a good thing, but he’s the kind of guy who is not going to weigh in on something he doesn’t feel he understands. He’ll take some time to understand how things work. He was a good partner. We’ll miss him. He loves football and he loves sports. It’ll be interesting to see what he does.”

 

Interesting, indeed! Hopefully it will be fun for most, if not all, of us. It will be, if we can get back to the mountaintop and actually win. The question is what will the journey be like until we get there. Tep is undoubtedly off to a good start.

 

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/08/27/david-tepper-panthers-owner-steelers-rooney-family-nfl/stories/201808260104

[Pejorative Miscreant]

The No. 1 reason by far to watch the 4th preseason game. 

[Cary Kollins]

Looking forward to Cam and Tep celebrating on the sideline after scores.

[AggieLean]

 I do not need a police escort to get around Pittsburgh.

 

Lol, for some reason this stuck out in a funny way to me. Like when rappers go back to their old neighborhoods and boldly claim, “I don’t need no security when I go through my neighborhood”

Tepper seems thorough as hell.

[Mr. Scot]

That's a pretty good article.

[Mr. Scot]

Haven't looked him up, but I'm guessing this guy is a columnist, i.e. the Post Gazette's equivalent of Scott Fowler.  I say that because for one, Ed Bouchette is the Steelers beat reporter (and he's one of the best). Two, he writes like a columnist, not a reporter.

What I liked best about the column were the following two selections...

 

Quote

 

“At heart, he’s a tough guy, no question,” said Thomas Tull, the Steelers’ minority owner with the legendary Hollywood resume (former Legendary Pictures CEO). “He certainly commands a room. He’s very intelligent and assertive. If those are things you’re looking for, you can just check all the boxes. As a trader, he’s ruthless. But he’s got a really good heart.

“He’s also a very good listener. Guys with his body of work, a lot of times, they are not good listeners. If they’re involved in something unfamiliar, they kind of shout over it. That’s not him. He’s more like to say something like, ‘Have you considered ‘X?’ ”

 

 

Quote

“David’s not bashful; he’s going to say what he thinks,” said Art Rooney II. “If he has something to contribute I’m quite sure we’ll all hear about it, and that’s a good thing, but he’s the kind of guy who is not going to weigh in on something he doesn’t feel he understands. He’ll take some time to understand how things work. He was a good partner. We’ll miss him. He loves football and he loves sports. It’ll be interesting to see what he does.”

I don’t know if Thomas Tull told Art II this story about Tepper’s first days with the Panthers, but it would make Art II think about his grandfather, the man who founded the football team Tepper couldn’t afford to buy a ticket to see until he was in his 20s.

“David understands culture,” Tull said. “On one of his first days in Carolina, he met a security guard in the offices. The next time David saw him, he gave the guy a business card. He had business cards made for the security guard. He pays attention. He’ll put his own thumb print on it. I think he’ll do a great job.”

That’d be only typical.

 

 

What he ultimately sounds like is a guy who generally gets what he wants, but not necessarily by running people over or intimidating them.

That could be a pretty good thing.