Bills vs. Titans in 2009 Hall of Fame Game
The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans will kick off the 2009 National Football League preseason in the Hall of Fame Game it was announced by the NFL and Hall of Fame on Saturday afternoon.
Kickoff is slated for 8:00 PM ET on Sunday, August 9 at Canton’s Pro Football Hall of Fame Field at Fawcett Stadium. The game will be nationally televised by NBC.
The matchup marks a celebration of the American Football League’s 50th Anniversary Season. The Titans, who began as the Houston Oilers, and the Bills were original members of the AFL that played its first season in 1960. In 1970, the NFL and the AFL merged into one league with two conferences, the AFC and NFC.
The Hall of Fame will feature both teams playing in throwback uniform. The Titans, who moved to Tennessee following the 1996 season, will be dressed in uniforms styled after those worn by the Oilers in the 1960s. The Hall of Fame Game is the first of numerous ways in which the NFL will celebrate the 50th season of its AFL clubs.
Both the Bills and Titans are appearing in Canton for the third time and each is looking for its first win in the preseason classic. Buffalo last played in the game in 1989 and fell to the Washington Redskins, 31-6. The Bills also lost 21-13 to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1974. The Titans’ only two appearances came as the Oilers. The club lost to the New York Giants, 21-20 in 1985 and to the Los Angeles Rams, 17-6, in the 1971 Hall of Fame Game.
The Hall of Fame Game caps the 2009 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival, a multi-day celebration of the newest class of inductees. The Class of 2009 – Bob Hayes, Randall McDaniel, Bruce Smith, Derrick Thomas, Ralph Wilson, Jr., and Rod Woodson – was elected during today’s annual selection meeting.
Ticket information for the Hall of Fame Game will be announced at a later date.
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Class of 2009 announced
Wide receiver Bob Hayes, guard Randall McDaniel, defensive end Bruce Smith, linebacker Derrick Thomas, owner Ralph Wilson, and defensive back Rod Woodson make up the Class of 2009 Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinees. The new inductees will be formally enshrined on Saturday, August 8 in Canton.