Cook brothers experience the Vikings game

Can you imagine getting into a professional sports event, for example, the Minnesota Vikings, without a ticket in your hand?

Yes, it is possible, as the Cook twins, Wayne and Warren Cook, found out first-hand Sunday for the Vikings-Packers game.

They were guests of the Vikings, who honored Wayne for his 50 years as a Minnesota State High School League official and as one of the longest tenured referees in Minnesota. Cook was notified Dec. 22 that he was chosen as a guest for Tenured Officials Appreciation Day. He was joined by John Leiser of St. Cloud, who has served 60 years as an official.

Jaylen Huggins, Youth and High School Football Coordinator for the Vikings who interacts with the MSHSL, informed the Cooks — Warren went along as the driver/photographer — that the package offer would include two game tickets, a parking pass, pregame sideline access and a concession coupon.

When it took a week for the NFL to decide if the game would be played at either 12 noon or 3:30 PM, it was too late to send everything in the mail. While it was a meaningless game in the standings, it was a worthwhile experience for the Cooks.

However, things don’t always work out as planned.

First, they arrived at US Bank Stadium around 9:30 AM, and there were already fans walking around or tailgating three hours prior to kickoff. Driving around the stadium, they noticed that parking was sparse. With no promised parking pass, their best recourse was a city-owned parking ramp. Cost: $65.

Then, there were more complications. Two rows of cars lined up to get and pay for a parking ticket. However, one of the two machines that spits out the parking stub wasn’t working. The worker told the Cooks he would have them, and two cars behind him, back up and get into the other line. Thank goodness.

After walking for what seemed like forever, the Cooks wondered how they would fare without a game ticket. They passed through security and discovered admission was impossible without a ticket. A worker told them to go to the Ticket Window, where somebody would help them. The gentleman made a telephone call, and they met Huggins and his supervisor at a nearby office door. What a relief, knowing we were in the building, and somebody, at least, had a record of us as guests.

Upon entering, Wayne was asked if his son’s name was Jeff. He knew that Wayne was attending the game and called the Vikings to see if it was possible to get two Vikings caps, valued at $45. One for Wayne and one for Jeff. Our luck was changing for the better.

Immediately, we put on wrist bands, which gave us access to the sidelines as the players warmed up for the NFL contest. People were five rows deep trying to get photos of the Vikings. There were no celebrities, but we ventured along with Huggins and soon were within arm’s reach of a drill with receivers like Justin Jefferson catching fade passes. A great photo opportunity. Fans of all kinds — young, old, men and women — were anxious to see warmups. We were told we had to leave the sidelines by 11:30.

Time to eat, and it was easier to eat at ground level rather than the 300 -numbered seat level. We learned from Leiser that we were seated in Section 333, row 10, seats 1-4. Instead of climbing all the steps, we took an elevator to the area of our designated seats. Lineups were introduced. The national anthem was played.

Scoring touchdowns were a rarity in this game, but we were ready when the Vikings’ C.J. Ham — who was retiring — plunged over from the 1. Warren had his cellphone camera focused, and got a keepsake of the TD which was directly below our seats. At the same time, he was having problems trying to send a photo to the Sleepy Eye online publication. Finally, it was sent. Then, my cellphone rang. My brother-in-law was calling. It was so loud — even during timeouts — and I never responded.

And, on cue, it seemed, that the Vikings switched quarterbacks, as J.J. McCarthy took himself out of the game with a recurring right hand injury. With his back-up in the lineup, it seemed that the offense was more in sync and more fluid.

Following an ice storm warning until 2:30 PM — it never materialized — the Vikings called a timeout to honor safety, Harrison Smith, whose career has spanned 14 years in Minnesota. He was given a lengthy standing ovation from the gracious fans.

In the process of being shut out by the Vikings, Green Bay called timeouts with :26 and :01 left. Why? To kick a field goal. We later read on Twitter that was to cover the point spread. The Vikings were 13.5 point favorites. The field goal got the Packers to within 13,

Well, thank goodness, I had the parking pass stub in my billfold, or we never would have found our way back to the parking ramp, It took about 40 minutes to get on the interstate, and the sun was shining and the road was not ice-covered, We were leaving Minneapolis with a priceless memory.

It was two twins celebrating their birthday — the actual date is January 12 — and meeting fans that worshipped pro football players. Up close, they seemed like normal human beings. The only difference was they had higher-paid jobs. At least the tickets, which were never visible to us, were complimentary. Thank you, Vikings.