The Terrible Towel is a gimmick created by Myron Cope, a broadcaster for the Pittsburgh Steelers (an American football team). Needing a way to excite the fans during a 1975 playoff football game against the Baltimore Colts, Cope urged fans to take yellow dish towels to the game and wave them throughout. The Steelers players themselves were unenthused, saying they weren't "a gimmick team." Nevertheless, the stands were filled with yellow towels that day, and the Steelers always seemed to complete terrific plays when the towels were waving. The Steelers won that game 28-10.
The Steelers introduced yellow towels with the words "Myron Cope's Terrible Towel" in black on them just in time for Super Bowl X. The Steelers went on to win, "thanks to the Towels," many claimed, against the Dallas Cowboys.
Today, there many other types of Terrible Towels for sale, such as golf towels, black towels, beach towels, and towels with the Steelers logo on it. In addition, fans of many other college and NFL teams have begun waving towels in their teams colors.[1]
