The whole story: The Black Hole could help Bears

For NFL teams playing on the road, there are hostile environments, and then there is Oakland's McAfee Coliseum, home to The Black Hole, where some of the freakiest, most vulgar fans in the league reside.

"Man, it could be scary if you've never been out there," said Bears tight end Desmond Clark, who played in Oakland every year during his three seasons with the Broncos. "The stabbings, the shootings, and all of that stuff is real."

The shootings, stabbings and fights inside Raider Nation have been overblown. But the entertaining, innovative, creepy costumes give the feeling of a creepy Halloween at every home game. Players say there are benefits to going into enemy territory where the fans are passionate.

"It's great to play in front of those types of crowds," Clark said, "because they get you going, along with their own team."

And, while some of the insults and trash talking get personal and a little too ribald, it's not all that bad.

"My second or third year in the league, there was this guy out there real early, a big guy sitting right down by the goal posts while I was out warming up," Clark said. "He was like, 'Clark, you (stink).' I said, 'Why don't you go up there and order a hot dog? You look hungry.' He was like, 'You (stink), why don't you get a hot dog?' We just kept going back and forth.

"That's one of the few stories I can repeat because usually there's a lot of cursing going on back and forth. They've got a passionate, passionate crowd."

Bears special-teams coverage ace Brendon Ayanbadejo grew up about 100 miles from Oakland and has been to many Raiders games as a fan, but he's quick to point out he's not one of the crazies.

"But I know what it's all about being in The Black Hole," Ayanbadejo said. "When I was in college (at UCLA) and high school I would go to the games. The Niners were always the big team in California, but the Raiders tickets were easier to get. So naturally you go to the Raider games."

Quarterback Brian Griese ventured into The Black Hole five times as a member of the Broncos, and he has a greater appreciation of the Oakland ambiance than any of his Bears teammates.

"It was a great rivalry (with the Broncos), and it was a lot of fun to go out there and play," he said. "It's a great atmosphere. One Halloween we played out there, and it was very memorable with all the costumes that were in the stands. Even though it's not Halloween, I'm sure there will be costumes in the stands. It's a lot of fun. It's a good environment."

Fun, unless you're a visiting player with some skeletons in your closet or want embarrassing personal matters kept private.

"I don't know where they get it from, but they know what's going on," Clark said. "If you've ever done something, gotten in any trouble, they know it and they'll let you hear about it."

The welcoming committee begins as soon as the buses pull into the stadium, but any player who has been with the Bears for long knows what that's like from having visited Green Bay.

"When you go to Green Bay, when you're pulling up, they're throwing hot dogs and stuff at the bus," Ayanbadejo said. "The Raiders do the same thing."

Muhsin Muhammad hasn't played in Oakland since 2000, when, as a member of the Carolina Panthers, he caught 10 passes for 114 yards. But he's familiar with the atmosphere.

"You'll be in hostile territory," Muhammad said. "Oakland is a spirited place to play, to say the least. Lots of spirits. I don't know what kind, but there are some spirited people."

For all their bravado and role-playing, some of the inhabitants of The Black Hole are just regular guys, according to Clark.

"Actually I played in a golf tournament with two of the guys that they show on TV a lot," Clark said. "The one guy has the black and silver (wing-like appendages) all the way up from the shoulder pads, and he sits right there by the tunnel where the opposing team goes into the locker room.

"Nice guy, but you wouldn't know that looking at them in their costumes."