Almost 16,000 fans attended the second annual Texans All Access.
Nearly 16,000 fans turned out at Reliant Stadium Saturday as the Texans hosted their second annual All Access event.
All Access allows fans an inside look at Reliant Stadium and all of its first class NFL facilities.
Fans toured the Texans weight room, locker room, cafeteria and were granted access to field level to experience a day few ever will. The event, which ran for three hours, also included interaction with players as the entire Texans roster was scattered around Reliant Stadium signing autographs.
Mark Riordan was just one of many fans who had a fantastic time Saturday.
"This is great, a lot of fun," Riordan said. "We've toured the stadium, been down to the service level and got a few autographs while checking out all the various facilities."
Riordan said it's rare that a professional sports team gives its fans an up-close look at their organization and he thinks it will pay huge dividends with a fan base hungry for a contender.
"Absolutely, it get's them in touch with the community," Riordan said. "Those people who support the team, it's great. I'm just here to support the team."
Steve Dolan came to last year's All Access and had a great time. He said his second trip out was even better than the first.
"There's definitely an improvement," Dolan said. "For my kids, we're looking for autographs, but for me, just interaction with the players, talk with them a little bit."
Saturday was for the fans to be sure, but for the players, they got something out of it too. Kris Brown said that it's nice to be around so much optimism for the coming season and thought the event was a great idea.
"Oh yeah, this is great," Brown said. "I was telling Kevin Walter that if they had something like this when I was growing up, I mean to get this kind of access is pretty amazing."
Brown said that there was a recurring theme to every conversation he had with a fan on Saturday.
"Just that everybody is excited about the season," Brown said. "All the fans are optimistic that this is going to be a good year for us."
Wali Lundy had a similar experience.
"They're just real excited about the season and how we ended last year," Lundy said. "They're just looking forward to this season and us hopefully making the playoffs."
Count Dolan among those fans with lofty expectations.
"Definitely," Dolan said when asked if the playoffs were a possibility. "This year, we're going to the Super Bowl."
