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Steelers Nation Ready To Welcome Regular Refs Back To The Field

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- After a three-month lockout, the NFL and the referees' union have reached a tentative contract agreement.

In fact, things are moving quickly. The regular refs will be back on the field tonight; and for some football fans, that's not soon enough.

With the return of the original refs, it's expected that fans won't have to deal with things like interceptions turned touchdowns, refs tripping up receivers and Steelers' safety Ryan Clark being annoyed with reporters.

"The only distraction the replacement refs are for me, is you all asking me about it," he told reporters earlier this week.

And the fans KDKA's Ross Guidotti spoke to on the street were more than full of opinions on the replacement refs.

"Terrible, terrible, terrible. Three words – terrible," said Don Burrows, a Steelers fan.

"Some of them should have never been on the football field," added Steelers' fan Tom McAleavy.

However, there was some compassion for those poor souls who some say couldn't make a call on a phone, let alone a football field.

"Everybody makes a mistake," said Chelsea Cooper, another football fan.

What's interesting is how much faith, if not love, fans have in the original refs - at least for now.

"I think they'll do better; they've got the experience," said McAleavey. "I mean, even if they're off a while, you've got the experience. It's like riding a bike, you never forget."

RELATED LINKS:
NFL Reaches Tentative Agreement With Refs (9/26/12)
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