Hundreds of thousands of fans from across the region have made their way to the 4-mile parade route to cheer on the NFL champion Eagles this Valentine’s Day Friday. The parade has just begun.
Billy Penn will be posting throughout the day.
If you can’t get to the parade, the event will be livestreamed on WHYY.org.
WHYY-FM 90.9 will air the ceremonial speeches, which should begin around 2 p.m., in addition to other live reports from WHYY News and Billy Penn reporters along the parade route throughout the morning and afternoon.
Early start
Thousands of Eagles fans were up and getting their spots on the parade route before the sun rose this Valentine’s Day.
By 8 a.m., hundreds of fans had converged upon the Philadelphia Museum of Art staking out prime spots for the parade’s grand finale and the players’ speeches. Meanwhile, about three miles south, hundreds more lined up outside the gates of Lincoln Financial field where the team’s buses will begin their celebratory trek through South Philly.
By 10 a.m., those fans numbered in the many thousands.
At the Linc, Andrew Wallace, 24, waited with family and friends. He flew in from California to attend the parade. He expects to have more chances to fly east in the coming years.
“We might be growing up in a dynasty right now, honestly. Everybody’s young,” he said. “[Jalen] Hurts, Saquan [Barkley], the whole offense, everybody’s locked up … We’re looking at greatness right now. The city is at an all-time high.”
Jillian Trunbull was up at 4 a.m. to gather her crew for the trip north from Claymont, Delaware. She said being an Eagles fan is a lifetime family affair.
“I have loved the Eagles since I was born. Fly Eagles fly. I bleed green,” she said. “My husband is the biggest Eagles fan, my dad is a really big Eagles fan, so they couldn’t be here today, so I’m coming down here for them.”
At LOVE Park, Nike has updated the iconic LOVE statue to honor quarterback Jalen Hurts.
WHYY’s Peter Crimmins reports that there have been several proposals, and he heard reports that there was an actual wedding earlier this morning, at the statue.
Missed the first one
Anthony Faline, from Wilmington, worked all night before meeting up with his family and friends to head to the parade. Having missed the 2018 parade because he was working, he was determined to not miss out this time around.
“I decided I wanted to come up and see what the hubbub was about,” he said. But he admits watching the second win wasn’t quite as sweet as seeing the Birds win Super Bowl 52 seven years ago. “It wasn’t quite like the first time, but it was definitely enjoyable watching them destroy history, basically.”
The crowd at the art museum continued to swell through the early morning hours. The giant jumbotrons along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway started showing a replay of Super Bowl 59 around 8:40 a.m., giving the waiting crowd something to watch (and cheer along with) while they waited for the parade to begin.
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Nick Kariuki and Meir Rinde, from WHYY’s Billy Penn, and WHYY’s Tom MacDonald and Peter Crimmins contributed to this story.