Colts and Pacers Saturday doubleheader expected to fill downtown Indy

Indianapolis, Indiana – The Colts and the Pacers are both giving fans a reason to celebrate in January for the first time in a long time.

On Saturday night, the Colts and Houston Texans kick off at 8:15 p.m. The primetime winner will punch their ticket into the postseason.

”It’s a must-win game,” said Colts fan Luke Grayson. “It’s going to be a playoff atmosphere here in Indianapolis.”

The last eight games have been won by the Colts six times. With a victory, the Colts would make the playoffs for the first time since 2020, when quarterback Philip Rivers was in the starting lineup.

”We’re just pretty excited to finally have a chance to get into the playoffs and have a winning season,” said Debby Harvey, a member of the Blue Crew.

For the most devoted supporters, a night game also means a complete day of tailgating.

”Starting tomorrow afternoon, the lot across the street is going to fill up with the Blue Crew fans, Colts fans, we’ve got fans coming from out of town,” Harvey said.

Despite the team’s string of injuries this season, supporters we spoke with stated they remained united. A credit to the coaches and athletes.

”People have stepped up when they needed to,” Grayson said. “When Johnathan Taylor got hurt, Zach Moss stepped up. When Anthony Richardson went out, Minshew stepped up.”

The Pacers’ game against the Boston Celtics, a rival team in their conference, tips off just a few blocks from Lucas Oil Stadium. The Pacers are currently enjoying a five-game winning streak and are still fired up following their run to the title game in an in-season tournament. This is as of Friday afternoon.

Since the Reggie Miller era, Pacers supporters claimed they had never been more thrilled about a team. The Pacers are hoping to break through their playoff skid as they sit fifth in the Eastern Conference right now.

Many Indianapolis bar owners are happy that their winning strategies have rekindled their supporters’ enthusiasm.

”We are always busy for Pacers games and we have some of the best fans in here loving that the Pacers are doing good,” said Carrie Pietz, general manager of the BullDog Bar and Lounge in Broad Ripple.

Pietz anticipates a large number of supporters heading to pubs to ensure they don’t miss a minute of either game, as both are happening within an hour and a half of each other.

”It’s kind of the best of both worlds,” Pietz said. “So they can root for that team and then look up there and see their other favorite team playing.”

Pietz said she expects fans to show up early to get a spot.

No matter how Saturday goes for either team, fans tell us they’re excited for the future of bother franchises.