By Howard Balzer

OK, I’m an old softie, so sue me!

Here it is, six hours after the BattleHawks closed out a 29-9 victory over the New York Guardians and I admit I’ve been trying to corral my emotions, attempting to come up with the right words to describe this entire, virtually miraculous day in St. Louis.

Surreal keeps coming into my head.

Merriam-Webster defines it as something “marked by the intense irrational reality of a dream.”

Dictionary.com says it’s “having the disorienting, hallucinatory quality of a dream; unreal; fantastic.”

The first entry in a Google search has it as “having the qualities of surrealism; bizarre: ‘a surreal mix of fact and fantasy.’”

Sounds about right, doesn’t it?

Yes, after burning some sage outside my house Sunday morning and bringing some with me (not to burn, but just to have close by during the game), I got in my car and started making the all-too-familiar drive down 70 east to the dome on a February day where rain had been predicted, but the day dawned sunny with temperatures headed to the mid-50s. The rain came Monday, but Sunday the football Gods were smiling on St. Louis.

The emotions hit me fast: memories of 21 seasons of going to games, and then the last four seasons with an inescapable emptiness. Suddenly, I recalled one Sunday morning who knows how many years ago hearing a horn honk, looking to my right, and seeing old friend Jack Snow heading downtown, waving at me.

Jack Snow, the former Rams player who moved to St. Louis with the team in 1995 and became a fixture in his adopted home. Then, gone too soon at the age of 63 a crazy 14 years ago. I realized I’ve outlived him now by five years.

Like many, it never gets old for me, covering this sport for more than 40 years. No, I didn’t go to high school in St. Louis, but my professional adult life has been spent here save for 18 months in Las Vegas following the failed NFL expansion team effort. At least that did get the dome built. I came home 17 months after that move, beating the Rams’ moving trucks by a couple weeks.

Then, came the tortuous 2015 season and another false hope that a stunning stadium plan spearheaded by current Schnucks COO Dave Peacock would convince the NFL that either the Rams should stay or that we deserved another team.

Now, we have that team. OK, it isn’t the NFL, but it’s filled with players that care (prima donnas need not apply) and a product that is competitive and fun to watch. To quote the XFL, “For the Love of Football.” Isn’t that what this is all about?

So it was that I hit the Broadway exit, not knowing where I was going to park, and immediately saw the old McGuire lot north of the dome already filled to the brim with tailgaters at 9:30 a.m. more than four hours before kickoff.

It was fitting that I chose to park on the surface lot at Convention Plaza and 6th Street. Fitting because when I exited my car, I looked up and saw that the sign above 6th Street was still there. The one that says “Georgia’s Way.”

I crossed the street, got right under the sign and blew a kiss to the heavens to the grand and eccentric former lady owner of the Rams, who passed away 12 years ago.

Entering the dome, it was like old home week (after the guy searching my bag didn’t notice the sage in it!), greeting people I hadn’t seen in 1,529 days since the last Rams home game on Dec. 17, 2015. Then, making my way to the field to prepare for our pregame show on 590 The Fan and 590thefan.com.

Yes, surreal is the right word, especially when former Cardinals running back Theotis Brown came by to say hello after the pregame show ended. His son, Trey, is the BattleHawks’ director of player personnel. Theotis turns 63 in April.

By then, the dome was filling up, as we knew it would, with white rally towels being waved, Torry Holt handing off the game ball to the official after catching another pass on the dome field and then after the game began the torrent of frequent chants of “Kroenke Sucks.”

Oh, yes, the game! In the press box at the upper reaches of the dome, I realized my first rookie mistake: forgot the binoculars. Oh, well, that won’t happen game.

What followed was a resounding victory amid deafening roars, especially when safety Joe Powell took off with a lateral on a kickoff return and raced 84 yards for a touchdown.

As head coach and general manager Jonathan Hayes noted, that score “really knocked the roof off the top of this building. That really ignited our players and got us excited. I couldn’t hear myself think when he was running down the sideline.”

The same white noise occurred when kicker Taylor Russolino made good on a 58-yard field-goal attempt.

Most important, it seems the best is yet to come. The crowd of 29,554 is an XFL high after three weeks, and remaining tickets just might be gobbled up quickly for next Saturday’s game against the Seattle Dragons and the three remaining home games after that.

Fans in attendance Sunday who wanted to sample the product and don’t have tickets will now likely be clamoring for more along with those at home that probably didn’t believe their eyes of what they were seeing on TV.

Said BattleHawks wide receiver and former Mizzou standout L’Damian Washington, “We’ve got to open those upper decks. I think we can fill them up. It’s the first game and I think we still can fill up those open seats.”

Not knowing what the reaction would be when tickets went on sale several months ago, the plan was to sell seats only in the lower bowl for the first two games. Now, there is discussions about at least opening up the 300 level (club level) for the final three home games depending on what happens next week.

Said Hayes, when asked about getting more fans into the dome, “That’s above my pay grade, but whatever they decide to do I’ll be ecstatic because the crowd was awesome.” During the week, he talked about wanting the place “chaotic” Sunday, referring to “the 12th man we need.” He and his team certainly got their wishes granted.

Let it be known that a seed was planted Sunday morning when I suggested a thought expressed on BattleHawks Live last week: open up the entire dome for at least that third home game March 21 against Los Angeles. Yes, Los Angeles … hint, hint.

That seed was planted Sunday with none other than league commissioner Oliver Luck along with president and COO Jeffrey Pollack.

Both loved the idea! Speaking to Pollack first, I said tickets could be sold in the 400 level for 20 or 25 bucks. Pollack’s reaction: “Heck, we can sell them for $10!”

Interviewing Luck on the pregame show, and spelling out that formula, he agreed it was a great idea.

Surely, there could be some logistical hurdles to clear, but can everyone imagine the dome absolutely rocking with over 60,000 people in the seats and, of course, no one cheering for the visiting team?

Talk about surreal.