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It's a game of inches trying to clear Invesco

Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News

Published December 23, 2006 at midnight

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ENGLEWOOD - It is a real countdown to kickoff.

And for crews clearing the snow from Invesco Field for the game between the Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals, the clock has been ticking since early Wednesday.

"We've got 76,000 or so seats with 30 inches of snow," Mac Freeman, vice president of stadium operations, said Friday. "We've been going since it started snowing, and we'll keep at it until we're done.

"We've got crews of 150 to 200 people working round the clock - we'll be ready. It's a lot of snow, and we've got some 30-foot piles out here and we're running out of places to put it."

Freeman said most parking lots and pedestrian areas had been cleared by Friday morning and crews were working to try to get as much snow out of stadium seating areas as possible.

That's certainly no small chore, considering the snow has to be moved to the field level and then trucked out of the stadium. Crews shoveled the snow into plastic chutes that carried it down to the bottom rows of the lower bowl. The snow then was moved with construction-grade front-end loaders to trucks or carts and taken outside. Freeman said some of the piles outside the stadium had reached well in excess of 30 feet in height.

Because there still might be some snow under the seats Sunday, Broncos officials said fans should be prepared to wear appropriate footwear.

The playing field was cleared by Friday morning and the tarp was taken off, and crews were painting logos and field markings on the grass.

GREAT OUTDOORS: The Broncos practiced outside, going through a normal Friday workout on a FieldTurf surface at their complex.

After they finished, quarterback Jake Plummer livened up things with a sprint - he was clad only in long johns and hat - across the snow-covered fields before diving into the snow.

Linebacker Keith Burns was pelted with snowballs and left the field covered with snow.

BOWLEN'S MOTHER DIES: Arvella Bowlen, the mother of Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, died Wednesday after a long illness.

In lieu of flowers, the Bowlen family said donations can be made to AWARE, c/o the Alz-heimer's Association Colorado Chapter, 455 Sherman St., Suite 500, Denver, CO 80203.

NO PROBLEM: Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson, who is known as much for his mouth and how he celebrates his touchdowns as he is for his ability to string together 1,000-yard receiving seasons, isn't the guy most people would expect.

This, according to the guy who will be across from him plenty Sunday, cornerback Champ Bailey.

"People kind of misunderstand his trash talk," Bailey said. "He's such a funny dude. He makes a lot of jokes. He brings a lot of excitement to the game, and I kind of appreciate it."

INJURY REPORT: Wide receiver Javon Walker (left shoulder) practiced Friday and is expected to start Sunday. Cornerback Darrent Williams (left toe), who was held out of the Arizona game, practiced all week and is expected to start.

Tight end Stephen Alexander (ribs) also practiced all week, as did tackle Adam Meadows (left hamstring). Meadows has missed the past three games and is expected to be in uniform, but George Foster likely will start at right tackle.

For the Bengals, tackle Willie Anderson (foot) did not practice Friday, but quarterback Carson Palmer (shoulder) did. Tackle Levi Jones, who is trying to get back from a knee injury, did practice after being held out Thursday.

ETC.: The Bengals were scheduled to arrive in Denver on Friday night and then conduct their usual Saturday meetings at the team hotel . . . The Bengals returned 275 tickets for the game, and they can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, by telephone, 303-830-8497, or at www. Ticketmaster.com.

or 303-954-2359