Pittsburgh ? Jerome Bettis made a bold Super Bowl prediction to the thousands of Steelers fans who turned out in force Friday to honor the AFC champions.

“We carry Pittsburgh in our hearts wherever we go. … And you better believe, when we come back, we will have one for the thumb,” Bettis said.

An estimated 30,000 people awash in black and gold gathered at Heinz Field for the Super Bowl send-off, a hometown celebration for a team that earlier this season seemed a long shot to even make the playoffs.

“This is monumental for me. I’ve been waiting so long for this,” said 23-year-old Chris Feldman, of Dormont.

For Feldman, the Steelers are more than just a sports team.

“They’re blue collar like the city. Even if they are football players, they feel like blue collar to us,” Feldman said. “They put the city on the map. After the steel mills closed, they were the only things going for us.”

Anita Wobrak, of Hopewell, remembers the team’s glory days of the 1970s, when the Steelers won four Super Bowls. She brought her daughters, 10-year-old Tia and 9-year-old Autumn, to the pep rally so they could experience the excitement.

Fans painted their faces black and gold, tucked Terrible Towels in their waistbands and donned jerseys of their favorite players. Most jerseys celebrated current players, but some recalled the Steelers’ heyday and stars Jack Lambert and Rocky Bleier.

One fan wore a Neil O’Donnell jersey. O’Donnell was the last quarterback to lead the Steelers to the Super Bowl, throwing two interceptions in a 27-17 loss to Dallas in 1996.

The crowd had to wait a few hours for the celebration to officially begin. They didn’t seem to mind, breaking into impromptu chants of “Here we go, Steelers!” and cheering raucously as highlights of the AFC championship game win over Denver were replayed on a video screen.

When some players started to take the stage, the crowd got louder.

“Wow, this is amazing. You guys make us go out and play with passion in our hearts each and every Sunday,” wide receiver Hines Ward said.

Bettis, who will be returning to his hometown of Detroit for the Feb. 5 Super Bowl in what might be his final game, sported a Tigers jacket and cap at the rally.

“When we were the sixth seed going into the playoffs, nobody thought we could get it done. But everybody out here and everybody in Pittsburgh, from the bottom of our hearts, all of us on this stage, we want to thank you guys because you are just as much a part of us as everything we do,” he said.

The Steelers practiced earlier in the day, though fullback Dan Kreider and defensive lineman Travis Kirschke sat out with injuries for precautionary reasons. Kreider has an apparent left knee injury, but it isn’t believed to be serious. Kirschke was out, as expected, with a groin injury.