By Ryan Bologna
There are a ton of great fanbases across the world of sports, but there are some individuals who stand out from the crowd. Whether it is wearing crazy costumes, promoting a business or using fame to benefit charity, there are a ton of interesting stories to find.
Mattress Mack
Pleasure running into the legend @MattressMack ⚾️ 🛌. He’s headed over to Fanduel Sportsbook to place a large wager on Tiger to win #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/IbQR21B8lH
— Brett Hoffman (@BrettHoffmanjr) July 13, 2022
Jim McIngvale, or “Mattress Mack”, became well known by placing multi-million dollar bets on big sporting events and essentially uses these wagers to promote his furniture company. For events like the Super Bowl and World Series, McIngvale places a giant bet on either a Texas team or one closest to his home state, and offers his customers a full refund if they win. No sports fan has used the betting industry to help himself quite like Mattress Mack.
License Plate Guy
Joe Ruback goes by “License Plate Guy” or “LPG” on the weekends. Ruback attends every New York Giants game, sits behind the bench, and wears a long string of license plates with different Giants-themed sayings on them. Ruback started the tradition while attending games with his dad at the old Giants stadium. When not at the games, Ruback is teaching elementary school gym classes and running charity events with current and former Giants players.
Dennis Drinkwater
Great win.. But even better is the legend Mr. DRINKWATER… head down on way outta Fenway before ball leaves the bat.. 😂😂#Legend
@stoolpresidente @Jared_Carrabis @ColeyMick @Steve_Perrault @Section10Pod @stoolsalesguy @FeitsBarstool pic.twitter.com/SYctNnbZzS— Stool Mario (@WallyandMario) August 23, 2021
Diehard Red Sox fans know who Dennis Drinkwater is — he’s the guy who sits behind home plate for nearly every game at Fenway Park. But how does Drinkwater afford the tickets? Well, Drinkwater is the owner of Giant Glass Company, a successful auto glass repair shop in Massachusetts. The most interesting aspect of Drinkwater is how he watches the games. Drinkwater doesn’t flinch at foul balls that go back to the screen, and once the game ends, he doesn’t start celebrating. If the Red Sox hit a no-doubter walk-off home run, you’ll see Drinkwater already heading to the parking lot at the crack of the bat.
The Green Men
The Green Men, or “Force and Sully”, are known for sitting next to the visitor’s penalty box during Canucks games with full spandex suits. The duo are seen doing silly dances up against the glass in attempt to intimidate or annoy players who are serving penalties. The Green Men also bring signs that relate to the visiting team’s name.
Sister Jean
March 🤝 Sister Jean
Loyola-Chicago is headed to the tournament once again 🔥 pic.twitter.com/XR0WZdEofr
— br_betting (@br_betting) March 6, 2022
Any college basketball fan knows Sister Jean, who is a super fan for the Loyola Chicago men’s basketball team. At 102 years old, Sister Jean is still attending games and is as passionate as always. Sister Jean has been the chaplain for the team since 1994 and got a lot of coverage during the Rambler’s run to the Final Four in 2018.
“Doc” Anderson
Richard “Doc” Anderson is a well-known eye doctor who attends Utah Jazz games and distracts visiting players while shooting free throws with props like umbrellas and saxophones. Doc’s methods have garnered so much attention that he has been threatened with lifetime bans by the NBA. Doc refuses to back down and his goal remains the same: to be the wildest fan in the arena each night.
Adam Mirghanbari
Adam Mirghanbari attended his first Rams game at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1966. Mirghanbari stayed loyal to the team when they left for St. Louis and he eventually moved there as well. Mirghanbari’s dream was to play for the team one day and although that didn’t come true, he did get to live out the dream of being a member of the organization. When the team returned to Los Angeles and played games at the Coliseum for a couple of years, Mirghanbari was added to the Rams equipment staff.
BirdLady
Carolyn Freeman is a former deputy sheriff who was seriously injured in the line of duty. After 12 years of being bedridden, Freeman was motivated to attend games by watching a 1998 TV report on the Falcons’ running back Gerald Riggs. Freeman was given the nickname “BirdLady” and now attends nearly every Falcons home game and shows her spirit every day, as she only wears black, white, red, and gray. Freeman also uses her fame to do good as she runs a toy drive for kids in the Atlanta area.
Photo Credit: Joseph Sohm
