The Uber-Fan

by Orod412

Originally seen on www.thebigoz.com

The Uber-Fan --

[1] Today's local paper ran a story on Ed Anzalone, better known as annoying Jets Uber-Fan "Fireman Ed," whose injured knee will force him to miss attending Jets home games for the foreseeable future.

A few things immediately came to mind upon hearing this; 1) Wa-hoo! 2) How is this news? 3) How is this news--in the South Florida sports section?

Anyway, for those who don't know of "Fireman Ed", he's absolutely adored by Jets fans as he famously leads the stadium wide "J!E!T!S! Jets! Jets! Jets!" chant after every Jets touchdown. To fans of other teams however, the mere idea of not having to see that God-forsaken Fireman's hat lead the insane Jets fans into pandemonium is plenty of reason for celebration.

According to the Sun Sentinel, his absence at the Jets opener against the Patriots was so strongly felt, that team officials called him personally to find out why he wasn't there!

Is there even a precedent for something like that? That's completely unheard of here in the Bandwagon City (Miami) -- Unheard of.

This got me to think about local Uber-Fans, and I wondered if their team of choice would give them the call of support, as the Jets did with their boy Ed.

Knowing the local teams as well as I do, I wouldn't hold my breath.

Big Papa Pump [2] Thomas Phillips, known to Dolfans as Big Papa Pump, sits in the front row at every Dolphins home game and "Pumps" up the crowd after every score. A season ticket holder for seven years, both Big Papa's home and car are completely decked out in Dolphins gear. Check out his site for more info on the "biggest" Dolphins fan around.

The Miami Finatic [3] [4] Richard Molinary is the Miami Finatic. A permanent fixture at both Dolphins and Miami Hurricane games, you might remember his brief cameo in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Usually sitting next to fellow Uber-Fan Big Papa Pump, the two are usually louder and more fired up than the other 60,000 fans in attendance combined.

Dolfan Denny [5] [6] Sadly, Dolfan Denny passed away earlier this year at the age of 72. Denny Sym had been a fan since the Dolphins inaugural season, and was a main attraction at Dolphins games for 32 years. He was eventually contracted as the team's official motivator for $50 a game. His age and heckling fans led to his retirement in 2000, but every Dolphins fan knows of the man known as Dolfan Denny.

Snowflake the Dolphin [7] [8] Before being kidnapped by deranged former Dolphins kicker Ray Finkle, Snowflake captured the imagination of Dolfans all over the world. In all seriousness, Snowflake was never an actual mascot for the Dolphins, but after the success of Ace Ventura, many wondered if he was ever a real fixture at Dolphins games.

Marlin Man [9] You wouldn't know it just by looking at him, but the man you see in this photo is the biggest bandwagon fan in Marlins history, and after two World Championships, that's really saying something. This guy was rarely seen before their first title in 1997, and has never been seen since. What happened to him? My theory is that former Marlins owner Wayne Huizenga shipped him to the Dodgers in the firesale of '98 for a bag of Doritos and a handful of Tic-Tac's.

Muscle Boy [10] Another fixture at Marlins games in 1997, Muscle Boy delighted the crowd with his best Hulk Hogan impression. Now 19 years old, Ryan Kurlander is still a Marlins fan, but his hayday came when he was 9 as the skinny kid who flexed the Marlins into the World Series.

So although the South Florida scene is completely ridden with every conceivable type of bandwagon fan there is, these Uber-Fans (except for Marlin Man--screw you!) remind us that there can be a little treasure inside every trash can.