I'm a Browns fan since birth. A little odd since I was born and raised in Upstate NY, but here's the story.
Back in the 1940's when the Browns were dominating the AAFC, my grandfather was a big Cleveland Browns fan. Back in those days in Western NY there were no Buffalo Bills, the two closest teams were the Browns or the Giants, so everybody rooted for one of those teams.
He passed the tradition on to my dad, who in turn passed it along to my brother and I. My dad would tell us stories how when he was in the Navy serving during Vietnam, Grandpa would write him letters and include clippings from the papers with Browns scores. We grew up in the Bernie Kosar era and its from there that my fondest and also my most bitter memories of the Browns stem from. The agony of the Drive and the Fumble, the hatred towards Bill Belichick for just outright RELEASING Bernie, the utter and complete hatred of Art Modell and John Elway. I have promised my dad and my brother, should I ever meet up with either one of those people......i will not be responsible for my actions but you can be assured I will most likely spend some time in jail for it.
My house was covered in everything orange and brown. My dad was in fact the president of the local Browns Backers club in Rochester. The first recognized chapter outside of Ohio. So being a Browns fan just came naturally.
When Art Modell moved the Browns in 1996 it was like losing a family member. Seriously. I still havent quite recovered, because while I root for the new Browns, there is something inside of me that is still dead from what happened. It's not quite the same, I'm not quite as passionate about it. My mood for the week is still largely determined by whether they win or lose, but .........its just hard to describe. It's kind of like Pet Sematary. lol. When they come back, its not always the same.
My grandfather passed away when i was young back in 1981, so he never got to see the Bernie era, nor experience the heartache of the Denver losses or the Move. He was lucky though, that his prime memories of the Browns were of the time they were the Yankee's of the NFL. People get hung up on the fact that they haven't won a Superbowl, but they were winning NFL championships right and left before they started calling them that. 9 of them as a matter of fact.
So now I have a 3 yo son of my own, who is just now starting to get interested in sports. This fall I look forward to sitting down in the living room with him, me wearing my ratty 20 year old Bernie Kosar #19 jersey, him wearing his Browns cap, as we watch, agonize and curse at the screen over the latest travesty occuring to our beloved Browns. The tradition will live on.
GO BROWNS!
Back in the 1940's when the Browns were dominating the AAFC, my grandfather was a big Cleveland Browns fan. Back in those days in Western NY there were no Buffalo Bills, the two closest teams were the Browns or the Giants, so everybody rooted for one of those teams.
He passed the tradition on to my dad, who in turn passed it along to my brother and I. My dad would tell us stories how when he was in the Navy serving during Vietnam, Grandpa would write him letters and include clippings from the papers with Browns scores. We grew up in the Bernie Kosar era and its from there that my fondest and also my most bitter memories of the Browns stem from. The agony of the Drive and the Fumble, the hatred towards Bill Belichick for just outright RELEASING Bernie, the utter and complete hatred of Art Modell and John Elway. I have promised my dad and my brother, should I ever meet up with either one of those people......i will not be responsible for my actions but you can be assured I will most likely spend some time in jail for it.
My house was covered in everything orange and brown. My dad was in fact the president of the local Browns Backers club in Rochester. The first recognized chapter outside of Ohio. So being a Browns fan just came naturally.
When Art Modell moved the Browns in 1996 it was like losing a family member. Seriously. I still havent quite recovered, because while I root for the new Browns, there is something inside of me that is still dead from what happened. It's not quite the same, I'm not quite as passionate about it. My mood for the week is still largely determined by whether they win or lose, but .........its just hard to describe. It's kind of like Pet Sematary. lol. When they come back, its not always the same.
My grandfather passed away when i was young back in 1981, so he never got to see the Bernie era, nor experience the heartache of the Denver losses or the Move. He was lucky though, that his prime memories of the Browns were of the time they were the Yankee's of the NFL. People get hung up on the fact that they haven't won a Superbowl, but they were winning NFL championships right and left before they started calling them that. 9 of them as a matter of fact.
So now I have a 3 yo son of my own, who is just now starting to get interested in sports. This fall I look forward to sitting down in the living room with him, me wearing my ratty 20 year old Bernie Kosar #19 jersey, him wearing his Browns cap, as we watch, agonize and curse at the screen over the latest travesty occuring to our beloved Browns. The tradition will live on.
GO BROWNS!
Last edited Jun 24, 2008 10:28:17
