HIRAM (NEWS CENTER Maine) – Mainers all across the state watched the nail-biting AFC Championship game from the comfort of their living rooms, but none quite as loyal as a group of diehard fans gathered in Hiram.
The group of nearly twenty friends and family members gathered at the home of Dennis and Karen James for Sunday night’s showdown between the Patriots and the Jaguars. They have been getting together for nearly every game for years.
“We had the Super Bowl one year, we got together for it, and decided let’s do this every weekend,” Lincoln Denison said.
Dennis and Karen James just recently built their home where the party was complete with a basement designed for these gatherings. A large projection screen, two TVs and surround sound made for the perfect venue.
“The Gronk-amole is my favorite,” Karen James said as she prepared football-themed food. She said they often will pick different themes depending on which teams are playing.
“It’s fun to watch and it’s fun to play,” young Zackery Hilton said. He and his brother Braiden attended the party with their parents.
Braiden was the odd one out at the game cheering on Jacksonville. It was not until half-time when the Patriots were down, that the group convinced him to put on some New England gear.
He was not the only one sporting Patriots attire. Denison’s dog named Gronk was wearing his own jersey.
“My husband said I want the black pug and I want to name him,” Denison’s wife Michele said. “Gronk is ruggedly handsome just Rob Gronkowski.”
“They work well together, they’re strong, all the characters on that team,” Bob Tims said. “They’re a family just like we are.”
As for traditions and superstitions, the group had a few.
“Shots after touchdowns is our biggest thing,” Lincoln Denison said. Denison also lead the movement to turn hats inside out, while one guy in attendance stood in the same spot for the entire second half.
“This is a time when we all get together,” Tims said. “Some people have Thanksgiving, some people have Christmas, we have football.”
Whatever they did, it paid off. The Patriots will face off against the Eagles for Super Bowl LII, and they are sure to be cheering the team on.