The New York Jets have Fireman Ed; the Raiders have enshrined Wayne “The Violator” Mabry; and the Kansas City Chiefs have Taylor Swift.
But no one in the world of NFL superfans has captivated America this season more than Los Angeles Chargers diehard Merrianne Do, who went viral earlier this year for her animated and enthusiastic expressions captured by camera on Monday Night Football.
In a 20-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, cameras captured Do experiencing the wide range of emotions that come hand-in-hand with fandom. Her genuine and relatable reactions to the highs and lows of a high-stakes game made the longtime season ticket holder an overnight viral sensation.
Earlier this year, Do told KTLA that she has been a Chargers fan for 20 years and regularly makes it on the jumbotron. But her debut in front of a worldwide audience raised questions about her authenticity and sent the Walgreens pharmacist on a nationwide media blitz to tell her story and defend her credentials.
Now, a month after bursting onto the scene, Do is being memorialized in a way usually reserved for the game’s greats.
On Friday, the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum announced she would be getting her own bobblehead — five of them, to be exact.
Each bobblehead reflects the spectrum of emotions the average diehard sports fan experiences during high-stress games.
Wearing a blue jersey and positioned on a circular blue base, the bobbleheads show the Chargers fan in different states of fandom: happy, sad, nervous, angry and extra-angry with red eyes.
The special edition bobbleheads are being produced by the Museum in collaboration with Do.
She described herself as being in disbelief that her moment of genuine fanaticism has led to all this attention and said she hopes other fans can find joy in the line of commemorative collectibles.
“I think many sports fans can relate to one or more of these roller coaster emotions, and the fact that they are being encapsulated into bobbleheads is so fun,” she said.
“It’s been in Ohio as early as the mid-1850s at least, brought in as an ornamental plant because of its unique foliage and white flowers,” Gardner said. “It was actually planted in people’s landscaping, and it has been spreading.”
Each bobblehead is individually numbered up to 2,023 and is available for purchase exclusively through the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum.
Each bobblehead costs $30, or you can purchase the full set for $125.
While not for everyone, Phil Sklar, co-founder and CEO of the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, says fans of all sports will be able to recognize Do’s genuine passion and love of the game in each unique bobblehead.