Cleveland sports fans hoping for a second parade may just get their wish after all.
The Cleveland Indians fell two runs short of a World Series victory parade earlier this month, but there’s another sports franchise in the city looking to make a little history — albeit dubious.
The Browns’ perfectly awful season so far has prompted one fan to begin organizing a parade should the once-proud franchise go 0-16 for the year.
Unlike the celebration for the Cleveland Cavaliers after they were crowned NBA champions in June when an estimated 1.3 million people packed the streets, the Browns’ parade should have a little more elbow room — sort of like the fourth quarter in the stands of a home game.
As of Monday afternoon, some 3,200 people said they plan to attend the parade outside of FirstEnergy Stadium at 1 p.m. Jan. 7 should the Browns remain winless. Another 6,100 say they are interested in attending.
This all is not too shabby, considering it started out as a joke just a week or so ago among a group of die-hard Browns fans.
Chris McNeil, who lives in Granville outside Columbus, said he joked the city should throw a parade if the Browns lose every game. On a whim, he created a Facebook page for the parade and the rest is, well, social media history.
The page was shared and shared again, then landed some mentions on national sports talk shows, and soon folks began clamoring for a real parade.
So McNeil, who once lived in Bath Township and attended Revere schools before his family moved to southern Ohio when he was a teen, said he forked over the $25 application fee for a parade permit last week while he was in Cleveland for business.
“This is not just some troll on Twitter,” he said. “There will be a parade.”
The Cleveland Browns are about as quiet as the offense in the fourth quarter over the notion of a parade celebrating a season of futility a stone’s throw from home turf.
“I really don’t have anything to say about it,” said Peter John-Baptiste, Browns vice president of communications.
McNeil said it is important to note he loves the Browns — heck, his family has had season tickets for as long as he can remember.
“You’re not supposed to celebrate the Browns playing like crap, but I’m trying to put a positive spin on this season,” he said.
So far the idea of a parade has prompted pledges of other parades in other states and even abroad where Browns fans have gone into hiding. One man posted on Facebook that he plans to hold a one-man parade in Plymouth, England.
“Browns Perfect Season Parade Grand Marshal” T-shirts have popped up online along with suggestions for other products including “Make the Browns Great Again” cheesy ball caps.
The event’s Facebook page posted Monday that it is now soliciting marching bands, twirling groups, floats and even folks on bicycles to apply to march.
McNeil said all prospective units will be “screened” by a committee before getting a coveted spot in the parade that will loop around the stadium and the entrance drive of the Great Lakes Science Center. The route creates a drone’s-eye view of the numbers 0 and 16.
“If the Browns win a game, I’m only out 25 bucks,” he said. “I just hope the Browns hold up their end of the deal so we can have a parade.”
Craig Webb, who has watched every game of this winless season, can be reached at cwebb@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3547.