An Eagles fan hits a pole.

One of the biggest stories around the Philadelphia Eagles’ 38-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings Sunday involved the fan in the Brian Dawkins jersey who smashed into a pole while running next to a subway train. Well, the Associated Press has done yeoman’s work by tracking down the fan involved, who actually hit the pole before Sunday’s game while trying to fire up subway passengers, and they got some amazing quotes from him:

Jigar Desai said his pain eased with the Eagles’ 38-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game Sunday night.

The mishap occurred while Desai was heading to the game after having a few drinks while watching the New England Patriots defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship game.

The 42-year-old Eagles season ticket holder from suburban Philadelphia said he got pumped up watching a group of Eagles fans on a train heading in the opposite direction and wanted to get them excited. Video captured Desai, wearing a Brian Dawkins jersey, running with the train car — then hitting the pole and bumping into the train.

“Yeah, I hit the pole, but the passion is there,” Desai said. “It reflects the passion of the entire city. We are good fans. Yeah, there are a couple of bad apples in the mix, in any city you’re going to find that, but I think as a whole we have supported this team for years and years and years. I think this city is ready to bring home the hardware.”

…“I’m not throwing bottles or punching horses,” Desai said. “It was just running into a pole.”

Indeed it was, and this was far from the rowdiest celebration seen Sunday. But it’s still quite the claim to say that your slamming into a pole “reflects the passion of the entire city.” We’re going to take crashing into a pole as a good thing now? And that’s especially true when you consider the second angle, which shows off just how painful this appeared:

Ouch. It’s not every day that you not only smash into a pole, but then also hit your head on a subway train. But Desai told the AP he’s okay, although “a bit sore,” and may go to the doctor Tuesday. Still, it’s his attempt to spin this as an illustration of “the passion of the entire city” that’s remarkable. Hopefully this doesn’t lead to the “Head-Into-Pole-Smacking Challenge,” and hopefully we won’t need any player PSAs against it.

[Deadspin]

About Andrew Bucholtz

Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.