thanks to barry for this one...

fredeeky met this guy at the raiders/bucs super bowl a few years ago.



OAKLAND, Calif. -- It's a few minutes past 6 in the morning. The sun has yet to rise. But inside his dimly lit garage, Mark Shadinger, a man in his 40s with thinning brown hair down to the small of his back, lifts weights.

"Broncos today, baby, Broncos," he says between reps. "Man, I hate them. The best day of my life was when John Elway gave me the finger.

"Today we raise hell. Today we turn the Black Hole into an absolute jungle. No mercy today. It's the Broncos."

Seven hours later, the Oakland Raiders are about to take the field against the Denver Broncos. Every beer-chugging, street-strutting, look-at-me-the-wrong-way-and-I-might-pop-you-in-the-mouth Raiders fan is charging toward McAfee Coliseum, eager to not miss a play.

There is no group of fans more polarizing in all of sports than that of the Raiders. Over the years, the stories are endless. Urinating on fans of the opposing team. Spitting on opposing players and coaches. Throwing batteries. Screaming every mom, sister, wife and daughter insult in the book.

"We're evil. We're the devils, the degenerates," says Shadinger's younger brother Eric, who dresses as "Howie" on game days. "The Raiders, man. We're the bad guys. The misfits. I watch T.O. [Terrell Owens] run his mouth off and I think to myself, 'Keep it up buddy and the sooner you'll be out here with us.' We're the guys that nobody wants their daughters to marry."