New Yorker Joseph Lozito experiences first Rider game

It’s an experience Joseph Lozito described as “incredible,” as he, his wife and two kids walked towards Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton on July 19, to take in his first Saskatchewan Roughriders game.

“The way the stadium is in Hamilton, it’s basically in a neighbourhood so you’re walking down these side streets. You get a view of the stadium and it’s just like ‘wow, here it is,’” said Lozito.

“You’re just feeling the goosebumps and all that good stuff.”

A football fan from New York, Lozito started following the Riders about seven months ago.

“Back in January, after the Super Bowl, I was going through football withdrawal and I said to myself ‘what can I do to supplement my football fix?’”

After watching parts of the 2017 Grey Cup, Lozito decided he would become a fan of the CFL, but needed a team to cheer for.

“If I don’t have a rooting interest, I’m never going to follow through.”

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So, he went to Twitter and created a poll listing four teams, asking for help.

“I figured maybe I would get 20 votes.”

But that wasn’t the case.

“A week later, (I had) almost 2000 votes with the majority coming from Saskatchewan.”

Lozito, best known for his help in stopping the killing spree of Maksim Gelman in New York City back in 2011, said the support has been overwhelming since joining Rider Nation.

“Within maybe the first two weeks I got a nice care package with DVDs, some swag, and a banner,” said Lozito.

“I really appreciate how good the fans have been to me. It basically confirms everything I’ve ever thought about Canadians.”

As for his first CFL game, Lozito made sure people knew who he was rooting for.

“I had my Bladek jersey on and my Riders hat. I represent no matter what. If I go see the (Buffalo) Bills, it’s usually on the road, so I’m one of the people wearing the road team in enemy territory,” said Lozito.

“There were so many Rider fans it was fine.”

Lozito has nothing planned when it comes to visiting Regina but said he hopes to make the trip sooner rather than later.