Jamie Gillan Was Drinking in a Bar When He Found Out He Made the Browns
Browns rookie Jamie Gillan will never forget where he was when he found out he won the Cleveland punting job. Well, it’s enough of a life-changing moment that he would have always remembered even if he was just sitting on his couch, but Gillan’s story is extra memorable.
On the day the Browns were cutting down their roster, Gillan’s father was visiting and they decided to go to a bar to have a few beers. They landed at the Flying Monkey Pub, about three miles from the stadium, and waited out the news while watching the Ohio State game with the locals.
Gillan, a former rugby player from Scotland who moved to Maryland in high school, has become a cult hero in Cleveland hero for his big leg and bigger hair, so many patrons recognized him when he walked in.
“I walked in and everybody saw and kind of knew who I was,” Gillan told reporters. “Really nice people, coming up and chatting with me and stuff. I got to meet a lot of the guys there, some of the regulars.”
So Gillan had a few new friends when Browns GM John Dorsey rang to let him know whether he’d be with the club in Week 1 or if it was last call in Cleveland.
“When I got off the phone, everybody was looking at me like... what was that?” Gillan recalled. “I just kind of said, ‘It looks like I’m playing Tennessee next week.’ And everybody just started going crazy. It was really cool. It was good fun with them.”
Gillan said he tried to buy everybody a round but instead it was the fans buying him drinks to congratulate him. He doesn’t think it’ll be his last time at the bar, either.
“They don’t have to convince me,” Gillan said. “I like that place a lot. It was great, really great people there. Really nice people, down to earth and it was really fun there.’’
