Mobile Dawg Pound: A Tailgate Legend

As a general contractor, Tony Schaefer, has built many structures, but yet there is one that stands above them all..."The Mobile Dawg Pound!" That's right, an old yellow school bus he purchased when the Browns were reborn. It replaced a smaller bus used during the Browns' years playing their games on the hallowed grounds of Municipal Stadium.

"I figured a new team, a new bus," Tony said, "Plus the season ticket holders in the Sandusky area grew from around sixteen to more than thirty-four."

The bus is painted brown and orange from top to bottom. Its name, "Mobile Dawg Pound" is scripted over the front windshield, and gracing the hood is a Mack dog wearing a Browns' helmet which squirts water approximately 12 feet!

Over the years, many players have autographed the inside of the tailgate bus. Tony explains "There are more than 42 signatures inside of former players. Bernie Kosar, Gary Collins, Kevin Mack, Ernest Byner are just a few of the Browns’ greats to have signed their names. Al Lerner, Carmen Policy, Randy Lerner (Owner of the Browns), Leroy Kelley, Greg Prutt, Don Cockrott, Doug Diken, and Jim Brown (who I thought I would never get) also have honored the bus with their names."

The creation of the bus also led to Tony assuming the nickname "Mobile Dawg". Mobile is an appropriate name since Tony and the bus faithfully make trips to Cincinnati, Baltimore, and other stops. Tony tries to attend up to four road games a year, but flies to the distant cities. The bus has also served as a substitute limo at both of his sons’ weddings and proms.

On the day of a home game, "Mobile Dawg" gets out of bed around 4:30, and puts on his garb consisting of all orange garments. He tops the outfit off with an orange hard hat with white dawg bone halves sprouting out the top.

He then begins packing the "Mobile Dawg Pound" with the day's tailgating food and beverages. Sandusky area fans, including his two sons, start arriving at his house around dawn. They help themselves to the freshly brewed coffee and doughnuts provided on their arrival.

Tony explains the scene and the trip to the stadium. "The front yard looks like a parking lot. About twenty people go to the games on the bus. We usually pop a beverage at the Huron River. We pull into the Muni Lot around seven o’clock, unload the coolers and grill. We start cooking about an hour later."

Tony has been a season ticket holder for the last twenty years. When asked if he had a current favorite player, he responded, “I like every player who puts on a Browns’ uniform. But I have no favorite right now. There have been too many changes.”

Tony has had many highlights in his life as a Brown’s fan. He won the Rider Dairy’s "Fan of the Year" contest in 2002, and in 2004, he was inducted into the "Visa Hall of Fans” in the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

When asked what was the most exciting aspect of the notoriety, “Mobile Dawg” modestly replied, “Being able to do things for charity”