Ernest Lover’s Halloween tradition dates back to high school when he made the switch from linebacker to defensive end. Still unsure of his new girth and his new position, Lover confided in his coach that he worried being a big boy on the line would mean fewer athletic or impactful plays. Lover’s coach pulled up some old NFL film of an October 2018 matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Philadelphia Eagles. He sat Lover down and told him to keep his eye on Vikings nose tackle Linval Joseph. The snap. Then a fumble. Joseph grabs the loose ball from midair and sets off for the endzone, rumbling 64 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown, changing the momentum of the entire game. The camera then cuts to the sideline, where Joseph sits on the bench sporting sunglasses and an oxygen mask. The coach pauses the video there and tells Lover how that image became a meme that Halloween season, with Vikings fans dressing up as Joseph for the holiday. He reminds lover that the big boys, although often not flashy, make an impact every snap. And when they do have their standout moments, they are loved by teammates and fans alike. Now, Lover has made it a Halloween tradition to pull out the old NFL film of Joseph’s fumble recovery touchdown and wear a T-shirt of the old meme when handing out candy to the neighborhood kids. The fact that Lover could be the spitting image of Joseph from years ago is just the icing on the cake.
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