In this episode of Angles with John Richmond, John sits down with Del Reid, the man widely credited as the godfather of Bills Mafia. What started as a late-night tweet from a pizza pickup in Tonawanda in April 2011 has grown into one of the most recognized and beloved fan communities in all of professional sports. Del is as humble as they come, quick to spread the credit and even quicker to remind anyone listening that Bills Mafia was never about him. It belongs to every Bills fan who ever showed up.

Del walks John through the full origin story: how a Stevie Johnson dropped pass, an Adam Schefter retweet, and a hashtag born as a joke accidentally launched a movement. He talks about what it actually felt like to be thrust into a leadership role he never asked for, and how some of the Bills fans initially resisted the name. Along the way, he breaks down what makes Buffalo fans different from every other fan base in the country, and why that chip on the shoulder is generational, not circumstantial.

The conversation also goes deep on 26 Shirts, the company Del built around the idea that a passionate fan base can be a renewable source of good in the community. Over more than a decade, 26 Shirts has raised well over two million dollars for families across Western New York and beyond, one limited-edition design at a time. Del shares how a father’s DM about his daughter’s eye cancer sparked the whole idea, what it felt like to go all-in at 39 after getting laid off from Roswell Park, and how the business has evolved from biweekly drops to a vault of hundreds of designs available year-round.

Whether you’ve been Bills Mafia since the Super Bowl runs or you just found out what a table jump is, this episode is a master class in what it looks like when passion, community, and purpose all collide in the same city.

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Disclaimer:This episode is for informational and educational purposes only. The views and opinions expressed by the guest and host are their own and do not constitute medical, legal, or professional advice. Angles Podcast does not endorse any specific health claims, products, services, or treatments mentioned in this episode. Listeners should consult qualified professionals for advice tailored to their individual circumstances.