Eagles' weirdest football moment involved Santa, snowballs, and fury

The Philadelphia Eagles may have a reputation of being relatively stable and successful due to their recent success, but it is quite easy to forget that this team had been the laughing stock of the NFL when they were trying in vain to be a quality team in the late 1960s.

Philadelphia sports fans are considered a rowdy bunch, and no single incident crystallized that notion more than what took place at the end of this team's ill-fated 1968 season. This incident has not only changed the perception of Eagles fans, but it has also altered the city of Philadelphia as a whole.

Rather than letting Santa Claus come out onto the field and spread some holiday cheer, Eagles fans decided to pelt him unmercifully with snowballs in a way that has become etched into the fabric of Philly sports lore.

The weirdest moment in Eagles history involved assaulting Santa Claus

The year is 1968. Joe Kuharich, the worst coach the Eagles ever had, is putting the finishing touches on a miserable 2-12 season that will lead to his dismissal at the end of the season. The team had started out 0-11, but won their last two games and cost themselves a chance to select OJ Simpson with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.

As a result, the fans attending their season finale against the Minnesota Vikings aren't exactly thrilled with their team's performance. Tied 7-7 at halftime, all hell started to break loose when the team brought out Santa Claus as part of their Christmas parade-themed show for the fans.

Getting mad at Santa Claus is an almost comical level of anger that works as a joke because no one in their right mind would be so filled with bile to take it on the epitome of joliness and gift-giving, right? Clearly those rules don't apply to a group of angry Philadelphia fans.

Fans started pelting snowballs, candy canes, and beer bottles at 20-year-old fan Frank Olivo in the Santa costume and a parade of cheerleaders dressed as elves. Olivo, who claimed to have been hit 100 times by snowballs, was given cufflinks and a tie tack for his services. The Eagles asked him to be Santa again in 1969, but he declined.

Rather than fans using the incident as a teachable moment, Eagles supporters have leaned into their image as one of the most notoriously difficult groups to please in the game. Every Eagles player since that incident knows that these fans will spare no expense in voicing their displeasure.