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Pilots’ coaches going classy to honor team’s biggest fan

Sometimes the little tributes are the best ones.

Portland coaches will wear bow ties in a home game vs. San Francisco tonight as a tribute to Mauro Potestio, an uber-fan of the Pilots who died earlier this month. Potestio – who already wore a bow tie to Pilots games – had been to 898 consecutive home games before missing a Feb. 3 game against Gonzaga because he was too ill.

Yes, 898 games. It’s a streak that spanned 62 years and began with a 53-48 victory against Pacific Lutheran on Dec. 8, 1949. The last game he caught was an 85-70 win against St. Mary’s on Jan. 24.

“A school is never more than its people,” Portland coach Eric Reveno told the Oregonian in a feature on the uber-fan a few days after he died. “Mauro was one of those guys who connected with people all over campus and connected people with the history of the University of Portland.”

Want more? I’m also on Twitter @MikeMillerNBC.