BALTIMORE, Md. — At M&T Bank Stadium, Ravens game days bring out thousands of fans decked out in purple and black — but one fan has been standing out from the flock.
Sam Commodari, also known as "Sammy C," has become a fixture at every home game, dressed in custom papal regalia and rallying the crowd as the self-proclaimed Purple Pope.
"Whatever I can do to bring energy to this city, I'm here for it," Commodari said.
A lifelong Ravens fan, Commodari said his elaborate gameday look evolved over the past few seasons.
"I would just buy a bunch of purple stuff from Shein and TEMU and Amazon, and I'd spend hundreds of dollars I didn't have. It started with this nightgown-ish-looking dress and a hat, and I was like I'm the purple pope!" Commodari said.
While he is not a religious figure, Commodari said the persona is all about bringing people together and lifting the team's spirits.
"It's just a symbol of fun and energy for hopefully Baltimore, whether you find it religious or you don't. Great. It's just about bringing people together," Commodari said.
The character took off on social media last season, particularly during a rough stretch for the team.
"We were 1-5, and people were like, 'You've gotta bring back the Pope', then since then we went on a crazy winning streak last season, and I was like, oh, this is good luck; it hasn't worked out this season," Commodari said.
Despite the team's recent struggles, Commodari said he is not giving up on the Ravens.
"I always stick by the guys, encourage them, try to rally Baltimore. Whatever it takes to keep the energy high when we're down and to ride it when we're doing well," Commodari said.
Commodari now has more than 20,000 followers on Instagram, and said his posts have drawn attention from fans across the NFL.
"They're like, hey, it's the pope, and I'm like, hey! It is just a guy that wanted to have fun and do something a little extra, people recognize me and want to take pictures, it's been absolutely amazing," Commodari said.
He works with local businesses to create his papal outfits and said more custom looks are in the works.
"I don't want to stop this anytime soon; I just want to keep growing. Just the infectious energy that each and every Ravens fan brings, I don't know if it's all 32 teams in the NFL, but I know we have that and I know it's special in Baltimore," Commodari said.
You can follow him @samcommodari on Instagram and @sammy.commo on TikTok.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
