BroBible
It was more than just a Terrible Towel. It was a symbol of a mother’s and daughter’s shared love of football and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The personalized terrible towel was a gift from Danijela Jergan’s mother, Cynthia, prior to her death last February after a four-year-long battle with pancreatic cancer.
And now it’s gone, swiped, Jergan says, by Buffalo Bills fans at last Sunday’s home loss.
Via email, Jergan told BroBible that the theft occurred during the last 10 minutes of the game. She and her friends were sitting in Section 124 when a group of “visibly intoxicated,” male, 20-something Bills fans made their way past them.
Something about the fans made them take notice. “As they passed us and got to the stairs, they ran which the friends I was with, mentioned being odd,” Jergan said, adding, “It was strange that they even came down our side when they were 3-4 people away from exiting on their side of the aisle.”
It was a few minutes before Jergan realized that the personalized Terrible Towel her mother gave her wasn’t in her pocket. By then, the men were gone.
She was distraught. They searched everywhere, told guest services, and spoke to security. All for naught.
Now Jergan has taken her story to TikTok in the hopes of someone finding her treasured Terrible Towel. So far, no luck.
Football, like any sport, is steeped in tradition. Each team has its own traditions. Green Bay Packers fans wear cheesehead hats. Washington Commanders fans sport pig snouts.
For Pittsburgh Steelers fans, it’s the iconic yellow hand towels known as Terrible Towels.
The Terrible Towel traces its roots to 1975, when Steelers broadcaster Myron Cope created it as a gimmick to drum up excitement for a playoff game against the then-Baltimore Colts. Fans complied with his request to bring yellow dish towels to the game, and, per Visit Pittsburgh, when those towels were waving in the air, the team just seemed to make great plays. They won the game 28-10.
The Terrible Towel’s lore only grew after the Steelers beat the Dallas Cowboys to win the Super Bowl that season.
Today, every time the Steelers play, be it home or away, you’ll see thousands of those towels waving in the stands.
Jergan’s love of football was fostered by her mother’s side. “I am a very knowledgeable football fan, all thanks to my mother for instilling the love for Pittsburgh sports, especially our love for the Steelers, at a very young age,” she told BroBible.
The two were incredibly close, with Jergan describing her mother as “my rock and best friend.”
After her mother’s cancer diagnosis, they continued going to games when she was well enough and the weather wasn’t too cold.
Last year, her mother’s rapidly declined. The then-27-year-old took a leave of absence that September to take care of her. She said that her mother was in the hospital for two months straight...
