Going back to the 2018 season, I’ve been doing video collaborations to preview Cleveland Browns football games on my YouTube channel, UngarToTheMax. Over the last few seasons, I’ve made it a goal of mine to do a video collaboration for every game on the Browns schedule, but due to various circumstances, I hadn’t yet been able to complete this quest… at least until the 2024 season, as all the pieces finally fell into place, I was able to complete my quest and do a video collab for every game on the Browns schedule.
I wish this achievement could have come during a season in which the Browns had a winning record, won the division, and hosted a playoff game in the Dawg Pound off the shores of Lake Erie. However, none of that happened, as the Browns went a dismal 3-14 while starting four different quarterbacks in Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and Bailey Zappe. Plus, they were swept by both the NFC East and AFC West.
Ultimately, the season for the team didn’t turn out how I expected it to go, so as I continued on my quest throughout the season, it made it more challenging to get excited about the matchup each week. Nonetheless though, I powered through and made it happen each week.
Finding a fan to do a collab for every game on the Browns schedule hasn’t been easy. I have to use a variety of methods in order to find people to connect with and make these video collaborations happen. These methods range from commenting on videos that other YouTubers post on their channels, messaging them on social media platforms, connecting through Facebook Messenger, reaching out to other fans I’ve worked with to see if they know anyone, live chats on YouTube, etc.
Generally, I start reaching out to people during the offseason because that gives me more time to make connections and sew things up for the upcoming season. Certain teams have provided challenges throughout the years, such as the Commanders, Steelers, Broncos, and Ravens this season. In all four cases, it literally came down to a few hours before the game kicked off because of different situations that presented themselves.but I never gave up and through Facebook posts, messages, and tweets, I was able to connect with fans of those four teams, and we made the collabs happen!
At the time of publication of this article, my YouTube channel is at 664 subscribers, and I’ve gained a large portion of my audience through these video collaborations. It makes these collabs very rewarding because not only do I get to connect with other fans and learn about their respective teams, but I also get to share my perspective on the Browns with them.
So far, I’ve gotten to do a video collab with two of the three guys who inspired me to become a YouTuber:
The third person is going to be the hardest to connect with because he’s at 794,000 subscribers, is the defending NFL Fan of the Year, did 30 in 30 in 2023, did an International Stadium tour in 2024, and is now trying to reach a lofty goal in his own right… 1 million subscribers. That person is none other than Green Bay Packers mega fan, Tom Grossi.
The Browns will host the Packers in Cleveland this coming season, but that doesn’t make the task any easier to try and not only connect with Tom, but also set up a video collaboration with him. It’s going to be extremely difficult to connect with him, so I might have to change things up and try to find a different Packers fan to collaborate with for this coming season. Though my top pick would be Grossi; I’m just not sure if it’s actually realistic or not.
Being that the Browns are in the AFC North, that means that each season I’ve got to find a Bengals, Ravens, and Steelers fan to collaborate with not once, but twice. Thankfully, I’ve made some connections with fans of those respective teams to the point where I can generally just reach out to them, and we make it happen, although sometimes, our schedules are not always in sync, and I have to pivot and find somebody else to fill the void. Thankfully, I was able to do that in 2024 and make it happen. That was a big component of how I was finally able to complete this quest and do a video collab for every game on the Browns schedule.
Here’s the key with this whole video collaboration quest: Just because I completed the quest for the ‘24 season doesn’t mean that it’s going to go away. Actually, that couldn’t be farther from the truth because I’m rolling this quest into the 2025 season and beyond. I enjoy connecting with other fans, interacting with those who join the live chats, posting in-game footage at Browns games, and the various other proponents of this goal.
So while I’m really excited to have achieved this feat for the first time, and I am truly thankful for everyone who has helped along the way, in some capacity, this is only the beginning. The journey to do a collab for the Browns 2025 season starts… right now!
