TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp is officially underway and Bucs fans can not contain their excitement.
Eric Hornsby, also known as Artist_Esh, combines his art with his Buccaneers fandom.
“At least 100 (spray paint) cans right there,” Hornsby said while standing in front of his latest Buccaneers masterpiece at 4205 East Busch Boulevard.
Hornsby loves painting and his Buccaneers.
"/> “Going way back to the days of orange crush, ever since the days of Reggie Cobb,” Hornsby said. “I was a crazy Bucs fan into the ‘90s and 2000s.”
Thanks to his talent you don’t have to go to Raymond James Stadium to see Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and Mike Evans. Hornsby spent hours painting them on the side of the Cobb Rehab and Wellness building.
“Super-excited for this dream team we've got assembled here,” he said.
“Dr. Cobb called me up and said the time is right, let’s do something Buccaneers right now. I was like ‘Yo, perfect great idea.’ We hashed out some ideas. This thing sort of evolved into what you see.”
The mural measures 40 x 60 and the Brady figure stands 20 feet tall.
Just like being a die-hard Bucs fans, sometimes it’s not easy…
“This was a tough one. I got rained out a few times, over-heated a few times,” Hornsby said. “This is not the best time a year to be painting a mural.”
But in the end, it could all be worth it. In the bottom left corner, Hornsby painted the words “home team.”
‘“Home Team” makes me think we got the Super Bowl coming here to Tampa Bay for this season,” he said crossing his fingers for good luck. “Home team, home-field advantage.”
