Meet the Eagles fan who brought a roasted pig’s head into the Linc on Sunday
Jeremy “Greenbeard” Smith didn’t sleep Saturday night — he was tending to a smoker outside the Linc.

Before Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the Washington Commanders, at least two separate groups of Eagles fans were roasting whole pigs in the parking lot of the Linc.
One of the fans was roasting his in what might be described as a “mobile grill,” coaxing open flames from the belly of a metal shopping cart. Unfortunately, we do not know who this man is. If you are this man, please send us an email because we have a number of questions.
Another of the fans roasting was Jeremy “Greenbeard” Smith, a trained chef who lives in Port Richmond and founded the spice company Greenbeard Spices. He and his tailgate partner, Eric Wayne, have been hosting lively tailgates for the past 10 years. As his name suggests, Smith dyes his beard green and has done so since 2017. (“Over the summer I didn’t dye it for almost two months, and I just looked weird,” he said.)
When we reached him on Monday, his voice was almost entirely gone. We asked Smith about his pig roasting techniques, where he sleeps when spending the night outside the Linc, and how he managed to bring a pig’s head into the stadium on Sunday.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
So, is your beard still green?
My beard’s been green since week two of 2017. My tailgate partner and I were doing an event for the Eagles. They were filming something, and we all fake spray-painted our beards. My wife loved it so much, I started getting it done at a salon. Now I just do it myself.
When did you start the pig roast?
We do a lot of whole pigs throughout the season. I think this is our fourth one for the year.
For this particular pig, we got to the stadium Saturday at 9 p.m. and got the smoker started. We got the pig on around 11 p.m., and it takes about 12-13 hours depending on the size. This one was just under 50 pounds.
This smoker, we feed about every 45 minutes to an hour with lump charcoal, or some nice hardwood, which is why we have to get there so early and keep it going.
So you cook it all night outside the Linc?
Oh yeah, we were literally parked out front of the parking lot entrance. We’re first in line, and we just sit there, on 11th Street in between the Linc and Wells Fargo, and we start cooking our pig.
Where do you usually sleep?
We do it in shifts. Eric slept for the first four hours, and then I actually didn’t sleep.
Usually we just sleep in our cars. We both have trucks. I’m lucky, I have heated seats in mine.
Why didn’t you sleep on Saturday?
Honestly, we have a bunch of friends that show up, a pre-tailgate crew, and we all get together and we hang out. Once the lots open, we all go our separate ways. So it’s kind of like a pre-tailgate for the tailgate.
I made crab cakes for breakfast, and scrapple and sausage. It’s just a good time. We’re all pumped up and ready to go.
Why a whole pig?
A lot of the times that’s what people want from us. Honestly, when we pull the pig out, people literally just come from everywhere and take pictures and watch.
How did it taste?
Oh my God, it was perfect. It came out delicious.
How many other pigs were being roasted there, do you think?
I know of two, because I saw the guy with the shopping cart. But I would imagine there would have been at least four to five, maybe six, if not more.
What did you think about the shopping cart grill? I saw some people saying online that maybe it wasn’t the best way to cook a pig.
Honestly, it wasn’t a bad way. But having that fire underneath, all open — the air kind of kills the fire. So he could have insulated it around the outside a little more.
But other than that, not a bad way. It’s kind of like doing it on an open spit. You just have to turn the pig over once or twice.
How did you watch the game?
We got cleaned up around 2:30 and then Eric and I went into the game. You’re allowed to bring food in a clear plastic bag, so we brought the head of the pig in with us.
We were waving it around throughout. It was fun.