How far would someone go to be the New England Patriots' “Fan of the Year”?

How about driving 5½ hours each way for nearly every home game in the past 32 years?

That's what Pat Noone has done to cheer on the Patriots at their home field in Foxborough, Mass. Driving from Swiftwater, Pa. – that's in the Poconos, which is pretty much Philadelphia Eagles territory – he's only missed two Patriots games since 1975.

The team honored Noone for his loyalty on Dec. 23 at a ceremony at Gillette Stadium. Noone received the Joseph R. Mastrangelo Patriots “Fan of the Year” trophy in front of a crowd of about 70,000 before a game against Miami.

“It was so cool to be standing there on the field with a full stadium,” Noone told the Pocono Record. “The whole experience was one of the highlights of my life.”

Noone said he was nominated by a police officer from Norton, Mass., who happened to stop by a beer distributor where Noone once worked. The officer couldn't believe how many Patriots decorations there were, Noone said.

He should have seen Noone's house. Noone has a room that is a replica of the Patriots' locker room – complete with a urinal.