LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — It's not every game you see a poster that reads, "20-year-old heart transplant survivor from Denver, still bleeding Silver and Black, alive and loyal, Just Win Baby," at Allegiant Stadium."
“It makes me feel alive, it makes me feel like I’m apart of something," heart transplant survivor Markus Martinez said.
VIDEO: Raiders fan Markus Martinez credits the team for providing hope during recovery
Martinez has been a Raiders fan since he was a kid, but just a few years ago, he says the team helped him feel alive again after a near death experience.
“I had a heart attack at 17, but I was really blessed to receive a heart within that same month," Martinez said.
While it was a blessing, Martinez says the road to recovery wasn't easy, but one thing helped him push to keep fighting.
“I just watched a lot of Maxx Crosby highlights and his podcast and it just gives me hope," Martinez said. "He says just do the best you can cause that’s all you can do.”
Now fully recovered, the Denver native described his first game at Allegiant as a win-win.
“I get to watch my favorite team, I get to watch my home team where I was born and raised from," Martinez said. "I have a one-year-old daughter too and I just want to live for her, so yes you go through tough times, but at the same time, you can still grow from that."
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