Titans lineman chugs beer out of dead catfish during Preds game

April 30 (UPI) -- The Tennessee Titans' offensive line attended the Nashville Predators game, where at least one player chugged beer from a dead catfish.

Pro Bowl left tackle Taylor Lewan stood with a company of Titans blockers, alongside quarterback Marcus Mariota, during the Predators' 5-4 win against the Winnipeg Jets Sunday at Bridgstone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.

Cameras panned over to the crew several times during the game, featuring them celebrating with beer chugs. One of the times the camera panned over, Lewan's teammates held up a large, dead catfish. They poured beer down the fish and into Lewan's mouth.

Before the game, Lewan called on Nashville to help him find the fish.

"Dear Nashville," he tweeted Sunday. "I'm looking for a catfish for a 'friend' tonight. If you could help me out, that would be amazing. I think we can all agree bigger is better! Love, your DAD. #NoBadDays."

While the full history of catfish tossing is a bit murky, it appears that the practice of throwing them onto the ice began at Predators games in 2003. The tradition is similar to the Detroit Red Wings' practice of fans throwing an octopus on the ice.

Last year, Predators coach Peter Laviolette asked fans to stop throwing catfish onto the ice.

"Hey everyone, showing good sportsmanship is part of being good citizens of Smashville. That means not throwing anything on the ice, putting both our players and the officials in danger," Laviolette said in a video posted by the Predators for the 2017 postseason. "Help us secure our home-ice advantage and prevent us from being penalized for unnecessary reasons. Please don't throw anything on the ice and thank you for being the best fans in the National Hockey League."

Nine catfish have been thrown onto the ice during five home playoff games this postseason for the Predators, according to the Tennessean's count.

The Predators face the Jets in Game 3 of their second round Stanley Cup playoffs series at 8 p.m. Tuesday at Bells MTS Place in Winnipeg, Manitoba.