Fans brave heat, lines to exchange Aaron Hernandez jerseys

• Patriots allowed for fans to exchange Aaron Hernandez jerseys
• Patriots ProShop opened 30 minutes early as lengthy line formed

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – On a sweltering Saturday meant more for the nearest swimming hole than for shopping, the Patriots ProShop at Gillette Stadium was doing a brisk business. By 11 a.m. more than 500 Aaron Hernandez jerseys had been exchanged, including 100 youth jerseys.

In a move without parallel, the Patriots were allowing fans to exchange the Nos. 81 and 85 jerseys of Hernandez, who now sits in the Bristol County House of Corrections, faced with murder and weapons charges.

As of 5 p.m., the team had exchanged nearly 1,200 jerseys, including nearly 300 youth jerseys. The most popular jersey selected as a replacement were Vince Wilfork, followed by Tom Brady, Chandler Jones and Stevan Ridley.

With the blistering heat and several hundred people in line, ProShop staff opened the store at 9:30 a.m., a half-hour ahead of the scheduled opening. The brisk business continued throughout the day, outpacing a normal summer Saturday, approaching nearly that early on a game day. The pace was expected to continue into Saturday night, with the New England Revolution hosting the San Jose Earthquakes in a MLS game at Gillette Saturday night.

A tent stood outside the shop where patrons could bring in the shirts they wish to return and get a ticket , which can be exchanged inside the shop for another jersey.

Amanda Carriere and her 5-year-old son Antonio turned in the matching jerseys they received last year as gifts, taking home two new Wilfork jerseys.

"It's a little bittersweet, but it's good," said Carriere, of Woonsocket, R.I.

"(Antonio) wasn't going to understand why we had to get rid of his old jersey, and I didn't really want to go into details. He's too young for it.

"I just told him that it didn't fit any more. I didn't want to go into specifics. He doesn't know really what's going on."

Jen Robidoux was with her family, including her 11-year-old son Casey.

"We gave him the choice of what he'd like to do, and he wanted to exchange it," Robidoux said. "He felt that it was the right thing to do, with everything that's going on."

Everything that's going on is a lot for young fans to take in. Hernandez is accused in the June 17 execution-style murder of Odin Lloyd, as additional accusations mount against the former Patriots tight end, who was cut by the team within hours of his June 26 arrest.

"Sort of shocked," said Casey Robidoux of his reaction to the news about Hernandez, whom the youngster said was his favorite player.

Casey got the jersey last year as a birthday present. Today, he was looking to replace it with a Rob Gronkowski shirt.

"I think they learn that these things happen," Jen Robidoux said of her children. "I think they're appreciative of the fact that he can come and get something that he's going to be able to wear and wear proudly."

Laurie Tantillo, of East Taunton, Mass., and her husband have been Patriots season-ticket holders for 20 years. She has seen much of the team's recent glory years.

"So when Hernandez first came we were like, 'Oh, this is going to be the next one.' And not so much," she said.

"I was very disappointed (by the news). It was such a shame. He's a young guy with all this opportunity in the world, making crazy money, and that's the way he goes about handling himself. It's just a shame."

She was pleased, though, by the Patriots decision to allow fans to exchange their jerseys.

"I think it was very impressive how the Kraft organization cut ties with him," she said. "He is a talented ballplayer, regardless. But no matter what, we just can't allow that here in New England. That behavior is unacceptable. I thought it sent a really good message to youth.

"This is awesome that they're doing this," she said of the swap. "We have joke in my house. It's called the curse of the jersey. Every jersey I buy, the person gets hurt or traded. This is the first time that they've been convicted of murder. So I'm not too sure which one I should pick in there today.

"My husband wants a Brady. He's got like three of them but he wants another Brady. I'm not too sure, maybe a Wilfork for myself."

Told that Wilfork was the most popular, she rethought that choice.

"Oh, no kidding," she said. "I'll take a look then. I don't want to be one of everybody else."

She opted for Rob Ninkovich's No. 50 instead.

Paul Coles is a transplant from the United Kingdom. He's lived in the United States for 26 years in nearby Sharon, Mass. When his daughter had a brief encounter in early May with Hernandez, he bought the jersey for her as a gift.

"My daughter was up here (at Patriot Place) at Bar Louie the night before her wedding shower," Cole said. "She met him and he gave her a kiss. And she can't believe what's happened."

Cole was leaving with a Brady shirt to ship to his daughter, who lives in Houston.

"Very well, very helpful, no issues at all," he said of the exchange process. "They gladly just exchanged the shirt, no problems.

"I think it's the right thing to do, absolutely. I just bought that shirt a month ago and it hadn't even been worn. So who's ever going to wear that shirt again?"

One fan, though, was not entirely happy with the exchange.

"I liked Hernandez. I wanted to keep my jersey," said one man who didn't give his name.

"There was no way he was keeping that jersey," said his wife.

The jersey exchange will continue at the Patriots ProShop until 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 pm. The condition or age of the jersey does not matter, and patrons do not need a receipt to exchange a jersey, but the swap is limited to officially licensed NFL merchandise, either Nike or Reebok products, that are sold at the shop.

The Patriots have not yet reached a determination on what will be done with the jerseys that are brought in, waiting to see what the volume is and what can be done with them in the most eco-friendly manner, according to a team spokesperson.