Advertisement Businesses near PBS could benefit from new Bengals coaching regime Team looking for new head coach after parting ways with Marvin Lewis Share Shares Copy Link Copy

At Koch's Sporting Goods, there's no shortage of Bengals gear and no shortage of opinions about the team's now-former head coach."Everybody came in and said, 'Hey, guess what, Marvin Lewis has finally been let go,'" Eric Koch said.Koch runs the sporting goods store on West Fourth Street in Cincinnati that's been family-owned for 130 years. When it comes to the Bengals, just like his business, Koch takes the long view."We've been hearing it for years now," Koch said. "People were waiting for the other shoe to drop, and it finally did today."What matters to Koch is that fans keep shelling out cash for items emblazoned with the Bengals logo."Like anybody else, when they do well, we do great, and we love it," Koch said. "But, you know what, there's a really, really steady fan base here in Cincinnati - that win or lose, they're diehards."But even the diehards think team officials, including owner Mike Brown, know a winning football team can help lift all boats."They see not only that loss of business in the stadium, but how it impacts all businesses around," Jeff Wagner said.Wagner, a super fan, has been a Sunday mainstay at Paul Brown Stadium for decades. He greeted Monday's news with great joy."Absolute jubilance. Couldn't have been more timely," he said. "The happiest of new year."Wagner appreciates what Marvin Lewis has meant to the Bengals, but says he and other season ticket holders are done watching losing football."I think the fans are fed up," Wagner said. "I am. They want to see a Super Bowl win, period."Wagner received an email from the Bengals Monday, letting season ticket holders know Lewis is out and that the search for a new head coach could take a few weeks."We're going in the right direction, and I'm very confident that they're gonna make the right decision in these next three weeks," Wagner said. "And it's not gonna be same old, same old."