PORTLAND – Michael Downing lived and died a New England Patriots fan.

As a season-ticket holder at Foxboro Stadium, he endured many disappointing seasons. And Saturday night, just minutes after a thrilling finish to the stadium’s last game, he died in the stands of a heart attack. He was 65.

Downing, who lived in Portland and had a history of heart trouble, watched from Section 16, Row 25 as the Patriots beat the Oakland Raiders in a playoff game.

By the end of the third quarter, several inches of snow had fallen on Foxboro Stadium and the Patriots trailed by 10 points. Downing was convinced a loss was imminent. But the team rallied and, improbably, won in overtime on a field goal by Adam Vinatieri.

Just seconds later, as his two sons, son-in-law and grandson celebrated alongside a jubilant crowd, Downing collapsed.

“It was surreal,” said son Tim Downing. “You’ve got to think about it this way. It’s snowing out, it’s five inches of snow, Patriots win in overtime in a game that it didn’t look like they were going to win.”

“It was just like we were so pumped, so high, from them winning, and then we turned around and it was just ‘bang!’ We went from ultimate high to ultimate low within a second.”

Family members said Downing, who founded and ran New American Printing in South Portland, was a burly, confident man with a passionate devotion to his family. He died in a way he would have liked – surrounded by people who loved him and cheering for his beloved Patriots, they said.

Late in the game, Downing, who had been standing the entire evening, started to feel sick and sat down.

“He said, ‘I wasn’t feeling good earlier, but I’m feeling better. I’m just really, really, really excited right now,”‘ Tim Downing said.

On the field, Patriots players kicked away snow as Vinatieri lined up for the overtime field goal. It sailed through the uprights.

“We celebrated for maybe 10 seconds,” Tim Downing said. “I turned around and looked, and he was slumped over.”

A doctor attending the game arrived quickly, followed by emergency medical technicians. But Downing was pronounced dead a short time later at Norwood Hospital.

Saturday’s comeback victory was the last game to be played in Foxboro Stadium. The Patriots’ next game is Sunday in Pittsburgh, and next season they will occupy a new stadium under construction next door.