New York & New Jersey Sports Teams Remember 9-11
Twenty-two years ago we lived through a day that none of us will ever soon forget. On the morning of September 11, 2001, terrorists flew planes into the World Trade…
ARLINGTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 11: Eli Manning #10 of the New York Giants wears a 9/11 sticker as a tribute for the 15th anniversary of September 11th before a game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on September 11, 2016 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Twenty-two years ago we lived through a day that none of us will ever soon forget.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, terrorists flew planes into the World Trade Center towers in New York City and flew another into the Pentagon. A fourth plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania when the people on the plane took on the hijackers. From the victims to first responders, three thousand people lost their lives that day.
But to the rest of us, our lives had been altered and scarred in some fashion.
One thing that stood out from that painful day, and the sorrowful days to come was the absence of sports. Major League Baseball paused its game for a week. The NFL postponed its entire Week 2 slate to the end of the season. There was no outlet, no escape from the increasingly painful news that came in the days after 9-11. It was the right thing to do. There were more pressing needs than sports.
America was under attack. Families were looking/hoping for loved ones to return.
In response to the moment, many athletes from the area's sports teams volunteered to help first responders and EMTs bring food, belongings, and water when needed. It was a time to pause, reflect, and unite.
The Day Sports Returned
When sports did return, it was a release we all needed. The Mets were the first to play baseball in New York post-9-11 on September 21. The night had an eerie feel to it until Mike Piazza's home run in the eighth inning against Atlanta not only won the game, but it proved to be the defining moment that Americans and New Yorkers would never relent.
Two days later football returned. The Giants got a standing ovation in Kansas City from Chiefs fans. The Jets and Patriots played in Foxboro with all kinds of emotions. Patriots lineman, and Bronx native, Joe Andruzzi's three brothers were firemen in New York on 9-11. His brothers were at Foxboro Stadium and were recognized before the crowd.
Weeks later the Yankees played the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series, a series the Yankees would ultimately lose, but one that went down as one of the best Fall Classic's ever.
It was a surreal time.
On this anniversary, all the major sports teams in the area took time to reflect.
SOMERSET PATRIOTS
RUTGERS UNIVERSITY
New York Mets
New York Yankees
Woody Johnson - NY Jets owner
New York Giants
On September 11, 2001, two planes were flown into the World Trade Center in New York City and a third plane hit the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the horrific attacks that took place that day, and more than 700 of those people lived in or were from New Jersey.
Since that day when the series of airline hijackings and suicide attacks were committed, the United States has never been the same. However, each year, and once again on the 22nd anniversary, New Jerseyans will come together to honor and remember the lives we lost on 9/11.
“We need to acknowledge a day of rest and remembrance so that everyone is given the opportunity to observe 9/11, whether by attending a ceremony, visiting a local memorial, thanking a first responder or talking to our children about what happened on 9/11,” said Monmouth County Commissioner Director Thomas A. Arnone.
Scroll below to see just a few of the 22nd Anniversary 9/11 remembrance ceremonies taking place across the state on Monday, September 11.
