Giants 100: Newsday readers recount their fondest memories of Big Blue
David Tyree makes the grab against Patriots safety Rodney Harrison in Super Bowl XLII. Credit: AP/Gene Puskar
BEATING 18-0 PATS? PERFECT!
My son, Michael, and I attended Super Bowl XLII. I lost track of the time at the end, but when he lifted me into the air, I knew the Giants won. "Mike, if we had to play these guys 10 times, how many would we win?” “Pop, we just saw it!”
John Delach, Port Washington
SAM HUFF VS. JIM BROWN
Although the 1960 season did not go as planned, the December game at Yankee Stadium against the Cleveland Browns is one I will always remember. It was cold but it didn’t matter. The matchup between Giants LB Sam Huff and Cleveland RB Jim Brown was something to see. Everywhere Brown went, Huff greeted him with a thud. For a high school freshman, I watched the future Hall of Famers in amazement. The Browns won, 48-34, but it was the way Huff tried to stop Brown that remains my fondest memory.
Chuck Howlett, West Islip
THE MOST SUPER FEELING
I’ve had Giants tickets in my family for 70 years and have been to every venue except the Polo Grounds. My favorite memory is that cold and windy late afternoon in January 1987 vs. Washington for the NFC title. The Meadowlands was electric and I’ll never forget the confetti swirling and the feeling that after all these years, we’re finally going to the Super Bowl!
Robert Gerety, Lake Ronkonkoma
GIANTS A HOME RUN AT STADIUM
One of my fondest memories was my first game in 1969. I was 9. Fran Tarkenton led a 49-6 win. I still have tickets and still love going.
John Sullivan, Islip
COUPLE’S ‘TOP 3’ LIST
Our Top 3: 1. David Tyree’s catch; 2. Eli Manning escaping a sack on that play; 3. Victor Cruz’s 99-yard TD vs. the Jets on Christmas Eve. One of our favorite presents!!!!
JoAnn & Larry Slade, Levittown
‘THREE GENERATION BOYS TRIP’
Joined by my two sons and 82-year-old father, I thought Super Bowl XLII could be our last chance to have a special ‘three generation boys trip.’ Four years later, my youngest son and I saw the Giants beat the Pats again. It had me reflecting on the first Super Bowl. It isn’t often we find special moments that bring us together for memories that can last a lifetime.
Harry Mainzer, East Quogue
TURNING TABLES ON PATS FANS
While attending a business conference in Orlando during Super Bowl XLII, we went for lunch in the hotel sports bar. We were not aware that the entire New England chapter had reserved the venue. They invited the six of us Giants fans — me, my wife, Linda, and my fellow manager and best friend, Michael, his wife, Christine, and sons Zachery and Michael — to watch the game. After the 60-plus screaming Pats fans let us hear it, they went silent after the Helmet Catch. An awesome game made even better because of the environment we were able to enjoy it in.
Tom Baird, Smithtown
AT HOME ON ‘ROAD’
My first game was the post-Hurricane Katrina ‘road game’ against the Saints at the Meadowlands (MNF, Week 2, 2005 ). Knowing the tragic circumstances makes it bittersweet, but still an incredibly memorable environment and win.
Scott Sandler, Plainview
WHAT A RIDE!
I’m 87 and a Giants fan all my life. In 1965, an older couple of friends with season tickets had a health issue and were worried about missing the final game. I contacted the team and they sent a limo. Fantastic class.
Dennis W. Lind, Lindenhurst
PEARL HARBOR ANNOUNCEMENT
On a chilly Sunday morning in 1941, my father took me to see the Giants play the Brooklyn Dodgers football team at the Polo Grounds. During the game, there was an announcement: “All service personnel report to their stations.” The Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor. As President Franklin D. Roosevelt would later say: “A date which will live in infamy.”
Cedric Brown, Mineola
