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Stadium #27 MetLife Stadium East Rutherford, NJ |
Minnesota
Vikings vs. New York Jets New York Jets Stadium October 11, 2010 20 - 29 Win |
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Stadium Vitals Built: 1976 Capacity: 78,741 seats Playing Surface: FieldTurf Draft Beer: $8.00 (bottled) Hot Dog: $4.75 Stadium Parking: $40.00 |
 Giants StadiumAddress 50 State Highway 120 East Rutherford, NJ 07073 (201) 935-8111 Get Directions |
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Stadium Review - Finally, a Real Home for Gang Green!  Last
year when I visited Giants Stadium, or the Meadowlands as referred
to by Jets fans, the building certainly had a very red, white, and
blue bias, like a slap in the face of the Mighty Jets Nation. They
were squatters and Giants Stadium was like a rental property
occupied by Jets fans eight weeks of the year. It really
didn’t feel much like a home to Gang Green. Well, with the build of
MetLife Stadium, in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Jets
fans finally have a venue that they can call home. The most
interesting thing about MetLife Stadium is that on gameday, through the help of some innovative lighting technologies
and LCD screen,s the stadium actually morphs into either a New York
Jets or a New York Giants facility. Green and white lighting and
logos dominate the interior and exterior when the Jets are in town
and red and blue take over when Big Blue stake their claim on the
facility. Even the Pro Shop morphs along home team lines, not only
by selling merchandise of the appropriate home team on gameday, but
by changing its entire appearance as well. White walls provide an
excellent backdrop for projected team logos and dramatic lighting
schemes that bathe the area in home team colors; and wheeled product
racks complete the transformation allowing the appropriate products
to be easily wheeled in an out of the store. It’s actually very
impressive. I
was in town for a Monday Night Football matchup that would bring
former Jets Quarterback Brett Favre back to the Meadowlands along
with Randy Moss’s triumphant return to the Minnesota Vikings. It was
sure to be an interesting night of pro football. The parking lots
opened five hours prior to kickoff and as soon as we entered the
lot, the energy of Monday Night Football and this resurgent Jets
franchise was evident. Popup tents, beer pong tables, and flat
screens were all over the lot along with some exceptional tailgate
cruisers sporting customized paint jobs that proudly displayed the
green and white New York Jets team logos. We even stopped in on a
group calling themselves “Brothers Tailgating” that had setup a
makeshift living room on a parking lot median in the Green Lot. The
fellas had a set of plush couches, an antique oak coffee table, and
area rug centered on a 50” flatscreen hung on the side of their van.
When I happened by they had just kicked off a Madden 2011
tournament, so a stopped for a few photos. Whenever
I go to the Meadowlands I always stop in on two of Gang Green’s
finest tailgates, the Lot L11 Tailgaters and TailgateJoe.com. In an
atmosphere of supreme tailgaters, it’s tough to single out a couple
of them, but these two groups exemplify what best about New York
Jets Tailgating. We began by stopping in on Frank Conway and the
Lot L11 Tailgaters. It’s always
easy to find Frank and the Boyz, you just look for the multiple
flags in the corner of L11, they’re usually flying 20 -25 Jets flags
on gameday and last year they even hoisted the Quest flag for me.
Frank always has a great group of Jets fans that are eager to talk
football with an ice cold beverage of choice at the ready. When we
arrived, these guys had their propane powered deep fryer going and
were serving up some fried chicken along with a deep fried whole
duck. For appetizers, the Lot11 Guys had bacon wrapped scallops and
my personal favorite, fine cuts of charcoal flamed filet mignon
served slider-style on mini burger buns with chopped onions and blue
cheese dressing. These guys do not mess around. Later
in the evening we made our way to
TailgateJoe.com located in section
E-10 of the Green Lot. Joe and his brothers Nicky and Andrew are
rising stars in the world of organized tailgating. Along with Sal,
Jay, and Frankie they continue to carry the torch as premiere
blacktop culinarians in the eyes of this seasoned pro. When we
stopped over, Joe and the boys were in the middle of hosting a
multi-table beer pong tournament. Draft beer and microbrews were
flowing all night long, accented by an impressive array of
tailgating foodstuffs. Half pound black angus burgers were on the
grill along with fresh Italian sausage from Esposito’s pork store in
New City as well as some Sabrett hot dogs. To compliment these
exceptional cuts of meat, the fellas were serving up pasta with peas
and bacon, a Momma Mayno, specialty along with some incredible New
York style cannolis. Guests that were lucky enough to latch onto a
TailgateJoe party pass ate well and were thoroughly entertained by
the antics of some of the most rabid Jets fans in the lot. It was
truly a family atmosphere that continues to take on new members. As
gametime approached, a storm front moved in from the west dumping
torrential rains on MetLife Stadium along with some severe
winds and lighting. Kickoff was delayed for forty minutes as the
most severe parts of the storm passed overhead. Knowing there would
be a 50% chance of rain, on the way into town we stopped at a
Wal-Mart to purchase a set of disposable ponchos. As soon as the
rain hit, the ponchos were put to good use and kept us warm and dry
throughout the evening. Once the game began, I reveled in the truly electric atmosphere provided by Jets fans inside MetLife Stadium. I have to say that I’m always impressed by the work of Fireman Ed Anzalone, the most recognizable SuperFan in the nation. His command of this crowd of sixty-seven thousand New Yorkers is iconic. With hands outstretched and all eyes trained upon him on the scoreboard, the crowd falls silent until Fireman Ed suddenly leads the Mighty Jets Nation through the greatest chant in the National Football League, the New York Jets chant. In unison, this formidable home crowd chants, J! E! T! S! JETS! JETS! JETS!  Fireman
Ed keeps them involved throughout the game especially when the Jets
defense takes the field. Throughout the year Gang Green maintains an
imposing home field advantage that visiting offenses dread. The
first half of this Monday Night Football contest was a defensive
struggle with the New York Jets pulling out to an early lead with
three field goals by kicker Nick Folk. In the second half, the
Vikings offense led by veteran quarterback Brett Favre came back to
life throwing three touchdowns to pull his team back into the game.
I was able to witness Brett Favre’s 500th touchdown on an amazing
throw to Randy Moss, but in the end the record setting 33rd Pick-Six
thrown by Favre led to their ultimate undoing as the New York Jets
celebrated an impressive 29-20 win outlasting the late rally by
the Vikings offense. It was entertaining, it was wet, but definitely
one of the better games I’ve attended.For more information on the city of New York, NY check out my other reviews by clicking on the links below: NFL: September 20, 2009 - New England Patriots vs. New York Jets NFL: December 5, 2010 - Washington Redskins vs. New York Giants NFL: November 8, 2009 - San Diego Chargers vs. New York Giants NBA: Madison Square Garden General Information & Cheap NBA Tickets NHL: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum - General Information NHL: Madison Square Garden - General Information |
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