Remembering college football’s patriotic scenes following Sept. 11, 2001

PHOTOS: Remembering college football’s patriotic scenes following Sept. 11, 2001

Sept. 11, 2001 started off as a normal day, and for the Tennessee football team it was game week to take on Steve Spurrier and the Florida Gators.

The Vols and Gators were preparing for their ninth head-to-head meeting in which both schools were ranked in the top-10 since 1990.

Right after 8:45 a.m. EDT, game week changed. The country came to a standstill as the United States was attacked by terrorists in New York, Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania.

Terror started when a first plane hit the north tower of the Twin Towers in New York at 8:46 a.m. EDT.

The game between No. 2 Florida and No. 8 Tennessee quickly became an afterthought and was eventually postponed.

College football games returned later in Sept. 2001.

Below are scenes across college football showcasing patriotism following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

September 11 remains poignant for Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano: ‘It’s very personal’

Greg Schiano remembers how his Rutgers football team reacted to the September 11 atttacks.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — September 11, 2001 will remain a date that won’t soon be forgotten in New York and New Jersey. For Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano, the memory of that day 22 years ago is more than just ingrained in him.

In many ways, the events of that September morning changed him permanently.

While his coaching career has taken him to places including Chicago, Miami and Tampa Bay among other spots, New Jersey has always been home for Schiano. Between being born in Wyckoff and playing his high school football at Rampao, as well as the two coaching stints at Rutgers, he has spent well over half his life in the state.

New Jersey is in Schiano’s bloodstream. So when the Rutgers head coach talks about 9/11, there is a reserved passion that fills his voice.

The words are those of someone who felt the two attacks that day, senseless acts of terrorism that claimed people who had touched Schiano’s life from when he was growing up.

“It’s very personal. I lost neighbors from when I grew up in North Jersey. Yeah, it was very personal,” Schiano said.

“We were meeting. It was — we were meeting aon third down. I remember I was up at the board, drawing on the board and one of the assistants came in and said a small plane hit one of the towers, and then as we know, 10 minutes later or whatever it was, when everybody started to realize it wasn’t a small plane and the second plane hit.

“And we had a coach on the staff whose wife was working in New York, so he was scrambling, couldn’t get ahold of her. We had two players whose parents worked in the World Trade Center and by the grace of God didn’t go to work that day. We had a bunch of people who had, obviously, connections. It was scary.”

He can recall standing on the practice field and seeing the plumes of smoke as the two Twin Towers lay in ruins. The eery calm of the sky on a beautiful September day, where no airplanes were flying overhead.

The sense of not knowing what to do next.

The Rutgers athletic director at the time was Bob Mulcahy. Schiano remembers Mulcahy, who passed away last year, telling him that the decision was made to cancel the game.

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Schiano knew it was the right call without question.

In the hours after the terror strikes, television and radio reports were filled with rumors and speculation, transfixed on the empty hole in the New York City skyline. His young team, many of whom grew up in the shadows of the iconic towers, needed something in that moment.

Even against the backdrop of a city that had turned into a triage center in a matter of hours, his team voiced an opinion about what to do next.

“They wanted to go out and practice. I’ll never forget that. ‘No, let’s go out and do something.’ They didn’t want to just sit around,” Schiano said.

“We weren’t having a game but we went out and practiced and you know, the coach whose wife was working, he spent all his time trying to get ahold of her. It was scary for all of us, right, and especially in the proximity, having it be in our own backyard.”

Two years ago on the twentieth anniversary of September 11, Adidas created special patriotic jerseys and helmets for Rutgers to wear in their game at Syracuse.

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In the attacks, 37 alums from Rutgers died. The football program reached out to many of the families to obtain permission to put the names of their loved ones on a helmet.

The families were also presented with a jersey worn in the game.

“I think we all know that that day changed our world, and — for everybody, but especially for the people who lost loved ones,” Schiano said.

Group of 9/11 family members thank PGA Tour players for not taking Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf’s ‘blood money’

“Some of your fellow PGA Tour members have traded their dreams of earned success for easy money—indeed, blood money.”

On Wednesday an open letter was made public from 9/11 family members thanking PGA Tour players for not joining the LIV Golf Invitational Series that is bankrolled by the Public Investment Fund, which operates on behalf of Saudi Arabia.

“Thank you for standing up for decency. Thank you for standing up for the 9/11 Families. Thank you for resisting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to cleanse its reputation by buying off professional athletes,” the letter from nearly 2,500 of those who lost family members read.

Four-time major champion Brooks Koepka is the latest to join the breakaway league led by Greg Norman that features 54-hole events, no cuts and millions of dollars in guaranteed money. The second event of the series is scheduled for June 30-July 2 at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in Portland, Oregon.

Two weeks ago commissioner Jay Monahan suspended PGA Tour players who participated in the inaugural LIV Golf event outside of London for an unspecified time, including the likes of Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel.

More from the letter: “Some of your fellow PGA Tour members have traded their dreams of earned success for easy money—indeed, blood money—whether they need those funds or not. They include some of the richest in the field, who justify their roles in Saudi Arabia’s efforts to sportswash by simply, and astoundingly, looking the other way. They do so casually when asked the hard questions or are faced with the uncomfortable truth: That they are helping one of the world’s worst regimes paper over its crimes.”

The families hold Saudi Arabia accountable in the letter for its role in the 9/11 attacks which killed nearly 3,000 people and impacted many more. The letter cites FBI reports and further outlines Saudi Arabia’s role in the 9/11 attacks and ends with a statement of gratitude.

“To those of you who have chosen what is right over blood money from a corrupt, destructive sports entity and its Saudi backers, please continue to stand strong. You inspire hope and conviction that our long journey to accountability and justice is in reach. We deeply value your integrity and your willingness to stand up for principle.”

The full letter can be read here.

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Reflections of a middle-school football player during 9/11

What do you remember about 9/11?

As we commemorate the 20th anniversary of the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, it feels fitting that I will spend it watching football. When I watch Notre Dame and Toledo battle it out in South Bend, I will feel a connection to these players. That’s because at the time of the attacks, as crazy as it sounds for the people I know, I was a football player for my Catholic parochial school at the tender age of 12.

I say this because it was football that really drove home the point to me on how big and how serious these attacks were. Towards the end of school that day, an announcement came on the PA that the evening’s JV practice was canceled. This didn’t affect me because I was on the varsity, and it was a scheduled day off. Still, I wondered why that was happening for no apparent reason because the school had chosen not to inform its students of that morning’s events, so we were completely in the dark until after we were let out.

The next day, we returned to practice, and that’s when I really felt the gravity of what was happening. From our field, we always saw airplanes coming in for landings. Now, with civilian airspace closed, the sky was completely empty. It was one of the most eerie things I’ve ever seen.

A few weeks later, we were at halftime of a game when it was announced that the first troops had entered Afghanistan. The PA announcer led everyone, including us players, in a reciting of the Lord’s Prayer. It was the least we could do for the men and women who were heading into combat. Little did we know that they would have a presence in that country for almost 20 years.

It was a season I never will forget, and it’s why I hope the Irish and Rockets understand the significance of playing a game today. They either weren’t born or were too young to know what was happening on a day we commemorate every year. The post-9/11 world is all they’ve ever known. That we’re saying this about today’s college football players is a testament to how much time has passed.

Let us never forget that terrible day, and let us never forget the people who perished.

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Vols’ game day: Tennessee’s all-time results on Sept. 11

Vols’ game day: Tennessee’s all-time results on Sept. 11

When Tennessee hosts Pittsburgh Saturday, it will mark the fifth time the Volunteers have played on Sept. 11.

Tennessee is 2-2 in previous games played on this date.

The Vols first played on Sept. 11 in 1976, hosting Duke at Neyland Stadium. The Blue Devils won, 21-18, in the season that would be Bill Battle’s final campaign as head coach at Tennessee.

In 1982, Tennessee and head coach Johnny Majors defeated Iowa State, 23-21, in Knoxville.

Majors’ first head coaching job was with the Cyclones. He coached at Iowa State between 1968-72.

The Vols have played one Southeastern Conference game on Sept. 11, winning, 28-6, against Georgia in 1993.

The Vols last played on Sept. 11 in 2010, losing to Oregon 48-13.

Kickoff for Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh is slated for noon EDT and it will be televised by ESPN.

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Greg Schiano recalls 9/11 and how football helped his team push forward

Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano remembers the 9/11 attacks 20 years ago.

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Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano remembers not just where he was when the ‘Twin Towers’ were hit on September 11, 2001. In fact, Schiano can recall exactly what he was doing when he first got the news.

It is that memory, and playing to honor the 37 alumni from Rutgers who died that day, that spurs Schiano when the Scarlet Knights play at Syracuse on Saturday. The day marks the twentieth anniversary of the worst terrorist attacks in United States history.

“I remember it like yesterday. I was on the board drawing, game planning a third down [against] Cal,” Schiano told reporters this week.

“And it was one of the assistants outside came in and said a small commuter plane just flew into one of the towers and I said ‘Oh man, what a day.’

“Whatever it was minutes later, he came back in and said ‘It was no computer plane’ and then, everybody was scrambling. We had coaches who had family members and wives that were working in the city. We had some players, we actually had two players whose moms were supposed to be in the towers that day and thank God they weren’t.”

On Saturday, Rutgers will wear special uniforms to honor the victims of the 9/11 attacks. Decals bearing the names of the Rutgers alumni who died in the attacks along with gloves emblazoned with the slogan ‘Never Forget’ are part of the team’s tribute.

Schiano said that football helped his team, located just minutes away from New York City, to deal with the emotions of the day. Sports played a role in the healing of America in the days and weeks that followed the terrorist attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives.

For Rutgers, it was football that helped them get through a day of nerves and wondering, especially given the high number of players from the tristate area who knew people living or working in New York City.

“But it was really surreal and the only thing I knew to do – I was a very young head coach was my first year was rally the guys in here. So we met, got all the players together and just told them this is what’s happening. ‘I can’t tell you, I don’t know any more than you do.’ But we just going stick together here. They wanted to be together. That was a good thing,” Schiano said.

“And I knew we weren’t going to play, so there was no reason to but they wanted to go out and just run around and get the ants out of their pants. I will never forget that from our practice field you could see the smoke on the horizon.

“And then everything that ensued afterward obviously but, you know, so many people that we all lost their lives. So, certainly 20 years later, we don’t forget them. And we’re going be doing something to remember 9/11. As a team, going up to this I think it’s appropriate to play a New York team. New Jersey and New York right? The people that were around this the most.”

Rockets honor Houston’s first reponders with Sept. 11 service event

In addition to area police and fire departments, the Rockets also honored local military personnel who had tours of duty in the Middle East.

The Houston Rockets partnered with Toyota on Friday for the franchise’s annual company-wide day of service in remembrance of efforts by first responders on Sept. 11, 2001. In addition to area police and fire departments, the Rockets also opted to honor local military personnel who had tours of duty in the Middle East over the past two decades.

As part of Friday’s activities, the franchise hosted a special luncheon at its home arena of Toyota Center for members from the military, as well as Houston fire and police departments. Each attendee received a Rockets gift basket in appreciation for their service.

Brigadier General Ronald R. Raginwas a keynote speaker at the luncheon, while Houston Chief of Police Troy Finner and Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña were among the dignitaries in attendance. From the Rockets, Hall of Famers Elvin Hayes and Calvin Murphy were among those who attended the event to speak with and thank those who serve.

Throughout the day, Rockets and Toyota staff also delivered ticket vouchers and customized t-shirts to all 94 Houston area fire stations, as well as 15 local police patrol divisions. See below for select images from Friday’s special Sept. 11 activities.

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Rutgers football is honoring these 37 alumni with 9/11 uniforms this weekend

Rutgers football will honor the 37 alumni who were victims of the September 11 attacks.

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Rutgers football will wear special unforms for Saturday’s game at Syracuse to honor the victims of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

There were 37 victims of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon who attended Rutgers. Their names will be placed on decals and worn on the helmets of the Scarlet Knights players for Saturday’s game.

The phrase “Never Forget,’ so meaningful to those who mourn the nearly three-thousand individuals killed in the attacks, will appear on the Rutgers helmets as well as the players’ gloves.

  • Paul A. Acquaviva RC’94
  • Evan J. Baron NCAS’81
  • David O. Campbell RC’72, GSM’74
  • Alexander H. Chiang GSNB’82
  • John R. Cruz RC’93
  • Brian T. Cummins GSN’91
  • Gavin F. Cushny UCN’85
  • Michael A. Davidson LC’97
  • Jayceryll M. de Chavez LC’99
  • Michael A. Diaz-Piedra III NCAS’74
  • Patrick J. Driscoll GSNB’75
  • Judy Santillan Fernandez UCNB’97
  • Stephen J. Fiorelli ENG’80
  • Colleen L. Fraser LC’74
  • Jeffrey B. Gardner CC’87
  • Alayne Friedenreich Gentul RC’78
  • Barry H. Glick NCAS’63
  • Richard J. Guadagno CC’84
  • Charles H. Karczewski RC’89
  • Brendan Mark Lang LC’89
  • Ming-Hao Liu GSNB’89
  • James A. Martello LC’83
  • Brian E. Martineau NCAS’88
  • Michael J. McCabe UCNB’83
  • Virginia A. Ormiston ENG’81
  • Dominique L. Pandolfo RC’96
  • Jon A. Perconti LC’93
  • Donald A. Peterson GSM’67
  • Patrick J. Quigley RC’82
  • Tom B. Reinig GSM’78
  • Richard D. Rosenthal GSM’75
  • Maria Theresa Santillan NCAS’96
  • Scott M. Schertzer LC’97, SMLR’97
  • Neil G. Shastri RC’98, RBS’98
  • Michael C. Sorresse NCAS’89
  • Kristine Marie Swearson UCNB’96
  • Gregory K. Wachtler RC’98

 

 

WATCH: Notre Dame/Michigan State bands perform ‘Amazing Grace’ after September 11th

The days that followed brought a sense of unity and togetherness in many ways.  Suddenly the results of baseball and football games didn’t feel like they were as important anymore because other things were.

September 11 is always a day that brings out emotions.

Fear, anger, sadness and hope are only a few of those.

Like I do just about every year on this date I’ll go down a YouTube wormhole of footage from that awful day and think back to being a sophomore in high school when Mrs. Boldt came running into our classroom, telling my communications teacher Mr. Wills to immediately get the TV on.

The rest of that day was eerie and I’ll never forget being at football practice that afternoon and seeing a lone jet fly overhead and realizing later that it was Air Force One.

The days that followed brought some answers but a lot more questions and some of those questions we continue to ask to this very day.

The one good thing that came of that awful day was how united so much of this nation felt.  It was at least a positive in what was otherwise as dark of day as this nation ever saw.

The days that followed brought a sense of unity and togetherness in many ways.  Suddenly the results of baseball and football games didn’t feel like they were as important anymore because other things were.

Notre Dame’s game at Purdue that following weekend was postponed until the end of the regular season, meaning Notre Dame returned to the field for the first time following the attacks to play Michigan State on September 22.

Notre Dame lost that day, not that the result ultimately matters much.  What I remember from that day was both Notre Dame and Michigan State’s bands playing “Amazing Grace” in front of an emotional crowd and members of both bands feeling the emotion of the moment quickly after.

Sports have an insane ability to unite but also distract us from the issues of the world.  On this anniversary of the darkest day ever on United States soil, let’s never forget the feeling of that day, also hope for all college football teams kicking off this weekend to be able to provide an entertaining distraction for their fans all fall long in a year that could so desperately use it.