The Rundown: Bassett Soapboxes on Micro-Regionalities
Sorry friends, but it’s soapbox time!
It seems that some fans are ready to cut off their own nose to spite their face because the Jets have relocated facilities over the past year.
Join us, with some quotes from a scorned fan in the Post, after the jump …
Joe Legotti has come to Jets practices at Hofstra University for 30 years. And like most Jets fans, he has nothing to show for decades of faithful service but disappointment.
For the past 40 years, Hofstra has been the training facility for the Jets, and for the past 25 years, it has served as the only thing keeping validity to the New York in their name.
This season, the Jets will complete the abandonment of their Long Island roots for a new facility in Florham Park, but last night, they were in Hempstead for their only practice east of the Hudson River.
“I don’t think it’s right. I’m very upset with it. I thought they were gonna stay here,” said Legotti, 54, a Lindenhurst native. “Now that they’re in Jersey, it’s like … the Buffalo Bills. I’m almost at that point where I’m gonna root for them because they’re the only New York team. I hate to say it.”
I say this with the utmost respect, and I know MANY readers of this site are Long Island born and bred, but Legotti’s statement seems a tad harsh, no? It’s not a personal slight that the team moved, right?
I don’t know the motivation, but when I hear statements like this, I have to assume they’re being said out of spite to make a point, or that the fan in question is just one of convenience if they are so concerned about a team moving 50 miles as the crow flies to the opposite side on the most populous city on the East Coast. What if a fan himselft moved to a different region altogether? Does one then become a fan of that team? Somewhere Michael Tunison’s and his new book are spinning in booktour signing seats at the thought of this.
Personally I have no stake in the matter, other than to say “lighten up.” I grew up in Westchester, and no one there is wringing their hands about how the team never was based in Dobbs Ferry or whatever. As an “upstater” (God I hated that .. is then anything north of Manhattan considered “upstate?”) we’re always left out of the mix, so there’s only so much sympathy I can feel for folks who have had the pleasure of having their favorite team, right in their own backyard for 40 years.
That said, it’s clear that most fans do get it.
For Brian Ward, miles mean nothing.
“When they were here full-time, I’d get here anywhere between five and 10 times a summer,” the 31-year-old Ward said. “I’m upset that they’re not here, but I’m gonna go wherever I gotta go.”
John Pellegrino, 48, wasn’t concerned with his state as much as he was with the team’s.
“I live in East Meadow, so I like them here, but I think [the move] is better for the team,” Pellegrino said. “They have more state-of-the-art facilities for them to train in and go win the Super Bowl.”
Perhaps a sense of resentment will linger with some Long Island fans, but most seemed to share the sentiments of Bob Ward.
“You feel a little disappointed, but what are you going to do?” Ward said. “Once you’re a fan, you’re a fan for life.”
Thank you for being the voice of reason Ward family and Mr. Pellegrino.
Count the team’s moving to newer, more pimped out facilities in the region as a blessing and better than the alternative the “potential” (*cough* *cough* strong arming tactic *cough*) move to L.A. for instance. How could most anyone from NY make it to practice then? I get it, being a fan of a team is a raw, emotional, downright visceral experience, but sometimes I’ve got to step back and check priorities.
This would be one of those times.
29 Responses to The Rundown: Bassett Soapboxes on Micro-Regionalities
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Matt says:
I just moved from North Jersey, to the Philly suburbs. Suggestions that I should convert from Jets green to Eagles green almost makes me ill. I have cable, so now I have to find a bar to watch the games at (including preseason) and damnit, it’s worth it.
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JustAGreenGuy says:
Matt I’m in the same boat. If I have to hear that frickin E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles chant one more time I’m going to puke. Everybody knows you have to say the team name 3 times sheesh.
I was told we get a lot of the Jets games on CBS, because we are the closest AFC team.
Toon- True true dedication.
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JetObsessed28 says:
I thought the same thing when i read that article..
If that fan is so pissed, why did he bother to show up yesterday? Be a Bills fan then!Even though i’m more “hartford” than “new york”, i’ve spent enough time in and around new york to know this: New Yorkers like to make a point, like their opinions known and will go past overboard in the name of “proving their point”… I think that’s what Mr. Legotti was doing for that article.
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J.E.T.S Mex Mex Mex says:
I live in Miami (i know i know… im disgusted too). I hate how the long islander’s claim that its their team because they played in shea back in the day. Maybe its cause im a yankee fan or something but i hate it.
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Pdubbs says:
I lived upstate last year and was forced to watch either Bills or Pats games….. yea it was incredible irony. Never change your team, find a bar or get a sling box !
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vinnywasthebest says:
People need to slow down with the cyanide pills.
The Jets are still near their fan base, Long Island is very expensive to build in and red tape is all over it (just ask charles wang who owns the islanders). So what if its NJ? Big deal. I live in Brooklyn but root for the Nets (before the proposed move) its a LOCAL team.
As for the dude in LI that wants to root for the bills, knock yourself out. Go jump on their bandwagon. If this team moves to alaska i will STILL bleed green & white.
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Nu'u Fa'aola says:
Guys, I think you yourselves are being a bit harsh on us L.I.-based fans. It’s great that you guys are true Jets fans, and so dedicated, but try to put yourselves in our shoes for a moment: since their inception, the Jets have been based in Long Island, training and playing. Of course, we all suffered the indignity of the team’s move to G#$%@s Stadium, but at least they still had their roots here (did you know that the team even had camp briefly in Southampton sometime in the 60s?).
When the team was looking for a new stadium, we all hoped it would be on this side of the river (the ridiculous Manhattan flirtation notwithstanding), either on L.I. or maybe at Yonkers Raceway. Then Woody did the unthinkable, he actually partnered with the Giants on a stadium! (Yes, I understand the financial implications, but STILL!). We still don’t have OUR OWN home. I hope the new place will actually feel more welcoming, but it is still in Jersey.
Anyway, rightly or wrongly, Long Islanders have always felt that the Jets belonged to us. Give us some time to make the adjustment now that they have absolutely NO TIES to us anymore. -
david i says:
Look at it from the other perspective. They represent all of NY and have been calling Hofstra home for 40 years…now its only fair they spend some time on this side of the river.
In all fairness to the organization (Woody), they tried like hell to get into Manahattan on the west side, but the Dolan’s killed it. If you are pissed enough, stop spending money on anything that ends up in the Dolan’s pockets.
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WESTCHESTER says:
While it is a terrible slum now, I used to live in Peekskill, which was decent– The Jets used to practice two blocks from my house in the 60′s. Joe Namath was up there. They left, and it is what it is. Its not a birthright to have the Jets in Long Island. Even if they didn’t go to Cortland, they would have been in Jersey.
Plus, the Jets brought nothing to Long Island economically. A small town like Cortland gets a big boost from the Jets.
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Brendan says:
I posted this on the NY Post article’s comment section under the name Freekwhc, and it sums up my feelings pretty well:
So the people of southern NY and Long Island didn’t get camp in their neck of the woods this year? Stop complaining. There are plenty of Jets fans stretching up past the Hudson Valley who haven’t been able to see a camp in 40 years. If someone is really considering not rooting for the team because they moved the camp for a year, then that person really isn’t a fan. Anyone who is truly a Jets fan wants what is best for the team, and what’s best for the team right now is building the “us vs. them” mentality and the best to way to achieve that goal is to go off the grid. Rex knew that he had to get these guys out of their comfort zone, to a place that lacks all the amenities that these players are used to. Back to basics, football 24/7 and bonding with your teammates. If these shortsighted fans don’t see the importance, and really want to jump ship, then I’ll be the first to set up the plank. This team needs fans to support players and coaches, and not be selfish about where practices are held for a few weeks (and Florham Park isn’t an impossible trip from Long Island, so that’s a BS excuse).
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And, for the Bills fan– I understand how you feel, I would be pissed off if the team left New York State for Cortland…..
And, the distance!! Forget the Jets, Cortland is waaaay too far— Lets root for the BUFFALO Bills!!!
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Kimo69 says:
Ironically, I moved from LI, where I would go to Hofstra on a weekly basis for camp to upstate… Dobbs Ferry, NY… lol. A ton of die-hards here as well… The LI group is a little spoiled! Hey Cortland seems to be working and it gives us all an excuse to hit the road and have a nice w/e away
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mole57 says:
Once the Jets moved to the Meadowlands, I always thought that training/practicing in Hempstead was nonsensical. Depending on where the players lived, either the commute to the game would suck, or the commute to the training/practice facility would suck. (Or, if they tried to live in between the two, the commutes to both sites would suck.) Logically, the Florham Park facility should have happened twenty years ago — it just helps make the team more competitive. If there are any players or coaches who would rather be training/practicing at Hempstead than in Florham Park, I’d be shocked.
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Big JS says:
Was Rick Reilly a special guest writer in the Post today?
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RKNYC says:
I think the real problem is that no other team in any sport, outside of some catastrophic incident, ever plays and/or practices in a different state than the one their team is supposed to be from.
NY has 2 teams that do that. It is just very peculiar. And how many stadiums support 2 teams for that matter? It’s not enough that they want to rape fans but they save money by splitting the rent in the first place.
And I don’t care about the cost of stadium and space in NY they make plenty of money because they are NFL franchises in the first or second largest media market in the U.S (and world for sports).
As far as the facilities being all new and shiny it is completely overrated. Seriously if they are good they will be good not because their jacuzzis blow more bubbles or their stair-master talks to them. I am sure they “feel” better knowing their owner created a facility for them but “feelings” aren’t for girlfriends and people in therapy. I don’t care if they got good by lifting rocks and eating gruel if they got good. Seriously does filet mignon make someone tougher? Or does being hungry make someone desperate and therefore more focused because a mistake hurts that much more when you’re hungry.
That is another point to consider…do the Jets deserve a new stadium when they haven’t done anything? I know the fans would want a new place if it didn’t cost them anything but…well it costs them a lot. Maybe the Jets should win something some year and then consider improving their facilities.
The fans are paying for the facility after all by supporting the team. Therefore, if they want it in LI the team should put it there. I do not think that LU’er are owed some exclusive rights I’m just saying it doesn’t have to be in NJ though. How about Staten Island? Governor’s Island? Bronx?
I’d like to point out that I don’t necessarily believe all of these points I am just making them because nobody else has.
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I meant “are for girlfriends and people in therapy” and “I do not think Long Islanders are owed>’
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One last point. Does anyone seriously think that the NFL owners are always scrambling to make new stadiums for the fans? Hell no! It’s the bottom line people. They do it to make more money. So what if they make a little less by building it in NY?
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Tom in Raleigh says:
The move to Florham Park is a good one. Hempstead has not made sense since the team moved to the Meadowlands. The new facilities make sense.
Cortland? Well…since I have been out of NY for a while, training camp doesn’t really affect me very much. I feel for those die-hards who made it out there each year.
Bassett…you were wrong…everything above the Bronx is upstate.
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Tom,
Where I come from, everything above 14th Street is upstate. -
Seriously?? I mean grow the hell up people. The team was at a disadvantage being in LI and having to “travel” to home games during the year.
The Floram Park was a great move. I wouldnt care if they practiced in Nevada for training camp.
If Rex thinks the Cortland move was a good one then great. We get enough information thru this site and the rest of the internet that you feel like your at camp anyway.
The Jets owe the LI Jet fans zero!!! Get over it!!
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Jonathan says:
I’m a Long Island native and was a ballboy as a teen, but the Hofstra facilities I used to work in fed into the 2nd class citizen narrative that has plagued our Jets for years.
Woody, Rex, and even players (Swaggerlicious, for example) seem to grasp the need to rectify this long-standing identity crisis.
As long as they don’t change name to NJ Jets, I’m fine.
I have more of a problem with continuing to share stadiums with the Giants. -
simplysimon2 says:
Are there any adults in that pissed off LI crew? Life is about change and impermanence. Check out your baby pix and the graveyard; nothing lasts. Be thankful the J-E-T-S are still in the neighborhood, unlike the former Cleveland Browns turned Baltimore Ravens or LA Rams stuck in ST Louis. The sign of maturity is to roll with the punches, and, if you are a man, learn how to say, “Yes, Dear”. Hopefully the Jets, Jets, Jets are only a hobby and not a religion to you. Either close or far, true fans know Jets Green & White from pretenders (Eagles) or neighbors (Giants).
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brian311 says:
even if the west side stadium went through, you would still have 1/2 the fans pissed about parking, tailgating, etc. people always want a reason to b*tch about something
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john sec.125 says:
i drive over two hours to games, and have been doing it for twenty years. i grew up in ct. and have been a jet fan my whole life, while surruonded by giant (dumb) and patriot ( dumber) fans. long island does not have a monopoly on the team. i wish the team had there OWN stadium somewhere near shea though.
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sorry. i meant where shea USED to be.
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SackDance99 says:
I grew up in Westchester, lived as an adult in 3 of the 5 boros, and moved to LI in 2004. Until I lived in LI, I never went to training camp. It’s awesome and I’m thinking of taking the trek up to Cortland next year. And, for the record, I’ve always been a Jets fan and, before moving to LI, would have agreed that LI fans have no greater entitlement to the Jets than any other fan.
Having been a Long Islander for 5 years now, I must say that I’ve never lived in a community (I’m 10 minutes from Hofstra) where THE team is the Jets. Sure, there are Giants fans around, but the Jets are more of Long Island’s team than even the Islanders! And, for 40 years the Jets players and front office employees lived around Hofstra. So, it goes a little deeper. Friends and neighbors, who also happen to be pro football players, are leaving. So, cut LI fans a little slack. Judging from the turnout at Hofstra last night, LI Jets fans will get over it, but I can’t blame some for being a little bitter.
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Cabras says:
Who cares about the fans?
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Joe says:
As a life long Jet fan who has lived in the heart of Bills country (Rochester NY ) I am psyched that they are a short 1:30 down the thruway . After all I am the guy who paid a lot of money for the direct tv systems when they first came out so I could watch the Jets go 1-15 . See you in Toronto !!!!!
Needless to say I think these guys are wrong as I have lived in San Diego for 17 years and am still a JETS season ticket holder. I routinely turn down Charger tix so I can stay at home and throw my remote control all over the house on Sundays