Fans of NY presents: Julia Fisher’s Giants Fandom
Starting when I was 4 years old, my Dad would watch football on Sundays while feeding me chicken nuggets (not much has changed). He would root for the New York Jets. My allegiance to the other team in town, the New York Giants, started with my preferred choice in jersey color of blue over green. As I continued to watch football, I also started to lean towards rooting for the Giants because they would win and the Jets seemed to always be losing (oftentimes in hilarious fashion). The bond with my Dad shaped my interest in the game of football, but I am very glad to have made my own decision in choosing the team I cheer for considering how the past couple decades have gone for both New York football franchises.
The two players that made me love the team growing up were Eli Manning and Tiki Barber. I got into the team when Eli still knew how to throw, but more importantly, was the 6' 5'' awkward gangly man of my dreams. Tiki Barber was a fantastic running back, and watching him peaked my interest in the sport. Even though according to my conscious memory I only witnessed him play for a few seasons, I remember him making the game magical for a young fan like myself. It was also cool to hear about him having a twin like I did. Victor Cruz (salsa time), pass rushers Michael Strahan and Justin Tuck, as well as Lawrence Tynes also stand out as memorable players from my Giants fandom.
In the 4th grade, I went on a trip to Build-A-Bear and made a New York Giants stuffed animal that has stayed with me to this day named Tiki Catster. Tiki is an orange tabby cat with a Giants jersey, he makes a fantastic pillow and cuddle buddy. He’s been with me to every game that I attended as well as to college and beyond. Whenever someone sees my bed, they quickly understand a few things about me: my roots of being a New Yorker, that I am a die-hard Giants fan, and that I love cats.
Of the New York Giants games that I attended with my furry friend, one that stands out was when I went with my Dad to a crucial game against the Packers later in the season. The game took place during the 2012 season in December which meant that it was freezing cold, I remember that I kept running back and forth to the concessions for Dunkin Donuts hot chocolate in my attempt to stay warm throughout the afternoon. The Giants ended up winning and making it into the playoffs after that win, where they would have a run for the ages.
The highest moment of my Giants fandom like many people of my generation is the two Super Bowl runs. Super Bowl XLII in 2008 stands out particularly because of them getting into the playoffs as a wild card and ending the perfect season of the New England Patriots. I have rewatched this run and the 2012 championship run to remember a time when it wasn’t depressing to be a Giants fan.
Up until that time, the Giants were always an exciting team to watch because you never knew what the outcome of the game would be until the very end of the game. There were so many 4th quarter plays that made the games unpredictable. It has been rather disheartening seeing the Giants decline from a team that was always in the game until the very end to one where it’s rare that they are in the game. Eli was well beyond his prime towards the end of his career, but when he was benched last season that was really low as a team. After the era of Eli and Tom Coughlin’s exit, the team has lost its way. I hope that we get to see Big Blue return to the type of magical team that gave fans something to root for during their championship seasons.