Mr. P Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Uni Watch Field Trip: An Afternoon at the Meadowlands Filed Under: Jerseys, NFL, Fabrics/Textiles, Equipment Managers, Fields, Courts, Etc. IMG_2718.JPG Last Thursday I drove out to the Meadowlands to see Giants equipment director Joe Skiba, who wanted to show me a bunch of new gear and give me a tour of the team’s brand-new training facility. And lemme tell ya, he showed me some eye-opening stuff — almost none of which I’m allowed to share with you. I know, nobody likes a tease, but Joe swore me to secrecy. Plus he bought me lunch. Plus-plus, no joke, he showed me this dumping ground near the training site and made lots of chatter about how “you could easily leave a body here and nobody would ever know.” Yikes — message received. Here’s what I’ve been permitted to say: • The red alternate jersey has been retired. The Giants will not be wearing any alternates or throwbacks in 2009 or 2010, but they have a doozy of a throwback slated for 2011 — which I can’t describe. • Remember how some Giants players had a different jersey cut last season (no nameplate, lower placement of the NFL Equipment logo, etc.)? All Giants jerseys this season will feature that cut. One problem last year was that some players’ sleeve stripes looked sort of curvy instead of straight, but that has been addressed and should no longer be an issue. • These new jerseys will be made of a new high-tech fabric. I usually roll my eyes at this kind of thing, but the new fabric really does look and feel different than the standard NFL material (or at least it does in person — I doubt you’ll be able to tell the difference on TV). Interestingly, the fabric is being made is Israel, which means the team’s game jerseys will carry “Made in Israel” tags — probably a first for an American pro sports team. And that’s all I can say about it for now. • When the Giants wear blue jerseys on the road (in Dallas, say), Skiba plans to have them wear these pants (which are normally worn only with the white jersey), instead of these pants (which are normally worn with the blue jersey, whether at home or on the road). I like this idea. • Skiba continues to tinker with the nose bumpers. Here’s what he has in mind for this season. OK, I better stop there before Skeebs drives out and throttles me for giving too much away. Fortunately, I have full clearance to show photos of the new training site, which is located maybe half a mile from Giants Stadium and looks pretty damn swank. Among the highlights: • When the players enter the facility, this is the first thing they see. Too bad about the logo (a major turd in the punchbowl, no?), but that photo is a gem. • There are also classic photos in the cafeteria and outside the film screening room (each of those photos represents one of the team’s championships; I didn’t have room to include the one for Super Bowl XLII). • Speaking of the screening room, it’s basically a small theater. As you might expect, the seats are very wide. And hey, no cup holders! • There’s a huge photo montage that was too big for me to capture. Skeebs was all excited to show me the last photo in the sequence, just to see if my head would explode. • The “ny” logo is everywhere — on walls, on trash cans, even on this drainage plate. • The new locker room is really nice. It’s shaped like a football, with a ring of honor along the top molding. • The old practice bubble has been dismantled and replaced by a fancy new practice hangar. Interestingly, the goalposts are suspended from the ceiling by cables, so there’s no anchor post connected to the crossbar. Maybe that’s common for indoor practice fields, but I’d never seen it before and thought it was really neat. That’s most of it. At one point we hopped in a high-tech vehicle and scooted back over to Giants Stadium, where Joe wanted to show me a few additional things. The best part: this impromptu photo gallery. Recognize anyone in those photos? According to Skeebs, this is Tom Coughlin and this is Jeff Feagles. And this? That’s a young Joe Skiba on the right, with his brother Ed (who works with Joe in the Giants’ equipment room) on the left. Look at those perfectly positioned pads and wristbands — no wonder they got into the equipment game. http://www.uniwatchblog.com/2009/07/17/uni...he-meadowlands/ i suggest clicking the link there are links in there to pictures of some of the things being talked about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TaylorBanksCarsonVanPelt Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 I liked the red jerseys....reminded me of the Tittle, Gifford era...I have seen in photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virginia Giant Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 I liked the red jerseys....reminded me of the Tittle, Gifford era...I have seen in photos. Same, I'll miss the reds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. P Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 i too liked the reds alot. and what i hated was people saying "fuck the red jerseys, we are known as big blue" idiots dont even know that we had the red jerseys way before being called big blue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
so-cal dub Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Same, I'll miss the reds. even though we stunk up the joint wearing them, I agree. Atleast now I have the Authentic red Tuck, so when I wear it 5 years down the road after 4 SB titles...you cant call me a bandwagoner who JUST bought a jersey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virginia Giant Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 even though we stunk up the joint wearing them, I agree. Atleast now I have the Authentic red Tuck, so when I wear it 5 years down the road after 4 SB titles...you cant call me a bandwagoner who JUST bought a jersey. Wish I would have bought a red jersey when i had money to waste on things like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. P Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 i have a red replica shockey jersey, whtever its still a giants jersey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virginia Giant Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 i have a red replica shockey jersey, whtever its still a giants jersey I have both the blue and white shockeys, and a blue tiki. the dog wears the tiki for games once ina while, not sure what to do with the Shockeys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lughead Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 • The red alternate jersey has been retired. The Giants will not be wearing any alternates or throwbacks in 2009 or 2010, but they have a doozy of a throwback slated for 2011 — which I can’t describe. Do I smell 1986 Superbowl Jerseys with the GIANTS helmet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virginia Giant Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 Do I smell 1986 Superbowl Jerseys with the GIANTS helmet I would love to see the 80's/early 90's GIANTS helmets used for at least a few games. Love the NY, but those old helmets strike up serious memories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. P Posted July 19, 2009 Author Share Posted July 19, 2009 2011 is the 25th anniversery of the 86 superbowl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYG Hampton 27 Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 even though we stunk up the joint wearing them, I agree. Atleast now I have the Authentic red Tuck, so when I wear it 5 years down the road after 4 SB titles...you cant call me a bandwagoner who JUST bought a jersey. I have a red Sehorn, but I guess that does nothing for me except having a funny jersey. Do I smell 1986 Superbowl Jerseys with the GIANTS helmet Shit, I hope so. Those unis were the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarence the Blue Puppet Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 I have a red Sehorn, but I guess that does nothing for me except having a funny jersey. Shit, I hope so. Those unis were the best. The white jerseys back then were my favorite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYG Hampton 27 Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 The white jerseys back then were my favorite. Agreed, I've been looking for a white authentic Hampton for years. I got a blue one with the letters sewn on, and I got a white one with heavy duty screen printed letters and cloth stripes on the sleeves but no name on the back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boohyah Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 The Red jerseys sucked ass and I'm glad they are gone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treehugger Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 2011 is the 25th anniversery of the 86 superbowl Ding ding ding we have a winner! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
so-cal dub Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 I would love to see the 80's/early 90's GIANTS helmets used for at least a few games. Love the NY, but those old helmets strike up serious memories. I wish we would go that color again keep the ny logo. I hate all these metallic helmets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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