PATRIOTISM, ENTHUSIASM, AND COOPERATION MARK THE DAY

By Kevin Adler

The Empire Challenge all-star football game has always been a patriotic event, with appearances by the Huntington Militia and the U.S. Marine Corps Color Guard, as well as a fireworks display. This year, the patriotic theme took on an added meaning in the wake of the tragic events of September 11.

For the Boomer Esiason Foundation and Esiason himself, handling this issue was a tricky matter. "We were affected by September 11 � losing many, many personal friends an supporters in the World Trade Center, as well as having our offices destroyed," said Esiason. "WE need to recognize this and in fact never forget it, but this game is a celebration of our future and of the good things in life."

This year, the Foundation memorialized the contributions of one of the victims, BEF board member Timothy O�Brien, by renaming the most valuable player trophy as the Timothy M. O�Brien Award. "Tim loved sports and was one of my best friends," Esiason told the crowd as he gave defensive back Jeff Dena the O�Brien Award. "Tim was with us at the Empire Challenge game right from the start."

Pregame festivities also commemorated America and its armed forces. In addition to the color guard and Green Beret parachuters, the players and coaches from both teams unfurled a 50-yard-long American flag and held it open for the signing of the national anthem.

The event�s coaches said their approach to football and the Empire Challenge was affected by September 11. "When the World Trade Center was attacked, we canceled a week of football and didn�t play a game until October," said New York City coach Fred Snyder.

"As I thought about things during that week, football seemed so trivial," Snyder continued. "But then I realized that in many ways, it�s not trivial. Football is part of life, especially for these kids. And it�s important to get them out there and get their lives going again."