STrib: Gophers visit national 9/11 memorial ahead of Pinstripe Bowl

BleedGopher

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per Randy:

Bowl games serve as a reward for college football teams and often as vacation destination for fans, with warm-weather sites hoping to fill stadiums and hotel rooms. Along the way, players are treated to the sites and sounds of the host city.

For the Gophers and Syracuse, who'll meet in the Pinstripe Bowl on Thursday at Yankee Stadium, festive activities since their Sunday arrivals include a night at Radio City Music Hall to see the Rockettes, a visit to Rockefeller Center and Tuesday night's game between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden.

Tuesday morning, though, coach P.J. Fleck and his Gophers had an appearance filled with reflection and education when they visited the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, and made a stop at the top of the One World Observatory.

Their visit began with the observatory, as players and coaches marveled at the views of the city and surrounding area from 100 stories — some 1,268 feet — into the sky.

From there, the Gophers moved outdoors on the brisk, mid-20-degree morning to the Sept. 11 memorial. There they viewed its two reflecting pools representing the World Trade Center towers and stamped with names of the 2,977 people who died in the 2001 terrorists attacks on New York, the Pentagon and those who died on United Airlines Flight 93.

Gophers senior linebacker Mariano Sori-Marin was moved by the magnitude of what he was seeing.

"It's really difficult to put into words, especially being out here in the fountains,'' he said. "Getting a sense of how much people had to sacrifice. All the men and women, the first responders, that were a part of this tragedy — it really makes you feel small in a sense because there is so much sacrifice and so many things bigger out there.


Go Gophers!!
 




per Randy:

Bowl games serve as a reward for college football teams and often as vacation destination for fans, with warm-weather sites hoping to fill stadiums and hotel rooms. Along the way, players are treated to the sites and sounds of the host city.

For the Gophers and Syracuse, who'll meet in the Pinstripe Bowl on Thursday at Yankee Stadium, festive activities since their Sunday arrivals include a night at Radio City Music Hall to see the Rockettes, a visit to Rockefeller Center and Tuesday night's game between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden.

Tuesday morning, though, coach P.J. Fleck and his Gophers had an appearance filled with reflection and education when they visited the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, and made a stop at the top of the One World Observatory.

Their visit began with the observatory, as players and coaches marveled at the views of the city and surrounding area from 100 stories — some 1,268 feet — into the sky.

From there, the Gophers moved outdoors on the brisk, mid-20-degree morning to the Sept. 11 memorial. There they viewed its two reflecting pools representing the World Trade Center towers and stamped with names of the 2,977 people who died in the 2001 terrorists attacks on New York, the Pentagon and those who died on United Airlines Flight 93.

Gophers senior linebacker Mariano Sori-Marin was moved by the magnitude of what he was seeing.

"It's really difficult to put into words, especially being out here in the fountains,'' he said. "Getting a sense of how much people had to sacrifice. All the men and women, the first responders, that were a part of this tragedy — it really makes you feel small in a sense because there is so much sacrifice and so many things bigger out there.


Go Gophers!!
Great schedule and something they’ll remember the rest of their lives
 


I have such a weird disconnect about time. This is all so vivid to me, I remember that entire day so clearly and it seems like it just happened yesterday in my head. And much of the team wasn't even born when it happened.
 
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I have such a weird disconnect about time. This is all so vivid to me, I remember that entire day so and it seems like it just happened yesterday in my head. And much of the team wasn't even born when it happened.
"No day shall erase you from the memory of time."

September 11, 2001, is embedded in my memory forever.

My wedding anniversary is September 12. My wife passed away on September 13. A month after her funeral, I was on a ventilator at a Covid ICU for six weeks fighting to live.
 

"No day shall erase you from the memory of time."

September 11, 2001, is embedded in my memory forever.

My wedding anniversary is September 12. My wife passed away on September 13. A month after her funeral, I was on a ventilator at a Covid ICU for six weeks fighting to live.
I'm sorry that you had those experiences one after the other, and I hope you've been able to find some peace through all of it. These things can galvanize people or bring them to their knees, I hope it's been the former for you and that family, friends, and Gopher FB have been good sources of support for you since then.
 



Went to NYC while they were building the memorial. My wife and I just sat there in silence for about 20 minutes just looking at the holes in the ground and absorbing the massive destruction and loss of life. One of the most powerful things I've ever experienced.
 

I'm sorry that you had those experiences one after the other, and I hope you've been able to find some peace through all of it. These things can galvanize people or bring them to their knees, I hope it's been the former for you and that family, friends, and Gopher FB have been good sources of support for you since then.
In the bowels of your deepest sorrows is where you will find your greatest strength and faith. It has shaken me to the core. It made me a better person.

What the football program is doing to instill humanistic values is admirable.
 

If you haven't visited the 9/11 memorial it is worth the trip. They really did a nice job with it. Very moving.
Very moving. Had the opportunity when it first opened. It was not fully completed but very well done. They were in the process of rebuilding at that time. Amazing how orchestrated the work site had to be to rebuild those buildings, getting supplies in and out of the financial district.
 




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