On Tuesday I went down to the New Giants Meadowlands Stadium to watch the Giants Open Minicamp Practice with my dad and my brother (who is an Eagles fan) and to also take my first real tour of our new state-of-the-art facilities. It was the first time I had been inside the new stadium, and let me tell you, it’s MAGNIFICENT.
Listen, I was one of the only people whining about how the old Giants Stadium was fine and that there was nothing really wrong with it. I was just reluctant to see the place I had come to love after so many years get destroyed and it’s no surprise that I’m not really the best at adapting to change. However, when I pulled into the parking lot on Tuesday and saw the pile of rubble that is the old Giants Stadium, I didn’t get dusty-eyed for nearly as long as I thought I would. Instead, I couldn’t take my eyes off of our shiny new stadium, its sleek silver exterior making it look like the spaceship from District 9 just landed on the side of the New Jersey Turnpike.
The stadium is big. It’s huge. That we already know. In fact, it’s nearly twice the size of the old stadium, and you could easily tell when both of them stood intact, side by side. So, what else do I love about the new stadium? I’ll make a list for you, because people love reading lists.
1) The wider concourses. This has to be #1 because it was pretty much my #1 problem at the old stadium. I never went to the bathroom during Giants games at the old stadium. I don’t care how badly I had to relieve myself, I just never went because I knew that going would cost me 20-25 minutes, depending on where my section was situated, and that I would likely miss a valuable chunk of game time — yes, even if I went during halftime. Trying to maneuver your way through the crowds in the old stadium was a test of endurance and patience — and constantly looking over your shoulder to make sure the people you’re walking with haven’t been swallowed by the masses. Getting a hot dog was a task and even just trying to get out of the stadium after an overtime win (when there’s likely to be the most people still left in the building) was an experience.
Not anymore though. The concourses are so wide that you can land a — well, maybe not a plane, but you can definitely drive multiple cars through it now. No more claustrophobia from simply trying to buy a knish. We can all breathe again. So I’m excited about that.
2) Concessions. I love the concessions at the new stadium. The old stadium’s concessions were extremely boring. Hot dogs, chicken fingers, sausage and peppers, cheesesteaks and nachos. That was pretty much it. Blah. Unimaginative and repetitive if you came to the stadium a lot. Now what do we have? Well I walked around the stadium for a few hours and I found: Fried hot dogs, fried clams, cheesesteaks (which were unbelievably good), pepper and egg sandwiches, pizza, gyros, chili, and tons more. This is owed to the fact that the concessions were switched over from Aramark, which ran the concessions at the old stadium, to a new company called Delaware North Companies. And make fun of flavored beer all you want, but the new stadium has Bud Light Lime on tap, and it’s pretty good. I also spotted Guinness, Landshark Lager, Brooklyn Lager, and Yuengling, in addition to all the usual suspects. Bottom line: concessions were upgraded from basically a C- at the old stadium to an A+ now. Which counts for a lot if you love food and beer as much as I do.
3) Sight lines. The visual sight lines in this stadium are stunning. For one, it seems like the seats are a tad closer to the field, which I’m assuming is going to be good for our home field advantage, because I can imagine that it will feel like the fans are right on top of the opposing team. The lower level is beautiful and spacious with what seems like a tiny bit more leg room and I don’t think there is a single bad seat in the whole house. There is a solid view of the field from every section. I even went upstairs to section 319, row 4 (considering I’ll probably be in the upper level for most of the games I go to) and from up there, it felt a lot like the old stadium. Sitting there in the sun on the Giants sideline, I thought I was back in the old Giants Stadium for a second. That is until I looked to my left where one of the four enormous video screens was situated. When I say enormous, I mean it. These babies are more than twice the size of the old jumbotrons and now there are FOUR of them. One in each corner. It’s going to make watching replays and highlights of the Cowboys getting hammered a lot easier.
Hixon: Moments before he tore his ACL.
4) Getting closer to the action. We walked down to the field level area on the main concourse, right inside the main entrance and below section 139 to an area that was gated off from the field. In this small standing room only area, we were able to stand just on the edge of the turf and watch as the Giants practiced no more than 50 feet away. Eli threw passes to Domenik Hixon (before he tore his ACL returning a practice punt) and Steve Smith and we were standing right there. Now I’m not sure if this little standing room area will be open on game day, but if it is, then it will be awesome. It is directly across the field from the Coach’s Club, which features luxury suites that are actually on the field, right behind the Giants bench. Although I can’t imagine this standing room area having much of a view that isn’t obstructed by the opponent’s bench, it will be still pretty cool if they keep it open.
5) Outdoor concourse. Much like the new Citi Field, where the Mets play, there is now a much bigger and wider outdoor concourse, which is the area just inside the gates, but before you actually enter the stadium. Out here they have beer vendors and food stands and there is a ton of space to walk around and enjoy the blistering cold 50 mph winds in December before heading into the game. I do like this idea.
6) It’s loud. On Tuesday, there were a reported 7,000 fans in the stadium to watch the minicamp practice. Since it was the middle of the afternoon and they were serving alcohol, those 7,000 fans got pretty loud at a few points. One of the those points happened to be when rookie defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul and guard Rich Seubert got into a little tussle. After the practice, Pierre-Paul remarked that it got surprisingly loud for 7,000 people and that he can’t wait to hear what it sounds like when there are 85,000 filling the seats. ME TOO! That was also the first thing I thought of, and whether it has something to do with how much closer the seats are to the field, or whatever else it is, all I know is that this stadium is going to be LOUD. I can’t wait.
7) Cupholders on every seat. This is self-explanatory. It’s about time.
8) SUPER BOWL 48. Probably the biggest reason I’m excited for the new stadium is February 2014, when the NY/NJ area will finally get to host a Super Bowl. As sad as I was to see the old stadium go, there was no way that building was EVER getting a Super Bowl. Now, with this new stadium, in less than 4 years I will have my best opportunity yet to attend the Super Bowl, and you have to believe that I will do everything in my power, including selling one of my organs, to get a ticket. And if the Giants are playing, then I’ll probably sell my soul.
