One of my biggest regrets as a Jets fan is that I NEVER got to see a game at Shea Stadium (They moved when I was 9 years old). I'd like to ask some of the elder statesmen of this group: What were games like at Shea? What was the atmosphere like? I can't imagine the visual of the way the field was situated: was the view of the field good from the seats? Was the dirt infield a distraction? Any personal stories you can share about the building?
Right in my wheelhouse being an old fart. It was the best time of my life going to Shea. It started with a tailgate on Roosevelt Avenue, then on to freezing my ass off in section 31 upper deck every game, watching a terrible team most of the time, but I was a kid then, I didn't care. I used to marvel at the facilities, bathrooms flooded with pee and whatever else before the game even started, long lines for the concessions Lol. The long assed escalators that seemed to go on also forever. I was always scared to fall off of them because they went up so high. There were people smoking all over the stadium that I can still recall the smell of, and the Bob Cleveland Orchestra in the band box down on the field. I saw greats like the NY Sack Exchange, Wesley Walker, Bruce Harper, Archie Manning, OJ, Eric Dickerson, Earl Campbell, Ken Stabler among (many) others play there. I remember never wanting to be anywhere else on those Sundays, and Monday nights, even though most of those teams were absolutely terrible. Those were the best times for me as a Jet fan because that stadium was ours, even if we had to open on the road for the first 5 or 6 weeks some seasons due to the Mets, that was the only time in my long life that I can treuly say we had a home field advantage, and were in own stadium.
I would love to have seen the Jets play at Shea. It looks like a great place, tatty and run-down though it was. It looks like it had atmosphere.
Great write up! Felt like I was there. So how was the wifi-5G connection there? And that score board!!!
The Jets lost their identity when they left Shea and moved to the Meadowlands. It was a sell out by Hess, compounded by Johnson.
My standout memory were the tiers rocking up & down when the crowd got excited. There was also a Monday Night game at Shea (Vikings?) where the crowd went ape-shit... throwing bottles and fists.
I was at that game! it was a 14-7 borting Jet win. I recall standing at the top deck looking down at people running for their lives because drunks were throwing beer and shit off of the stadium.
Was Todd under center that night? My memory is a bit foggy of that era... I was enjoying more than the Jets. The last game I attended at Shea was the Wild Card playoff vs. the Bills. What a kick in the nuts...
They had these 2 little scoreboards in the left and right field sections that, amazingly (for the times), was interchangable between baseball and football stats, amazing for the late 70's anyway. WIFI LOL. Would have been interesting. They did have this little motorized Jet plane go kart type thing that a random kid would get to ride around the field every game. I always wanted to ride that Then there was the game against NE when they had a flying remote controlled lawnmower during half time that went awry and seriously injured or killed someone in the stands. I was getting food or going to the floodroom and missed it. I returned to my seat to see an ambulance on the field and did not know what happened until someoe told me, My most vivid memory of Shea was the smell of cigar and cigarette smoke, and the absolute menacing cold whipping wind that came from this wire mesh fence thing they had at the back of each section. I never sat all the way back near those fences, but felt bad for those poor souls who endured that. Absolutely ridiculous cold. But even with all of that, I would give anything to be able to go to another game at Shea. Those were the days.
The Jets only played 2 MNF games at Shea and that was one of them …. There is a recap of that game on utube explaining the situation with the fans by a guy named JagGator or something to that effect. He puts up a lot of videos about strange NFL games or facts and yes there are several about the Jets. But good stuff …. I don’t think there is a surviving tape of the complete telecast at least not one that has been found as of yet.
That would be the final home game of 1979 - a 27-26 win over NE which knocked them out of the playoff race. A good game, rarely mentioned but that was quite the revenge for the 56-3 humiliation earlier that year.
I find it amusing how that era is glorified by the long time Jets fans yet the teams generally sucked. They had much more success (other than the SB) in NJ.
Final game at Shea (loss to Pitt), but the fun part was at game's end when security tried to drive off fans who swarmed onto the field....fans however started gaining in numbers--and attitude--to the point where they started tearing up the field and pelting security who then bid a hasty retreat--lol. .
