‘Looking Back, I am Glad We Played’

Stuyvesant High, blocks from the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, finished its football season in 2001 under dour circumstances. Was the attempt at normalcy worth it?

The football season began with a victory for the Peglegs of Stuyvesant High School. A team laden with seniors and playoff expectations downed a tough rival from Staten Island in the season’s first game, played on the warm afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 8, 2001. Three days later came the terrifying tragedy that changed the world and left an indelible emotional mark on the students at Stuyvesant and their football team. Stuyvesant sits just a scant few blocks from the World Trade Center. So close that the 10-story school building shook as the hijacked jets sliced into the twin towers. So close that some students feared they would be crushed if the buildings fell.