FOX Big Noon Kickoff shares emotional reflections on 20th anniversary of September 11 attacks
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Saturday marks the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York City, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pa.
Across the country, college football teams will be remembering the events from 2001 and the lives of thousands lost on that day. They’ll also honor the military personnel and first responders called into action following the attacks.
The FOX “Big Noon Kickoff” crew of Rob Stone, Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, Brady Quinn and Bob Stoops is in Columbus on Saturday for Ohio State vs. Oregon, and they opened the show with a reflection on what happened that morning.
“We were shook—shook to the core,” Quinn said. “I don’t know anyone who wasn’t impacted in some fashion or form by what took place on 9/11. I think for me the thing that stood out was the horror, the terror, the incredible sadness you felt for it…But then those emotions transitioned into a call for action.”
Stoops recalled being with his Oklahoma coaching staff that day as they were getting ready for their upcoming game, as well as sending everyone home and canceling practice.
“Two weeks later, we’re getting ready to play Kansas State in (Memorial Stadium) and we’re doing what we do in America in the fall: We play football,” he said.
Leinart was a freshman at USC in 2001. As a fan of Mike Piazza, he remembered watching the Mets’ catcher’s memorable home run during their game against the Braves at Shea Stadium 10 days after the attacks.
“You just see the crowd, the emotion, the tears, and the joy of that moment,” Leinart added. “It really brought a grieving nation and a grieving city together, and it was a moment of healing, I thought, in that moment.”
Bush took a moment to honor the servicemen and servicewomen gathered to watch the show in person.
“It’s about the people, every last one of us,” he said. “Everybody that’s alive today right now, we are all honored to be here, we are all privileged to be able to be at this game right now, and to be alive…Let’s never forget.”
You can view the entire segment below:
"20 years ago today, the world changed for all of us."@RobStoneONFOX, @Brady_Quinn, @CoachBobStoops, @MattLeinartQB and @ReggieBush reflect on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. pic.twitter.com/BK5OI89La3
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 11, 2021
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
