Drew Brees donates $200G to help fix Sandy-damaged homes: Report

Drew Brees might have a short memory when it comes to putting aside an interception or sack during a game but, when it comes to doing good deeds, the New Orleans Saints quarterback has an elephant's recollection.

Because of Brees' selective memory, about 20 Long Island families have been able to rebuild their Sandy-damaged homes because of a donation from the NFL star, according to Newsday.

Brees and his wife, Brittany, made a $200,000 donation through their Dream Foundation to assist Long Beach residents in storm recovery, the United Way of Long Island announced Thursday.

"Brees was inspired by the outpouring of generosity from Long Islanders after Hurricane Katrina flooded the city of New Orleans and was happy to return the kindness during Long Island's time of need," according to a statement from United Way of Long Island.

The payback grant to the United Way helped rebuild the Long Beach homes damaged by wind and floods from the storm over two years ago.

The United Way used funding directly from Brees' donation to build a new roof and replace gutters, Sheetrock and insulation to the home of area family.

"None of this would be helpful without your help," Madeline Benegas said in a statement released by the United Way.

The United Way of Long Island was also assisted in Sandy recovery by the United Way of Southeast Louisiana and United Way Worldwide, Long Island President and CEO Theresa Regnante said.

"We needed a Saint and we are very grateful for the Saint from New Orleans who came to our aid," Regnante said in a statement.

Brees just might have also picked up a few more fans to go with the lifted spirits.

Rutgers will let 22 kids affected by Hurricane Sandy play in final minutes of spring football game

Rutgers football is putting a new twist on giving back to their young fans in surrounding communities affected by Hurricane Sandy in a effort to raise funds as well as spirits.

Twenty-two children from sixth through eighth grade will have the opportunity to play the final five minutes of the team's Scarlet-White spring football game on April 27 in High Points Solutions Stadium, according to the Rutgers football website.

 It will not be an exhibition-style finish, either. According to the school, the last five minutes — with the children playing flag football — will have an impact on the final score.

Rutgers is asking kids who were affected by Hurricane Sandy to submit a short essay or photos through the Rutgers Football Facebook page. The 22 children selected to participate will get to spend the entire second half on the sideline of their respective team before hitting the field for the final five minutes.

RED ALERT: 22 kids who were impacted by Sandy will play in the final 5 minutes of the Scarlet-White game. bit.ly/17sV0HV
— Rutgers Football (@RFootball) April 11, 2013

Rutgers Athletics, with the help of Scarlet Fever in downtown New Brunswick, has raised more than $140,000 through the sale of merchandise to benefit the Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund since last fall. The Rutgers team will also wear jerseys for the spring game with 90 names of towns across New Jersey that were affected by Hurricane Sandy. They will also wear special helmets with the "R Strong" logo on the sides.

It sounds like a win-win-win situation for the N.J. state university, the kids and all of the towns still picking up the pieces from the devastating storm.

Rick Porcello gives up No. 48 to Torii Hunter in exchange for Hurricane Sandy donation

Something has to give when a respected veteran major league player is traded to a team and the uniform number he has worn for 16 years is already on the back on one of his new teammates.  Usually it ends up costing someone a nice dinner or maybe even a new car.

What happened when former Los Angeles Angels outfielder Torii Hunter called his new teammate Rick Porcello last week to tell him he wanted the Detroit Tigers pitcher's No. 48 probably cost more than a new pickup truck, but  — besides the cherished number — what it paid back in good karma and helping people in need is priceless.

In a gesture, that has to go down as one of the best-intentioned number-swapping stories in MLB history, Porcello readily agreed to giving up his No. 48 under the condition that Hunter — who wore the number since coming up with the Twins — donate money to relief from Hurricane Sandy.

Call it a jersey for Jersey.

Porcello — a homegrown New Jersey baseball star at Seton Hall Prep — still has an off-season home in the state he calls "my home."

"Being from New Jersey, I've been looking at opportunities to help," the 24-year-old Porcello told The New York Daily News. "I've seen the impact the storm had, the devastation it caused.  I wanted to make some difference and when Torri made his offer, this was definitely one way.  We're putting something together for the relief efforts and I'm going to be giving back as well."

Porcello — who will be wearing his old high school No. 21 from now on — said Hunter made what was "a very generous" monetary offer.

The righthander saw little action during the Tigers' recent World Series run but Porcello has seen a lot of the destruction left behind in his home state by the superstorm.  The image of the Seaside Heights roller coaster sitting in the ocean is one he can't shake off.

"Anybody's who's been down there, that will be burned into people's minds for a long time," he said.  "It'll take a lot to bring it back."

Mark Sanchez views Sandy's damage at Jersey Shore

Mark Sanchez took time off before the New York Jets play the Seattle Seahawks to hop on a helicopter and see the devastation left by Hurricane Sandy first hand.

According to the Ocean County Police Blotter's Facebook page, the Jets quarterback teamed up with Cincinnati Reds rookie Todd Frazier and went to Toms River, N.J. Tuesday to meet with first responders and survey some of the damage along the Jersey Shore.

"I just did my best to take it all in, give myself some perspective on life," Sanchez said after the flyover.  "To me, my life is 3-5 and trying to fight through it and win games for the New York Jets, but there's also so much more. [I wanted to] stay positive with those guys and know through times of adversity, this is a strong state, a strong tri-state area that can bond together.

"It was inspiring.  It was pretty incredible to see some of the effects of the hurricane," said Sanchez. "We landed in Lakewood and did a flyover by the Jersey Shore by the boardwalk, saw Seaside Heights and Lavalette, the roller coaster in the water.  It looks just awful."

Sanchez's aerial view with the Ocean County Police gave him a chance to see turmoil a lot worse than a quarterback controversy or locker room dysfunction.

"We were flying over it and some of the guys were in tears, saying, ' Man, that's our life, we can't go back to that for another eight months.'  And they were going to get up the next morning and keep trying to fix it."

Say what you will about Sanchez's play on the field, but he has always upped his game as a citizen. Before Sanchez took the time to lend a hand, the Garden State homeowner tweeted he was on his way to help "fellow NJ residents."

Cancer survivor Herzlich hopes Giants start inspires storm victims

New York Giants linebacker Mark Herzlich will be making his first start of the season — replacing Chase Blackburn at middle linebacker — when his team faces off against the Pittsburgh Steelers at MetLife Stadium.

Herzlich's start — the third of his pro career — would not be so noteworthy if it were not for the circumstances surrounding Sunday's game.

Herzlich, an undrafted free agent who was signed by the Giants last year, is a cancer survivor who hopes the sight of him on the field can become an inspiration to all of the area residents who are still coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy's destructive path.

"It's about not giving up," Herzlich told The New York Post.  "That was my biggest thing.  I had to set a goal, and I had to stick to that goal — it was coming back and playing football again and being healthy.  And beating cancer.  And doing something people told me I couldn't do."

In 2009,  Herzlich was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, right after he was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year while he was at Boston College.  Months of soul-draining radiation and chemotherapy treatments forced Herzlich to put his dream of playing in the NFL on hold or, in a worst case scenario, out of his reach.

Last season, his first with the Giants, Herzlich started two games before an ankle injury sidelined him for the rest of the year which, ironically, brought Blackburn back to the team.

Herzlich ignored the naysayers and continued to pursue his dream.

"For people fighting cancer, that's very easy to relate to, because so many times you get told, 'You have cancer' ... kind of, 'You're screwed' ... What next? Your life is over.  And that's not the way it is.  And I think that for everybody around here recently, the main thing is the hurricane.  They have houses wiped out ... trains not running, nothing's working, no one has gas.  Now what do I do with my life?"

Emotions should be running high at MetLife Stadium as fans struggle to make it out to East Rutherford by any means possible.  The Giants players said their hearts and minds will be with the victims digging out of the storm.

"Set that goal and keep pushing towards it and you'll come out," said Herzlich.  "Your attitude will determine how you come out.

Lately, words have been thrown around like storm tossed boats during Sandy's wrath.   Herzlich is the physical embodiment that proves stricken residents will survive and go on when it is all said and done.

'Melo Anthony gives NYC fans a pep talk before Knicks beat Heat

A sports team's season debut should never be this dramatic.  And for the New York Knicks, this wasn't even supposed to be their 2012 season opener and it almost wasn't — again.

Friday night's Knicks game against the Miami Heat became the first major sporting event in New York since superstorm Sandy hit the area on Monday.

The Knicks already had their first game of 2012 against the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center postponed Thursday because of Sandy and there was still debate whether or not Friday's game should have been played either. At game time, there were still millions of people in the area still without power, water or gas.

The Knicks knew of the controversy and its star player ''Melo Anthony' — as he was called by the announcer — hoped the team could provide some sort of brief distraction from the destruction outside the refurbished Madison Square Garden by going on with the game.

'Melo — backed by his teammates — put the controversy on his shoulders, stepped out to center court before the tip-off and gave the near-capacity crowd a heartfelt pre-game speech that was short and sweet, but got a message across.

In his unscripted pep talk, Anthony told the fans thank you as they roared with appreciation, and later gave them something to cheer about after the Knicks routed the Heat, 104-84.

Call it a 'Melo-drama.

"Thank you for coming out in hard times and supporting the New York Knicks.  This is the most important time for the City of New York to come together and help rebuild this city back up."

After leading the Knicks to the resounding win, Anthony (30 points, 10 rebounds) said he wanted to let the fans know, in person,  that the Knicks players care about their plight.

"It was something I wanted to do," Anthony said.  "They rarely hear from us about how we feel in situations like this.  It was only right, me being one of the leaders on this team, to step up and give the fans some words."

Anthony's "words" went a long way in suggesting to stricken residents — still trying to pick themselves up after the storm — that the path to recovery starts with getting back to normal routines.

Maybe an NBA game won't bring lights or water to the residents still pleading for help, but it is a sign that things will return to the way they were.

Pretty inspiring all around.

Goodell checked with NJ Gov. Christie about playing Giants-Steelers game

New Jersey and the storm-ravaged tri-state area is still reeling from the effects of the Hurricane Sandy but MetLife Stadium has been given the okay to host the Giants-Steelers game this Sunday by none other than state Gov. Chris Christie himself.

A Sports Illustrated report said that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell contacted Christie Thursday to make sure holding the 4:25 p.m. game would not divert resources away from Sandy relief efforts.  Christie confirmed that it would not and gave his blessing, reports The Star-Ledger.

Christie "was pleased the game is being played," NFL Greg Aiello wrote in an e-mail message, and that "the Giants and the NFL will be saluting first responders at the game and contributing $1 million plus extensive promotional time on all out games to the Red Cross for the relief effort."

While the debate continues over New York City's plan to hold the ING New York City Marathon on Sunday and the Knicks-Heat game at Madison Square Garden Friday night, the course of action at MetLife Stadium was to play the game as scheduled.

The NFL determined that there was no significant damage to the stadium and kept in touch with local authorities, said an NFL spokes person.

Goodell reached out to Christie during the rescue and relief efforts and it was agreed that the game would not be moved despite statewide power outages and gas shortages.

Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw said he thinks fans need something to "spark New York" after all the devastation.

"Hopefully, we can take care of New York," he said, "And it will be a good Sunday for everybody."

NYC politician calls mayor's refusal to cancel marathon 'idiotic'

The number of New Yorkers calling for Mayor Michael Bloomberg to call off Sunday's ING New York City Marathon in the wake of Hurricane Sandy is growing.

Staten Island,  one of the hardest hit areas in New York City and the starting point for the 26.2-mile race, is still cleaning up their storm-ravaged neighborhoods and the anger in the crippled borough is so high, a local councilman has called the mayor's refusal to call off the race "idiotic" on his Facebook page.

"The notion of diverting even one police officer, one first responder, one asset away from this carnage is beyond irrational," Councilman James Oddo told The New York Daily News.

Staten Island is the scene of some of the most tragic stories and images to come out of the devastating storm.  Just yesterday, two young brothers' bodies were found, after they were swept away from their mother, and numerous photos of trapped residents being rescued from their homes on the South Shore were all over the news.  Residents are still pleading for help from the city.

The thought of tents, food, water and generator-supplied power catering to the perky 47,000 runners at the marathon's starting line — while despondent people go cold, wet and without power nearby — is just one reason Staten Island residents are joining a "Boycott the 2012 NYC Marathon."

Bloomberg, meanwhile, held firm on holding the race.

"This city is a city where we have to go on."

"Keep in mind by Sunday we'll have electricity back downtown," he said.  "That will free up an enormous number of police.  Also, a lot of the transportation needs that we have during the week aren't there on the weekends."

A lot of the registered participants, who have trained for the race, are having second thoughts about running through a course with a backdrop of destruction and despair.

The New York Road Runners Facebook page has been filling up with requests to cancel this year's race — or at least postpone it.

The NYRRC has promised to donate $1 million to the Sandy relief.

Ironically, the runners will begin their run with a carnival-like start at the entrance to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, then jog forward into Brooklyn leaving their disposable clothing and empty water bottles amongst the destruction Sandy left behind.

Maybe some will look back over their shoulders.

Dwyane Wade is upset about Heat playing Knicks during hurricane cleanup

Dwyane Wade and his Miami Heat teammates had a hard time getting into Manhattan Thursday night and the team saw first-hand the residual effects of Hurricane Sandy's damage to the city and how the storm has basically crippled all modes of transportation.

The All-Star guard tweeted that he wasn't too happy about the team's lengthy commute into the city for Friday night's game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

"3 hour traffic just to get into the NY city ... C'mon Man..."

While the unexpected three-hour tour of the wounded city was an inconvenience, Wade later sounded like the thing that really peeves him is the fact that Friday night's game would still be played at all.

Wade tweeted that he loves playing in New York but his heart was with anyone coping with the mess Sandy left behind.

"I luv playing in the garden but cnt do nothing but think abt all the families that don't have power, food, water etc... ths is a tragic hit 4 ths gr8 city"

The Brooklyn Nets postponed Thursday's season-opening game against the Knicks at the Barclays Center because the storm knocked out most means of transportation.

The Garden might be all bright lights and beer on Friday night but, Wade might like to know that only four blocks away from the arena, tens of thousands are still without power and water — and that doesn't include the hundreds of thousands without homes in the tri-state area.

Steelers will fly into Newark on same day as Giants game due to Sandy

Hurricane Sandy will be affecting the Pittsburgh Steelers' travel schedule to MetLife Stadium for Sunday's game against the New York Giants.

The team will leave Pittsburgh on Sunday morning — a day later than it normally would — for the 4:25 p.m. start time and return to Pittsburgh right after the game Sunday night.  The team was booked to stay at the Westin Hotel in Jersey City Saturday night but the hotel is still without power due to the storm — and they can't find any rooms in the area to accomodate the team.

It's basically a 400-mile work commute for the Steelers who will be bussed to the stadium after breakfast, then fly another 400 miles back to Pittsburgh after the game ends.

New Jersey residents affected by Sandy have been grabbing any extra hotel rooms they can find and combined with the New York Marathon bringing an extra 50,000 visitors to the area, it's no surprise the Steelers couldn't find any other accommodations.

The Giants had logistical problems of their own this week due to the storm and didn't have a chance to practice until late Wednesday afternoon.  Some players without power in their New Jersey homes have been bunking at teammates' houses for the duration of the blackouts.

Whether or not the Steelers short road trip disrupts the visiting players pre-game routines and sleep patterns seems likely.  How it affects the Steelers on the field Sunday against the defending champs will remain to to be seen.

The Giants were 3-1/2 point favorites.  I wonder if the spread will change?

Giants' Cruz: Hurricane power outage 'feels like 1990'

Hurricane Sandy has left huge chunks of New Jersey and New York without power and the New York Giants have been affected as much as anyone else.

On Wednesday, Giants players had their first practice since Sunday night's physically draining 29-24 victory over the Cowboys in Dallas.  The slightly altered session was held in the late afternoon instead of the morning to give assistant coaches — who lost power — more preparation time.

The Giants team been improvising since Sandy left a path of destruction across most of New Jersey — where most of the players and coaches live — by bunking together or, in some cases, reverting back to childhood.

Giants wideout receiver Victor Cruz had one of the funniest lines regarding his new lifestyle adjustment.

"We don't have any cable or Internet right now,' Cruz said of his family house's situation, joking, "It just feels like 1990 all over again."

While Cruz's circumstances take him back to being a five-year-old Paterson, N.J. kid — and his biggest problem probably being whether or not to watch Urkel on "Family Matters" or the Olsen twins (years before they became goth-looking millionaires) on "Full House" —  for some players it was more serious.

Giants like Tight end Martellus Bennett and his wife decided to move in with a teammate as Big Blue prepares to host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

"I actually stayed at Kevin Boothe's house," said Bennett.  "They had power, we didn't have power, so we went over there."

"It was great having [Martellus]," said Boothe.  "My son loves him.  He thought Martellus was there solely to play with him."

While Boothe's hospitality was evident, some Giants cherish their privacy and weren't so accommodating.

"They can't stay with me," gruffed Jason Pierre-Paul half-kidding.  "I don't like to see 'em after work."

Meanwhile, the salsa-dancing Cruz summed up the mood around Giants practice by paraphrasing head coach Tom Coughlin.

"As Coach Coughlin says, "It's a mid-stream adjust," said Cruz.  "So we have to be able to mid-stream adjust to these things and learn how to prepare throughout any circumstances.  Because I guess it's just the nature of the beast.  But as the term says, the show must go on.  We've got to be ready to play."

Funny, I remember those words coming from Luther or Dauber on that 1990 TV show "Coach."

Eli Manning's flood photo creates meme sensation

The photograph of Eli Manning snapping a picture of the flooded lobby of his Hoboken, N.J. apartment complex during Hurricane Sandy was all over the Internet and has now spawned a site where people can use Easy E's image in a meme.

Deadspin.com has launched a new Tumblr page called "Eli Manning Looking At Things" with the image of the dorky-looking New York Giants quarterback — wearing a red T-shirt and dark sweatpants — in the middle of everything from a bullfight to Derek Jeter lying on the infield after he broke his ankle during the ALCS.

It's hilarious.

The site has even added a cutout of the awkwardly nonchalant Manning pose to make creating your own meme image (some Photoshop skills necessary) easier.

Got to thank Deadspin for helping New Yorkers and Jerseyites get a little laugh from the aftermath of the storm.  Every little bit helps.

New York City Marathon could become obstacle course

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the ING New York City Marathon will be taking place this Sunday. The biggest challenge for participants might not be the actual 26.2-mile run — but the logistical obstacles facing the runners who are lucky enough to even make it to New York — since the storm has passed.

The mayor of battered New York, Michael Bloomberg, and marathon organizers both say the race is on — but with the possibility of a few changes from past races.

"It will go on as normal," said Bloomberg Tuesday. "As of now."

Forget the flooded, garbage strewn and tree-littered streets which runners may sporadically encounter during the five borough course.  Organizers are dealing with the logistical nightmare of flying 20,000 runners from around the world into already backed up New York airports and coming up with a way to transport the 47,000 runners to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge starting line with limited mass transit and  road access.

With the restoration of scheduled flights to local airports starting again and the New York City transit system hoping to have service suitably restored by Saturday — runners will have a fat man's chance of starting and finishing the famed race.

If runners have to dodge giant puddles, tree limbs and garbage,  this year's race could resemble some sort of urban steeplechase more than just a long distance run.

"The marathon has always been a special day for New Yorkers as a symbol of the vitality and resiliency of this city," said New York Road Runners President Mary Wittenberg in a statement.  "We will keep all options open with regard to making any accommodation and adjustments necessary to race day and race weekend events."

Getting out of town runners into New York, with three full days before the start on Sunday, is doable but getting the runners to Staten Island Sunday morning could take a lot more skillful planning.

Nearly half of the entrants take the Staten Island Ferry and the others mostly take buses through the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel.  Both have been closed due to the flooding.  Normally city municipal departments lend a hand in clearing roads and help in getting runners to their destinations with police escorts but, under the circumstances, city workers have more pressing needs.

"The city is rightfully focused on assessment, restoration and recovery," said Wittenberg.

Runners who can't make it to New York have until Saturday instead of Wednesday to withdraw from the race.  They won't get a refund and will have to pay to keep their reserved spot in 2013.

Any runner who has hit the wall should be able to deal with a few pre-race nuisances and — even while coping with their own post-storm miseries — New Yorkers will still be out in force to cheer them on — maybe not as many as in the past.

Nets-Knicks 'subway rivalry' tip-off game will go on as scheduled despite no trains

It's been 55 years since Brooklyn had its own professional team to call its own and it's going to take more than Hurricane Sandy to delay the regular season debut of the Brooklyn Nets in the new Barclays Center.

After a couple of days of mulling over its options, the NBA announced last night that Thursday's season opener against the New York Knicks will go on as scheduled, despite the havoc wreaked across  New York City by the storm Monday night.

The league considered postponing the much anticipated match-up after New York's subway system was left in ruins and roads and tunnels were flooded and covered in debris.  Mass transportation has been suspended indefinitely and may take another three or four days before service is completely restored, said MTA officials.

The $1 billion Barclays Center was spared any wind or water damage but there is no subway service to the area because of flooded tunnels.  The arena cancelled concerts by Journey and Smashing Pumpkins on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

The question remains whether or not it was wise to hold the game while the city picks up after the intense storm.  Barclays Center officials sold the idea of the venue to fans on the premise of convenient subway access to the arena but — with power outages scattered around the city and all 11 subway lines and the Long Island Railroad linking the arena closed — getting to the Barclays Center will be a trek.

The Knicks practiced Tuesday in Westchester after taking Monday off due to the storm. The Nets' New Jersey practice facility was without power both Monday and Tuesday and the players didn't work out.  The team will practice at the Barclays Center on Wednesday.

While water from Sandy may have overrun the streets surrounding Brooklyn and the Barclays Center, it remains to be seen if it's Knicks or Nets fans who flood the stands inside.

Nets-Knicks opener in jeopardy because of Sandy

The Brooklyn Nets regular season debut in their spanking new arena is in jeopardy because of superstorm Sandy which wreaked destruction on most of the eastern seaboard.

The Nets were set to host the New York Knicks in their new cross-city rivalry on Thursday at the Barclays Center but the league is considering postponing the game while New York City picks up the pieces of the devastating storm.

"Tonight's games will be played," Tim Frank, the NBA's vice-president of communications, told the New York Times.  "We are still assessing the situation with regards to the rest of the week."

Right now, the post-storm situation suggests it would be sensible to put Hello Brooklyn on hold.

As of Tuesday morning, parts of Brooklyn — along with sections of every other borough — have been flooded while huge sections of the city still remain without power.  All New York City tunnels have been closed and service on all subway and LIRR train lines have been suspended.  The extent of the water damage from flooding to rail lines is still up for debate but it seems unlikely the lines will be up and running normally in two days.

"Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc on our entire transportation system, in every borough and county of the region," Metropolitan Transportation Authority chairman Joeseph Lhota said on Tuesday.

The highly-anticipated matchup drove ticket prices to playoff-like levels but Bloomberg Businessweek reported that prices are dropping because of Frankenstorm.

The next Nets home game will be Saturday against the Toronto Raptors.

The Knicks opening season game Friday at Madison Square Garden against the Miami Heat is also looking at postponement.