Since it’s Super Bowl Sunday, it only makes sense to post a story about the only Sachem alum to ever play in and win the big game, Jumbo Elliott.
Elliott, who graduated from Sachem in 1983, was an integral part of Super Bowl XXV and helped the Giants beat Buffalo.
Elliott, in his third year at the time, was tasked with lining up against future Hall of Famer Bruce Smith. Giants coach Bill Parcells assigned Lawrence Taylor to essentially fight Elliott in practice, while imitating Smith in various plays.
“I said, ‘Listen, I want you to get into a fight with Jumbo,’ ” Parcells told Taylor, as quoted in a recent article in Newsday. “ ‘It’s going to give me a chance to make a point with the team.’ ”
I give [Taylor] the wink, and he goes after him,’” Parcells told Newsday. “He’s yelling at LT . . . So I say, ‘Hey, Jumbo, maybe he’s just worried about Bruce Smith winning the Super Bowl for them.’ Jumbo said, ‘Don’t worry about Bruce Smith. I’ll take care of him.’ ”
The rest is history. Elliott and the Giants earned a Super Bowl ring and are celebrating the 25th anniversary of that magical moment this season.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro