Packers’ Chris Gizzi Helped Heal Nation After 9-11

Today is a day that will live forever in infamy.

It’s a date that used to be just a simple set of numbers that were so benign they were never thought about once the day passed on the calendar.

Until one Tuesday in 2001, when the day became a historical event.

Exactly 24 years ago, a normal day in September became Sept. 11.

It’s a day that you remember exactly where you were when you heard the news.

Me? I was walking back into my fourth-grade classroom as my teacher was telling the rest of the class what was happening in New York City. The world, as I knew it, stood still. It was the first time in my life that I began to understand the world was much bigger than my small circle.

As the world permanently changed, the Green Bay Packers were supposed to be getting ready to play a game that Sunday at the New York Giants.

“We were planning for a road trip to New York and somebody down the hall says, ‘Hey, turn on the TVs. Something’s going on,’” Packers director of public affairs Aaron Popkey said. “Many of us did that, like everyone else in the country, just transfixed to these images out of New York.”

The scenes were ugly, and they still can conjure all the emotions that were felt in the moment.

Almost 3,000 people died during the attacks. When the NFL reopened for business, the Packers hosted Washington – the same team they will host on Thursday night. A country in need of healing found an unlikely hero.

Packers linebacker and Air Force Academy graduate Chris Gizzi.

“My first thought was what are we doing next for the Air Force? You just want to process that,” Gizzi told Packers On SI. “Connecting with friends, sometimes not connecting with friends, I think that was probably the toughest part.

“You’re thinking about people in New York or D.C., specifically, and the tensions were high. Decisions were made to cease game operations across all sports leagues to let everyone get back on their feet and get perspective on what has happened.”

Shortly after the attacks, the NFL announced it was ceasing game operations for at least the second week of the regular season. The rest of the season was also an uncertainty. In an unprecedented time, it was hard to think about anything beyond each minute.

As time went on, America had to move on.

“People looked up to the NFL to lead not just in the entertainment space, but in society,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said at the time.

The league decided that one week off was enough, and it was time to give a symbol of taking back our lives and not allowing the events of that day to define us.

“The mood leading up (to continuing game play) was one of respectful anticipation. We will not be defeated by this act. We need to reclaim our lives and things we enjoy and as a society we need to move forward,” Popkey said.

Thirteen days after the attacks, the Packers were scheduled to restart the season against Washington on Monday Night Football. It was the first nationally televised game since Sept. 11.

What happened next was something nobody could have foreseen.

Unless, of course, you’re Mike Sherman.

Gizzi was a linebacker for the Packers in 2001. He finished his career with 20 tackles and one forced fumble. He was mostly a special-teamer by trade.

Somehow, he became the most recognizable name in a game that included Brett Favre, Ahman Green, Champ Bailey and Bruce Smith. That’s three Hall of Famers and the Packers’ all-time leading rusher.

How did that happen?

Before Gizzi was an NFL player, he was at the Air Force Academy. He graduated in 1997 with aspirations of flying. Unfortunately, as Gizzi tells it, he did not have the eyes to fly, so he was forced to fly a desk.

He was a public-relations officer for the Air Force, and that job continued into his time as a professional football player. Gizzi’s off days included treatment and film study, but not before he was done with service work for the Air Force.

“It was a great job,” Gizzi said. “My Tuesdays in Green Bay, I would go to high schools, Rotary Clubs, anywhere I could help out. I would put my uniform on, my service dress and that would be my job for the day.”  

Of course, one Tuesday would turn out drastically different than all the others he’d experienced.

Gizzi was set to serve the Air Force on Tuesday, Sept. 11, when a thought ran through his mind.

“I was at home and I rarely turn on the TV, but something compelled me to, and I flipped it on. Immediately it [news of the attacks] was on the screen,” Gizzi said.

“I usually would head into the facility sometime later in the morning. You still get ready for the week ahead. I knew something, obviously, as soon as the second plane hit, you’re listening to what everyone has to say.”

If things were uncertain for NFL players, things were even more uncertain for those who were in the military. Gizzi wasn’t sure what to do, but he knew he had to support his teammates in the locker room and in the military.

“The words from my commanding officer was your role and no words you do are less important. Your job is to play games on Sunday and you practice on other days of the week and Tuesday you serve the Air Force,” Gizzi said.

As the NFL went back to business as usual, Sherman came up with an idea that shaped how the night continues to be viewed.

Sherman, knowing Gizzi’s background, asked if Gizzi would lead the team onto the field. Gizzi agreed, and what happened next was something none of us will forget.