The parking lot gates at MetLife Stadium would not open until 11 a.m. on Sunday, three hours before game time, but John Manoes and his buddies didn’t care. The Keansburg natives were up by 7 a.m., assembled at the local firehouse by 8 and in East Rutherford by 9:30, the first group in a long line of patrons ready to tailgate before the inaugural game for the local XFL team.
The team hasn’t even played a down and they already had a nickname for their fan club: The Guardian Gang.
It’s not the Dawg Pound of the Cleveland Browns or the Black Hole of the Oakland Raiders or the Seattle Seahawks’ 12th Man, but it’s not bad for a first try.
Still, after an impressive start to the fledgling league with two competitive games on Saturday, it was New Jersey’s turn to throw its arms open to yet another attempt to market to American fans a professional football league that didn’t contain the letters NFL, billionaire Vince McMahon’s latest attempt to get football junkies hooked right after the Super Bowl.
And the Guardians got a nice hug.
“We’re here for (Guardians starting quarterback) Matt McGloin,” the 24-year-old Manoes said. “He’s throwing for at least 300 yards today. And (head coach) Kevin Gilbride is a mastermind. Put that on tape.
"This is the house that Matt McGloin built.”
That last part might have been the alcohol talking.
They got what they wanted -- sort of. McGloin threw for 182 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions and scored the Guardians’ first touchdown in a 23-3 win over the Tampa Bay Vipers.
The Guardians converted on fourth-and-4 on their first drive, and when McGloin barreled into the end zone on a quarterback sneak from the 1-yard line, the lower bowl erupted and McGloin threw the ball deep into the crowd. Someday that ball might be worth ... well, who knows?
A group of New York Guardians fans, who named themselves the "Guardian Gang," pose outside the gates at MetLife Stadium.
Shortly after, Guardians safety Andrew Soroh intercepted a pass in the corner of the end zone, and he celebrated by leaping into the stands, letting those fired-up fans pat him on the helmet for a job well done.
“It was a great moment," Soroh said. "The crowd, they showed us a lot of love and I wanted to give them that love back. They didn’t have to be out there, but they were. We didn’t know what to expect, but it was a great turnout, lots of fans, they showed a lot of great energy and we fed off that.”
Football on the cheap
The NFL allegiances were mixed among the crowd. Was there an NFL team not represented? Giants, Jets, Eagles, Dolphins, Falcons, Packers, Steelers, Chiefs gear and more were sprinkled throughout the stands.
That will change by the next home game on Saturday, Feb. 29, given the long lines at every team merchandise stand in the stadium during halftime. The $25 hats, $35 T-shirts and $60 hoodies were flying off the shelves, with the $90 jerseys sold out in several concession stands.
It’s a chance for local fans, split among the Giants, Jets and Eagles, to come together as one.
“This way, we don’t yell at each other about the other team sucking,” said Derek Daroci, a Giants fan a few cars behind the Guardian Gang in the parking lot line early Sunday morning. He stood next to his friend, who was wearing a Jets jersey.
“I don’t have a local team, so that’s the Guardians now,” said Jason Dietz, a 40-year old Buffalo Bills fan from Old Bridge.
The ticket pricing might help fans come to love the new guys: It’s minor-league baseball prices, without personal seat licenses.
Mark Chrzanowski, a 55-year-old from Matawan, is a former New Jersey Generals season-ticket holder in the days of the USFL. He is back for another shot at spring football because, at $125 for a season ticket and $150 for parking for five games, the juice was worth the squeeze.
“We’ll come out a few games if the weather cooperates, have some fun,” he said.
A den of Vipers
Austin Clinger, a Tampa native who lives in Charlotte, N.C., was visiting a friend in Manhattan for the weekend. And since there’s never anything to do in the city, he dropped $25 to see his beloved Vipers.
“I’m the No. 1 Tampa Bay Vipers fan,” Clinger said. “I’ve never missed a game.”
That recycled joke was made at least 100 times on Sunday, usually among Guardians fans. Clinger’s description of the New York crowd -- he had never attended a professional football game here before Sunday -- was a bit more original.
“This is a more hostile environment than Rikers Island,” Clinger said. “It’s been an electric environment, the turnout has been amazing. The New York fans are New York fans. I feel like Santa Claus when he went to Philly.”
“It’s as advertised!" his friend Owen Loughlin added.
Clinger trash-talked with a group of Guardian fans seated a few rows in front of him. They’d turn around and flip him the bird, and he’d toss back a three-fingered salute he is hoping becomes the official hand signal of the Tampa Bay Vipers.
“I’m talking to management about it,” he joked.
That went on for a few minutes, prompting one fan a few rows up to scream, “Just fight already!”
One of the Guardians fans ripped off his shirt and walked menacingly toward the Vipers fans. Once he got up there, they exchanged more middle fingers and viper signals, and finally, a handshake.
Austin Clinger, a Tampa Bay Vipers fan, poses with what he hopes to make the official hand signal of the team during their 23-3 loss at MetLife Stadium to the New York Guardians in Week 1 of the XFL.
It’s just football
Once the game kicked off, the truth of it all was revealed -- it’s still football.
Yes, there were innovative rules, in-game interviews and lots of behind-the-scenes stuff, like a peek into the replay booth. But for all the extra-point options, the field is still 100 yards long. Ten yards earns a first down. And who knows what the heck constitutes pass interference?
There was a moment when a fan with no shirt, no shoes, no pants tried to streak across the field. He was stopped before he got out of the end zone as security guards made the best gang tackle of the day.
And to prove nothing has changed, the crowd left the lopsided game early to avoid traffic, with hordes of fans hitting the exits with six minutes to play.
The announced attendance was 17,634. MetLife Stadium holds more than 82,000.
Given the win and the atmosphere, Guardians coach Kevin Gilbride -- the guy who won two Super Bowl rings as the Giants offensive coordinator -- hopes they’ll be back just as early for Week 4′s matchup against the Los Angeles Wildcats.
“I think the (fans) that were here enjoyed themselves," Gilbride said. “They’ll be back.”
The Guardian Gang has already set their alarm clocks.
Brian Fonseca may be reached at bfonseca@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @briannnnf. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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