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Jim Gehman
NYJETS.COM
CONTRIBUTOR
Thursday, Oct 10, 2019 08:00 AM
A person gets one chance to make a first impression.
Tom Tupa’s first impression on head coach Bill Parcells was
couldn’t have gone much better, and eventually – 11 seasons and four teams
later – led the quarterback/punter to join the Jets as a free agent in 1999.
“Coming out of (Ohio State in 1988), I took a few visits before
the Draft, and one was to the Giants. That’s when Parcells was there and we hit
it off pretty well,” Tupa said. “I ended up getting drafted to, at the time,
the Phoenix Cardinals. They were in the same division as the Giants, so I would
see him a couple times a year and we’d always talk before games.
“As I moved through my career (as a quarterback for the Cardinals
and then play almost exclusively as a punter with the other teams, I became a
free agent in 1996). Parcells was at New England and he signed me. We went to
the Super Bowl that first year, and then he ended up leaving and went to the
Jets.
“The following year when we played them, I was kind of giving
him some crap about signing me and then leaving. He was laughing and said,
‘Well, maybe one of these days I’ll see you again.’ Sure enough, when I became
a free agent from New England, I ended up signing back with him (and became a
Jet).”
Much like with Parcells,
Tupa made a good first impression with the Jets fans, when in his first game
with the Green & White, the 1999 season opener against the Patriots, he was
pressed into action at quarterback after Vinny Testaverde ruptured an Achilles
tendon in the second quarter.
“A rule was in place back then where they could save a roster
spot and add someone to it position-wise. So, I was always listed as the second
(quarterback),” Tupa said. “When he went down, I didn’t realize I was going to
be playing all that much. I thought I might go in for a few plays until they
got the next guy ready, Rick Mirer.”
Although Tupa had taken
snaps under center in practice running the scout team, he hadn’t attempted to
throw a pass during a game in three years. Playing quarterback until Mirer was
eligible to enter the game in the fourth quarter, Tupa completed 6 of 10 passes
for 165 yards and two touchdowns.
“Yeah, I ended up going in and things went pretty well there for
a while,” he said. “It was a little bit of a shock obviously; I’m not going to
lie. But I think overall, it went pretty well.”
While that went “pretty
well,” Tupa’s contribution as a punter went great. Averaging over 45 yards per
punt, he was named first-team All-Pro and selected to play in the Pro Bowl.
“I had a year or two in New England where I thought I may have
had a chance, but you come in second in the voting or whatnot. I just ended
having a pretty good year. A lot goes into that, obviously,” Tupa said. “The
long snapper, coverage teams, and all those sorts of things come into it. It
was just one of those years where you kind of got on a hot streak and it just
kept going game to game.”
With the Jets for three seasons, Tupa played for that many head
coaches: Parcells, Al Groh and Herm Edwards. What are his fondest memories from
those days?
“We had such a good group of guys there with Vinny (Testaverde)
and Wayne (Chrebet), Curtis Martin, Kevin Mawae,” Tupa said. “Unfortunately,
there were a couple bad instances. The worst one was we were there when 9/11
happened. That was one thing, our team going downtown and helping out with
whatever we could.
“As far as playing, I think one of the most memorable moments
was that ‘Monday Night Miracle’ game (in 2000) where we came all the way back
against Miami. Basically, the whole stands had emptied out because it was such
a deficit going into the fourth quarter, but we rallied back (by scoring 30 points
and won in overtime, 40-37).”
As part of the NFL 100
celebration, Tupa was named to the Jets’ all-time team, which will be honored
during a pregame ceremony when New York hosts the Dallas Cowboys on October 13.
“I think that’s special when the fans appreciate what you were
able to do for the team,” Tupa said. “Coming from the fans, that’s pretty
special. It’s a great honor. I’m glad that they acknowledged what I was able to
do for the team and what the team did for me. I’m pretty proud of that.”
Tupa is also proud that
he was able to play 17 seasons in the NFL from 1988-04; with the Jets,
Cardinals, Colts, Browns, Patriots, Buccaneers and Redskins.
Whomever said, ‘You can’t go home again’ wasn’t talking to Tupa.
Because following his playing days, he and his family made their way back to
his hometown of Brecksville, Ohio, where he has been the city’s director of
recreation since 2006.
“I always wanted to coach the kids as they were coming up
through the little leagues and high school,” Tupa said. “So, when I moved back
here, the mayor asked if I wanted this job. I told him my first thing was that
I wanted to be able to coach my kids. And he said, ‘No problem.’
“That kind of sealed the deal right there. I was able to coach
the kids all the way through high school. Those moments are obviously something
we’ll never forget.”
Tupa and his wife, Beth, have four children. Tom, who works in
the San Francisco 49ers scouting department. Tim, who works in the Los Angeles
Chargers scouting department. Tyler, a redshirt junior wide receiver at Ohio
University. And Emma, a sophomore at Ohio University, who plays on the
volleyball team.
