LI fans' hopes dashed as Jets lose

Robert Tromp of Rocky Point is just a little too young to remember Joe Namath's Jets and their improbable Super Bowl run in 1968, and every season he nervously waits to see if his beloved team will finally bring their fans another magical year.

Tromp, who was 5 when the Jets won their last Super Bowl that season, will have to wait at least one more year.

"It was a very good season but it didn't end good," he said. "As usual."

Tromp and thousands of Long Islanders who filled bars, restaurants, house parties and even some corners of Pittsburgh's Heinz Field were disappointed Sunday night when the Steelers dropped the Jets, 24-19. The loss ended a successful year that included 11 regular-season wins and playoff victories over the rival New England Patriots and favored Indianapolis Colts.

For Roberta Teer of Commack, the loss ended a season of clinging to sports rituals, such as meticulously placing her stuffed Jets bear in "lucky" spots. Teer placed the bear all over her home - the den, a couch, even a closet - until it landed in its last position, the living room sofa.

"Where he is right now, he was there for the entire game last week," Teer said before kickoff. "It worked, he's staying."

After the loss, Teer said she retired the bear to a closet, though "it wasn't his fault."

Some fans turned to a higher power for help. Kelly Platt of Center Moriches began the day with a Facebook post of the Lord's Prayer, rewritten as a request for a Jets victory.

"Our Sanchez, who art in New Jersey, hallowed be thy arm," the prayer began, in reference to Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez.

At Social Sports Kitchen - a Uniondale restaurant owned by former Jets and Hofstra University wide receiver Wayne Chrebet - the game attracted a huge crowd. Close to 400 people filled the modest-sized restaurant by kickoff, said manager Rob Verderosa, who called the game "a huge, huge tremendous event" for Long Island fans.

In Pittsburgh, where Mike Stallone of Kings Park was among several Long Islanders cheering for their home team, the mood turned sour for the New Yorkers early as the Jets offense sputtered.

Stallone said the night began "optimistic" as "a lot of Jets fans" made the trip to Heinz Field.

He added: "You can see a lot of green filing in."

The Jets' loss also put an end to some retailers' hopes of capitalizing on Super Bowl fever. With a New York win, Modell's Sporting Goods would have opened more than 20 stores in the New York area - including nine on Long Island - to sell the first batch of "Jets AFC Champions" gear.

The Jets did not live up to that promise, but it was a great year anyway, said Verderosa.

"To be one game away from the Super Bowl is huge," he said.