TIKI ENJOYS HAWAII TRIP
Weeks before heading to Honolulu, Tiki Barber said jokingly that he planned on attending Pro Bowl practices drinking a Mai Tai. It probably won’t come to that this week, but he might come close.
Barber was adamant about enjoying himself to the hilt as he prepared for the final football game of his life. Sure, his Giants career ended Jan. 7 with a 23-20 playoff loss to the Eagles in Philadelphia. No doubt, that’s how Giants fans will remember Barber’s swan song. He’ll never again put on a Giants uniform, but Saturday night he will don the jersey of the NFC squad and compete in the Pro Bowl at Aloha Stadium.
“I got off the plane, got a lei, got a kiss, and I knew the next 10 days of my life would be beautiful,” Barber told NFL.com upon arriving in Hawaii. “While I’ll miss the season, the guys, the competition, coming out here and playing the Pro Bowl, I’m ready for it. So I’m not really sad. It’s a celebration in many ways.”
Barber will be reunited with twin brother, Ronde, who also is on the NFC side, representing the Buccaneers at cornerback. Most likely, Tiki Barber will receive more publicity and playing time than his previous two Pro Bowl appearances. His impending retirement (he’ll file the necessary paperwork following this game) attracted national attention.
After 10 years with the Giants, Barber leaves the game as the 17th leading rusher in NFL history with 10,449 yards. He also holds virtually every Giants rushing record.
“It’s exciting, really, because I had a great career and it ended on my terms,” Barber said. “I wasn’t carried off the field on a stretcher. I didn’t sustain a major injury that prevented me from doing what I love to do. Now I get to do something else.”
Sometime next week, Barber, 31, will announce whether ABC or NBC won the bidding for his services for his next career spanning news, entertainment and sports broadcasting.
“I’m in temporary retirement,” he said. “I’m not sitting on a hammock for the rest of my life.”
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It doesn’t appear there will be a problem generating interest for the Oct. 28 regular-season game in London featuring the Giants and Dolphins. More than 500,000 tickets were requested by about 160,000 fans in the three days after last Friday’s official announcement. The vast majority of the requests came from fans in England. Wembley Stadium will have a seating capacity of between 85,000 to 90,000.
