‘The First Time’ With Michael Strahan
Michael Strahan sat down for this latest episode of Rolling Stone’s The First Time to share a number of firsts, including starting his apparel line ‘MSX by Michael Strahan,’ acting in a movie (Magic Mike XXL), and how he first came up with his recent April Fools’ Day prank.
The Good Morning America co-host kicked off the interview with what it was like joining the show. “My first time hosting Good Morning America was even more frightening than hosting [Live with Kelly]; more frightening than hosting Fox NFL Sunday; more frightening than playing in the Super Bowl to be honest with you, because it was completely, completely out of what I felt like my skill set was,” says Strahan. “I was not familiar with the news business whatsoever. So to be put in that world, I felt like a fish out of water.”
The former NFL star then touched on his football career, sharing what it was like playing in his first NFL game. “It wasn’t good. I was scared. I was overwhelmed,” he recalls. “It was like the world was moving fast around me and I’m literally just watching it go and not understanding what I was doing.
“I had no idea what I was doing,” Strahan adds with a laugh. “And I’m also watching guys who I watched on TV and I’m on the field with them to the point where it’s like one of those movies where they put a uniform on you, you wake up and you’re in the middle of a game and you have to look and go, ‘Why do I have a uniform on?’”
Strahan, who spent his entire 15-year career with the New York Giants, recalled his experience winning his first and only Super Bowl — Super Bowl 42 — back in 2008, when the Giants defeated the New England Patriots 17-14. “I will never forget the energy and the excitement and the joy and the confetti, the bright lights and how happy everybody was,” Strahan says. “It was one of the best moments — the best professional moment — of my life.”
He recalled sacking former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in that game for a big stop that helped the Giants solidify their win. “I’ll never forget charging off the line,” says Strahan. “Got a great jump on the ball. Tom sees me [and starts] trying to get away. And I’m like, ‘I can’t let Tom Brady outrun me.’ So I dove around the waist and I do what we call the gator tackle. Down goes Brady. I stand up [and] flex on him. Yeah, we did that.”
Strahan also shared what it was like starting his own apparel line, MSX by Michael Strahan, and his first time seeing the clothing in a store. “I will never forget that surprised look on the guy’s face when I walked into the store to straighten out my own display,” says Strahan with a laugh. “Every time I see the clothing… or I see a display or somebody wearing it… it blows me away. It really does, because I appreciate the support and the fact that people actually like it and they buy it with their hard earned money. So I’m grateful for that.”
The ever-expanding workleisure line, MSX by Michael Strahan, is now available at Men’s Wearhouse and Moore’s Clothing for Men stores nationwide and online at MSXbyMichaelStrahan.com.
