By Brian Bohl

A record crowd of 10,500 people jammed the University’s north campus, reveling in a historic moment taking place just steps away from the residence halls and Student Center.

Brett Favre’s Aug. 9 debut in a Jets uniform caused the crowd to start near the University Club, snaking all the way around to the barricade by the east end zone.

Some vantage points by the fence ran five-people deep and drew national media attention. But while that day proved to be a fresh start for the Jets organization, it also marked an ending: representing the last big event the Jets enjoyed as a member of the University community.

Before the start of the first week of classes, moving trucks packed up Weeb Ewbank Hall and shifted the team’s headquarters to a $75-million complex in Florham Park, N.J.

The move to a new 27-acre property ended the Jets 40-year association with the University, where the club has set up its headquarters since 1968, and also housed the Jets’ prized possession: the championship trophy from Super Bowl III. Now the only things remaining for local fans are memories.

“Going to the Jets camp every summer at least once a year was just part of my summer ritual,” said Chris Testa, from Massapequa. “It’s already bad enough the Jets don’t play in New York. Now they move their camp out of Hofstra. It feels like any little piece of the Jets that us New Yorkers held on to is now gone.”

That hardware moved across the George Washington Bridge along with players, coaches, staff and everything else not nailed down. All Jets players had high praise for the Atlantic Health Training Center, which nearly doubled the practice space.

It’s not exactly the Dodgers hopping on a cross-country flight and leaving Brooklyn in its rear-view mirror. But Long Island-based fans weren’t as thrilled about losing a key sports link.

“I realize that the facilities will be more up to date and larger, but I guess it shows how out of touch the organization is,” said Matthew Schwartz, a 22-year-old Nassau County resident and recent NYU graduate. “The majority of its fan base is on the Island. The team has a history with Long Island that had slowly been dying. The glory days of the Jets are in Shea and on Long Island.”

Just like when the Jets left Shea Stadium before the 1984 season for the bigger Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., the current move to New Jersey is also about acquiring additional space. The new facility includes an 11,000-square-foot weight room, five full-length practice fields, 60 televisions and 10 meeting rooms, according to the Associated Press.

Spanning 218,000 square feet and covering two floors, the training center also includes two cafeterias and a 161-seat auditorium. Conversely, the Jets former training center right off was 9.3 acres and was chided by some players as being below average among other NFL teams.

“You feel like you’re part of the NFL now,” said one player to the Star-Ledger, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Hofstra had to be the worst facility in the league.”

Added receiver Jerricho Cotchery: “You can find big screens everywhere: the weight room, walking down the hall…everywhere, [it’s] like a players’ lounge.”

Not all members of the organization were celebrating the move away from the University. Head coach Eric Mangini, who was a Jets assistant coach from 1997-99 with then-head coach Bill Parcells, said the team’s last practice at the University held Aug. 26 was a special occasion.

“I had a lot of great experiences here,” he said. “My first practices as a defensive coach were here. Then coming back as a head coach, six years for me now, half of this year we’ll be in New Jersey, but it’s been a really long and a very instrumental time in my career. It’s a special place.

“I have really enjoyed Long Island. I enjoyed it for not just a business perspective or a professional side, but from a family side. We lived in Garden City. My kids went to the Hofstra Day Care, which is the best, not that I have that much experience, but the quality of teachers there. [It’s] a great group of people.”

Following Favre’s acquisition, the Jets averaged more than 7,000 fans a practice. Over the past two summers, the average was fewer than 3,000, still a decent turnout by NFL averages. The Jets will now hope history is on its side. Its first season at the University ended with the franchise’s lone title in 1968. Now, it’s hoping its last summer in New York will culminate with another championship.

“The Jets have been here for 40 years. Obviously, there’s a lot of historical presence here,” said rookie linebacker Vernon Gholston, who finished his first professional training camp at the University. “I think it’s good for us to get a new facility, have the chance to expand what we can do inside. Hopefully, it looks good for us.”

Previous training camp sites included the University of New Hampshire (1960), Bear Mountain, N.Y. (1961), East Stroudsburg State College in Pennsylvania (1962) and Peekskill, N.Y. (1963-67), according to the AP. Jets owner Woody Johnson said the team will return to Long Island at least once next summer, leaving open the possibility that the annual green-and-white scrimmage could still be held at the University’s Shuart Stadium.

“I can’t thank them enough, the fans for coming out, the people that we’ve met in Long Island,” Mangini said. “It’s been a really positive experience for me professionally, personally and for my family. It’s with mixed emotions. We’re excited about going to the new facility. It’s an incredible space, but it’s hard to leave old friends as well. Hopefully, it’s not really leaving, it’s transitioning.”

Weeb Ewbank Hall, the former Jets training camp at the University. Their new 40-acre facility is now in Florham Park, N.J.