EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Growing up a New York Giants fan, former Army medic Steve DeVries got a lot of thrills watching the team and occasionally coming to Giants Stadium for games.His first trip to MetLife Stadium left him with a thrill the 38-year-old will never forget.On a day the Giants and the NFL honored servicemen, DeVries got something he never expected: a service dog to help him deal with his continuing battle with post-traumatic stress disorder. It was presented to him during a ceremony between the first and second quarters of Sundays game between the Giants and Philadelphia Eagles.It has been a long wait and a long road for DeVries, an East Meadow, New York, native who now lives in Herndon, Virginia, with wife, who is expecting their second child, and his 12-year-old daughter.DeVries joined the Army in 2005, was deployed to Iraq in 2006 and was seriously injured when an improvised explosive device went off under his vehicle. He recalls his back felt like a jelly doughnut and he remembers reaching for his legs to see if they were still there.He spent 6-to-8 months in a hospital bed with a spinal injury before moving on to a wheelchair, a walker and then a cane.His right leg has nerve damage and there will be more surgery down the road.Dealing with the injury has been the toughest part for DeVries.For me, I had issues with anxiety, but it is the adjustment, he said Sunday after receiving Levi, a gold Labrador. I came back and couldnt do the things I used to do. I couldnt run. I couldnt do this, I couldnt do that, or there was someone telling you, you couldnt do it. That was harder for me. I felt the couch was good enough for me. I didnt need to go anywhere.His couch was where he wanted to be. His hope now is that Levi will help him get over that.DeVries had waited 18 months to get a service dog. The two will work almost daily for the next three weeks so he feels comfortable to go home with the dog.I think when I am out sometimes I feel alone and I do have that anxiety. Maybe having him by my side gives me a little more strength, said DeVries, who had not been to a Giants game since the late-1990s. I want to do things with my family and my daughter and the baby on the way. I dont want to sit on the couch. I dont want to sit home alone. I want to go out.DeVries received the dog through the work of American Humane, the Giants, Semper K-9 and the United War Veterans Council.The veteran also got something else he liked: The Giants beat the Eagles 28-23 for their third straight win.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLPaul Millsap Nuggets Jersey . NBA officials ruled the court unplayable in the Bucks final exhibition game on Oct. 25 because players were slipping, and the game was cancelled midway through the first period. Alex English Jersey .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. http://www.nuggetsproshop.com/Tyler-Lydon-Nuggets-Jersey/ .com) - The Pittsburgh Penguins placed forward James Neal on injured reserve Tuesday. Nikola Jokic Jersey . Belfort (24-10) needed just 77 seconds to down Henderson in the headlining bout of Saturdays "UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson" event at Goiania Arena in Goiania, Brazil. The fight served as a rematch of the pairs 2006 meeting, which Henderson won by decision. Michael Porter Jersey . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. The 1.83-meter (6-foot) Leapai defeated the previously unbeaten Denis Boytsov in November to become the WBOs mandatory challenger. MALLORCA, Spain -- Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal inaugurated the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar on his home island of Mallorca on Wednesday.Nadal was accompanied by long-time rival Roger Federer at the event in his hometown of Manacor.Today is the day when we finally launch something that has taken a lot of years of work and dedication, Nadal said. I still have years of tennis ahead of me, there is a future and this academy is part of this future.The academy, whhich opened for business in June, combines tennis training with schooling for promising players from the age of 12-18.dddddddddddd Among its goals is to help its students who dont turn professional after leaving the academy to find scholarships to study at universities in the United States.It is run by Rafaels coach and uncle, Toni Nadal. ' ' '