Smart answer: Rookie Boss doesn't play any favorites
GLENDALE, Ariz. - Often their lack of experience is cited, but sometimes rookies show the most sense. Consider Kevin Boss, the suddenly prominent tight end of the Giants.
When asked last week who was going to win tonight's Super Bowl, he hardly blinked. "Either the Giants or the Patriots will win."
No, it's not the sort of fodder the media had seized days earlier when teammate Plaxico Burress predicted a 23-17 Giants win, but Boss's calculated words probably pleased his coaches. They seemed to personify the sort of demeanor that had the Giants jumping at the chance to draft Boss out of Western Oregon last spring when few other teams touted him at all.
But the 6-foot-6-inch, 253-pounder has been thrust into the spotlight, albeit at the expense of a Pro Bowl starter, Jeremy Shockey, who broke his leg Dec. 16 against Washington. Having played sparingly to that point, Boss didn't catch a pass in his first game as a starter, but in the next game, Dec. 29 against New England, he had four receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown. In three playoff wins, Boss had four catches for 45 yards.
"I knew all season long I was just one play away from having to step up and elevate my game," said Boss, who was a fifth-round draft choice. "If an unfortunate scenario like an injury was to happen, and it did happen, I felt like I would always be ready."
He just wasn't ready to make any sort of bold prediction to satisfy the media.
Perfect attendance
All the Giants took part in the team's final practice yesterday, a 50-minute walkthrough that included some stretching.
Burress, who hasn't practiced this week because of lingering ankle and knee injuries, went through the session without limitation.
"[Burress] gets a little bit better each day, and hopefully we'll be able to have some further improvement [tonight]," coach Tom Coughlin told the pool reporter. "We're excited and we're ready to go."
Familiar faces
There are a number of Patriot connections within the Giants' organization. Tight ends coach Michael Pope was a member of Bill Parcells's staff in New England in 1994-96; quarterbacks coach Chris Palmer was a member of Parcells's staff in 1993-96; Ken Sternfeld, the Giants' assistant director of pro personnel, spent 21 years with the Patriots in a variety of positions, from intern to scout; punter Jeff Feagles was signed by the Patriots as a rookie free agent in 1988 and stayed with the team until 1990; and backup center Grey Ruegamer played 33 games over parts of three seasons (2000-02) with New England . . . Ruegamer is the only member of the Giants who owns a Super Bowl ring, earning his as part of the Patriots team that beat St. Louis in New Orleans in 2002 . . . Cornerback Sam Madison has the most postseason experience on the Giants' roster. The Super Bowl will be his 13th postseason game, the first eight coming with Miami. Burress has played in 11 playoff games, the first six with Pittsburgh. Michael Strahan and Amani Toomer, with nine each, have played in the most playoff games as Giants . . . Feagles is in his 20th season, and that includes a four-year stint out here with the Arizona Cardinals. This season, Feagles established NFL records for career punts (1,585), punting yardage (65,793), and punts within the 20 (508) . . . Feagles serves as New York's special teams captain. Quarterback Eli Manning and center Shaun O'Hara are the offensive captains; linebacker Antonio Pierce and Strahan are the defensive captains.
They've gone far
New England connections are plentiful in the Giants' organization: Coughlin, of course, was head coach at Boston College in 1991-93; offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride is a native of New Haven, and had coaching stops at Tufts, AIC, and Southern Connecticut; defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is a native of Grafton who played at Springfield and had coaching jobs at UMass, Connecticut, and Maine; special teams coordinator Tom Quinn was an assistant coach at Boston University and Holy Cross; secondary coach Pete Giunta was born in Salem and after a playing career at Northeastern (1974-77), he eased into coaching at Swampscott High, which led to a variety of collegiate stints (including Brown), then on to the NFL; running backs coach Jerald Ingram was on the BC coaching staff in 1991-93; strength and conditioning coach Jerry Palmieri served in a similar capacity for BC in 1993-94; Sean Ryan, the team's offensive quality control assistant coach, was a graduate assistant at BC; and community relations director Jen Conley is a native of Quincy and a graduate of BC.
UMass connections
With former UMass wide receiver Brandon London on the Giants' practice squad, it led some to wonder if there have been other Minutemen involved in the Super Bowl. Courtesy of the UMass SID office, the answer is three: Phil Vandersea with the Packers in Super Bowl I, Bruce Kimball of the Redskins in Super Bowls XVII and XVIII, and Kole Ayi (injured reserve) with the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI. 