Let's go Giants! Win one for TC

Because of my well-know allegiance to BC people down here often assume I am a Patriots fan. This week I’ve done a lot of explaining -- “I’m actually a Giants fan, plus I am rooting for Tom Coughlin.” The Tom Coughlin part generated a few curious looks, especially when I point out that Coughlin left BC right before I got there.

Guys who leave after a few successful seasons aren’t usually embraced by the fans of the program left behind. The spurned are often left bitter and think of what could have been. Yet even as a student enduring the Henning years, I never came across BC fans who hated Coughlin. If anything, he showed what BC could be. Fans always eat up the no excuses, gruff toughness that guys like Coughlin dish out (when it works). For all the rough and tough talk there was also a portion of the BC fan base who appreciated Coughlin’s strategic approach to the game and his eye for talent. His staff was filled with guys who would go on to be head coaches elsewhere. We knew we had a shooting star of a coach. The fact that he went onto Jacksonville and led the most successful NFL expansion since the merger only validated most opinions. He was a great coach and we saw it first hand. Coughlin’s persona and the blaze of glory he brought to the Heights would have cast a shadow on most programs. But that is not what lingers with BC fans. It Coughlin’s continued embrace of BC that has us cheering for him. The Jay McGillis stuff got plenty of ink, but that is only a portion of it. Coughlin thought enough of BC to send his children to the school. His son-in-law is a BC Guy. He has kept good relations with the school and the administration. It doesn't go unnoticed that he also seems to always have one or two BC guys on his rosters.

While I remain a Giants fan my emotional investment in the team has faded over the years (and mostly been replaced by BC). I don’t expect them to win Sunday but because of Coughlin I think the GMen have a chance. The win would cap a great career for great coach and a good “BC Guy.”