New York Giants Coach Tom Coughlin Helps Prepare University of Albany FCS Football For NEC Title Defense - UAlbany Sports 2009

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

Albany, N.Y. - New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin spoke to the University at Albany football team following the Great Danes' morning practice on Wednesday, Aug. 19. Coughlin, who coached the Giants to the 2008 NFC East crown and the previous year's Super Bowl championship, addressed the UAlbany squad as they prepare to defend back-to-back Northeast Conference titles.

UAlbany will scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 22 during the morning practice session to conclude the second week of preseason camp. The Great Danes have 14 starters returning from a team that also won the Gridiron Classic against Pioneer Football League champion Jacksonville. The New York Giants end their record-setting 14th summer training at UAlbany on Aug. 25.

Transcript from Giants Coach Tom Coughlin's Speech to UAlbany Football Team
"The first thing I want to say to you today is a year ago when we were practicing we had a young man named Aaron Ross. His fiancée is Sonya Richards. Some of you may not know who Sonya Richards is. She was the gal who was supposed to win the gold medal in the 400 (meter dash) a year ago (in the OIympics). She did not win it. She was third. She got out to a heckuva of a start and then did not win the thing. You cannot imagine what the world press did to her. They just pounded her butt unbelievably.

"Yesterday, I pick up the paper in the morning and read that Sonya Richards goes to the World Games in Berlin, and she wins the gold medal. She is the world champion in the 400-meter dash, and she runs it in 49 (seconds) flat.

"What does that mean to any of us? We know our game and we know our business. Perseverance is huge. This gal demonstrated that she is a great example for all of us. You don't let other people tell you who you are. You believe in yourselves, you believe in each other, you fight for each other, you demand for each other and make sure that you are all on the same page. This is what our great game is all about.

"You guys are two-time conference champions and a bowl champion ... so I should have you speak to us (the Giants). But let me just say this to you. Two years ago when we won the world championship and the ink was not even dry, what do you think the media wanted to know? ‘Coach, what are you going to do with your team? Are you going to be satisfied? Are they going to be fat catish? They aren't going to be preparing themselves. It's going to be a short offseason program...'

"Well, you know what we did about that. We held that up in front of ourselves and we challenged ourselves to be better than we had been the year before. We went out and we were 11-1 right out of the starting gate. We were 11-1. Now we didn't finish as well, and I'll argue with anybody about the quality of our team at the end of the year, but that's not the point. The point of the matter is, yeah, you have to set high goals and, yes, you have to deny the fact that you are satisfied. You are never satisfied in this business. You've got to finish.

"The great John Wooden says what you did yesterday does not necessarily mean that is going to take place today unless you apply the principles, the values and the great work ethic which you have here, and I have watched you work. Unless you apply those principles, it doesn't mean that you are going to be able to be successful again. Every year is a new year. Every team is a new team. The fiber of that team is the most important thing, and that's what you are putting together right now.

"(Army Lieutenant Colonel) Greg Gadson spoke to our team the other day. Greg lost his legs in Iraq, and he has been a great, great friend of the New York Giants. I have told you his story before. I asked him to speak to the team the other day because he and I were having a conversation about focus and concentration. I have spent a lifetime trying to learn how to make people focus better and concentrate better.

"It's interesting how there is a parallel in terms of the military and our game. The military goes to what might as well be a training camp before they deploy for 30 days as they train and get ready to be deployed. So it's a lot like our game. There are stages in that game as well.

"I was in Iraq this summer, and I will tell you one thing which I also sent out to our players in bold letters. When you think you've got it tough... It was 125 degrees in Iraq. I went to Mosul, which is a hot spot, believe me ... 125 degrees and soldiers with full battle armor. Sixty pounds of battle armor, helmets, the whole bit, and the attitudes were incredible. The attitudes were as positive as you could possibly imagine under those circumstances, and I think that sets a great example for all of us.

"I ran into a guy who was a sergeant major over there and was a part of the group that captured Saddam Hussein. He gave me a medal. They call them coins over there, but it had the warrior ethos on it.

"The number one thing is the mission ... the mission. If every guy is on the same page, if every guy believes in what we're doing, and if every guy hangs in there together and fights their way through the tough times ... and you're going to have them ... you can accomplish that and be very proud of the group that you have.

"So I wish you guys luck with your season. Keep working hard and Coach (Bob) Ford, congratulations on this group of guys and good luck to you."