“Good morning. We have had an outstanding week here in Indianapolis. The hospitality has been very, very good. Our practice facility has been outstanding. Our players have been excited about getting from the meeting rooms to the practice field. We’re looking forward to today – going through our normal Friday practice and going through our Saturday routine on into game day. The excitement has built up through the course of the week. We certainly are looking forward to Super Bowl XLVI. It was great to see Coach (Don) Shula here this morning. I made reference, yesterday, when I talked with Peter King. I was like, ‘How in the world did Coach Shula win 328 games?’ It’s incredible to even think about that. It was great to see him here. I talked to Mary Ann (Shula) and had the opportunity to say hello to (Don Shula), as we prepare for the Super Bowl.”

(on whether RB Ahmad Bradshaw will be available on Sunday) “Ahmad has practiced two days in a row, which is very unusual. Everyone wants to be a part of it at this point and time. No one wants to be someone who is not able to participate or to be a part of this wonderful experience. We’ve had everyone practice two days in a row, and hopefully, thank God, it will be that way on Sunday.”

(on coaching five consecutive must-win games this season) “As you know, the Washington game, back in the regular season, we did not play well. Washington came in and played very well. Following that game, I simply walked into our team and said, ‘Look, we have two games to go. We have to win two games. If we do that we get into the playoffs and we can be the champions of the NFC East.’ From there, it has been one elimination game after another. The players have been responding very, very well. They come together as a group. There’s been no question that our confidence building is boosted by the players on defense. We all of a sudden were able to get our entire defensive team together. We’ve made some progress along those lines that’s given us the boost. We’ve played in harmony with all three units in those five games. Of course, special teams came through for us out in San Francisco against a very, very good San Francisco team. We were able to turn the ball over at the end of the game and win it. It’s been that way. We’ve had our backs to the wall. The players have performed very well under that circumstance. Our leader, our quarterback, has been a very cool customer and has done very well late in the fourth quarter, (in) many games this year, and put us in a position where we’re going to win.”

(on what it takes to be a winner) “Surround yourself with great people, people who have an outstanding work ethic, people who are business-like, who are focused and concentrated. Get everybody on the same page and have the same inspiration, same kind of drive, same kind of desire. Do the very, very best you can. Work to the best of your ability. Be efficient. Don’t waste time. You have to be organized and you need to be in a position where you are mentally prepared for all circumstances that might happen in the course of a season. Football is a cumulative game. You must continue to work on the situational things and the things that might happen to you in various situations, but you have to be prepared. You try to put your players in that situation. You boil it down to blue-collar work ethic. You go to work every day and work as hard as you possibly can and surround yourself with great people. Keep your eye on the prize, which is very, very important to us and was a big factor in our ability to eventually win the division this year, knowing full well we were in contention all the way through. It was good to end it there.”

(on whether he worries about his team being too cocky) “I’m not sure what you’re referencing. I know that there are one or two quotes out there, but, to be honest with you, I don’t know that either one of them is any different than Tom Brady’s quotes. I think it’s just a matter of our team has played good football against a great football team. We always focus our team on confidence enough to get there and confident enough to get back. That’s the way we look at it.”

(on how he will coach his team for the Super Bowl) “I coach them right up through the kickoff. I’ve never been a believer in, I don’t like the phrase, ‘The hay in the barn’ business. That’s not the case at all. I’ve always felt you have to – you coach them, you talk to them, you look with them. There is always something that can be discussed or talked about. You’re literally doing it, right up until the kickoff. You’re talking during the course of the warm-up. You’re making little comments that they can grab a hold of. I think you continuously, decide what it is, the two or three key things that you’re really interested in as you go forward as you spend your Saturday and Saturday night with your team. You try to bring the entire week or two weeks into context with them, so that they understand exactly where they are and what they have to do in order to win. I don’t think it ever stops.”

(on how he will handle his emotions the next few days) “Get a goodnight’s sleep. Get up in the morning early and get a workout in, get to the office real quick, hopefully before anyone else, and have a few minutes to reflect, think about the day – what you’d like to accomplish that day. That’s pretty much the way it is every day here in Indianapolis and really at home as well.”

(on how much he has changed) “You’re asking the wrong guy. I don’t know how to answer that. I think the one thing that has happened, and I’ve said it a thousand times and I’ll say it again, is that once the season is over, you have to take a hard look at yourself and do a valid self-analysis. That’s very important if you’re going to improve. Decide what it is you can change. Look at your team and decide what it is you can change and what is needed in terms of inspiration and motivation or how you get those messages across to those people. Do your research on the outside, whatever it is you believe in. I’m a great reader of autobiographies and historical autobiographies, whatever you get your hands on, and reference things that I think are important in order to win or be the very best that we can be. Probably the one thing over the years that may have happened over the years is I may have gotten a little more patient.”

(on whether there is a fine line between winning and losing) “It’s an incredible experience to grasp it once again. We were in the Super Bowl four years ago and we thought we had a heck of a team in ’08, and got knocked out of the playoffs right away. We spent a couple years out of the playoffs, and our hunger for being back was great. There were times this year when it looked like it wasn’t going to happen for us this year and it did again. You have to have a great appreciation for this. Anyone who goes through this experience and doesn’t grab a hold of it or grasp the significance of it doesn’t understand that there are great, outstanding coaches and players who haven’t been to a Super Bowl game, and get to this point. You thank God for the opportunity and you never, ever tire or even possibly think this happens on a normal basis. It doesn’t. It’s tough to be in this position and get to this point. You have to constantly be aware of that. The way I look at it, there are many outstanding players and coaches who never get to this point.”

(on whether QB Eli Manning is dealing with unfair outside pressure) “I don’t think so. He handles things very, very well, and always has. He keeps things in perspective and he’s an example of what I tell my team all the time. Five weeks ago, there wasn’t even a bus, and now there’s no seats on anything. It’s just one of those deals you have to understand. He’s dealt with this thing, really, throughout his career. I really do listen to what he says, and he’s very respectful. He gives great credit to Peyton for his development, particularly as a young player because of the age difference that they have, but he quickly moves and gets to the point that this is really our Super Bowl.”

(on whether Coughlin is concerned with staying in a downtown hotel with a lot of activity close by) “It is, but nevertheless, I don’t know why there’s a lot of concern about us being where we are. We’re isolated and the second floor is completely secured for our players and our personnel. Our floors are off limits to everybody and they’re well-secured. Our players have enjoyed great rest and no one has complained of a bad night’s sleep, and if they have, it hasn’t been because of noise and other issues. There is a great build up to this game and there are more people in the street than I can ever remember, which reminds you of what an exciting time this is for this great city and people who are coming to the game. I think it’s just a part of it, I don’t have any problems or fears with that.”

(on why finishing has become his mantra) “Again, I’ve researched the things that have transpired a year before or two weeks before. I didn’t think we finished very well. I took a grasp of that and wanted that to be the number one thing. It was the first thing we hit them with, and it’ll be the last thing they hear from us before they take the field.”

Tom Coughlin is happy Super Bowl XLVI is in Colts country, and not just because the weather has been unseasonably warm.

While Coughlin would be fine if he didn’t see a single Flying Elvis in the crowd on Sunday, he did take time Monday to praise old friend Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

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Yes, the Giants are in Indianapolis.  An incredibly warm January is coming to an end all across the country and will continue into February. Mild temperatures will make for a memorable Super Bowl week.  Tom Coughlin was in a pleasant mood and alluded to the unseasonable surroundings…apparently, the Giants did not check the Weather Channel.

“Good afternoon. To the very nice people of Indianapolis that welcomed us, we say, ‘Hello from the New York Giants and thank you for the beautiful weather.’” opened Coughlin. “We all packed as if we were coming into snow country, but obviously we didn’t do a very good of anticipating.” 

On why the Giants waited until Monday to arrive in Indy…..“First of all, this is the path that we followed four years ago.  I thought it was a very good one and it came from research that I had done prior to setting the exact schedule. I felt that our players, because of arriving here when we do and because of media day tomorrow, have plenty of time to be accumulated to the hotel, to the setting, to the meeting rooms. You see these guys walking around now trying to find their way around. That’ll all be taken care of when we go to work on Wednesday. I just felt like this whole process was very good, and the way in which our schedule was established. I thought it was very good for us the last time we did it. We tinkered with it a little bit here and there, with the circumstances that we have been dealt with meeting rooms and that type of thing, but for the most part, the schedule remains the same. The flight started out like a day in which we were making a normal travel to a game, and you kind of have to catch yourself realizing you have a lot of work to do throughout the course of the week.  I think the players were excited. When we got on the plane, it was the video cameras and all of that stuff. They’re excited about it.”

 On Bill Belichick……..“I certainly do admire him, and he’s done an outstanding job. He’s an exceptional football coach, and I’ve said that before. The style and the preparation…Bill is going to work very hard, as we are, at showing you something and it really isn’t what you think it is. You really have to add an element of that into how you prepare. He’s always been an exceptional defensive coach trained by the best, by Parcells. He’s also become an outstanding offensive coach and Tom Brady has helped him to really diversify and get into areas offensively that only lead to the particular strengths of the individuals involved, and he’s done a very good job of that. He’s always been an outstanding special teamer because he was a special teams coach at one time.” 

On what he learned from Bill Parcells….“From Parcells, the thing that I admire mostly from Bill Parcells to George Young, Mr. Mara when I had the opportunity to tell him, was the belief in continuity, the stability. There were very few peaks and valleys. There was a feeling of pressure; the finger was always on the coaching staff and how they prepared their team and how the players responded to that. Ultimately, anyone who was around Parcells for any length of time learned how to win. That’s the biggest thing I took away from it.”

On how QB Eli Manning has performed this season and proved he is an elite quarterback… “The best thing that I can say to answer that question is his response when he was asked probably about the hundredth time that he was asked about that whole situation is, ‘Look, I’m trying to be the best quarterback that I can possibly be and to help our team win.’ And I thought, ‘Boom, that’s the answer.’ I congratulated him on his response and I told the whole team about it. I think it’s a good one. He’s never ever been anything less than a top one to me, and that’s all I care about. I certainly felt…I don’t know if I got the entire story on it. What I really heard is this business about him being elite, and he is elite, period.”

Here it comes, folks. Let the endless onslaught of redundant questions and answers begin!

Today was the first day of practice for both the Giants and the Patriots. Each team will be trailed not only by their regular local media pools (which includes us) but the national and international media as well. We will try to cut through the grizzle to get to the meat of the news for you.

Here are some highlights from head coach Tom Coughlin’s Thursday media session:

On how practice went today:
“We have been off for a few days, I wouldn’t say the practice was sharp but I believe it was okay. There are a number of guys that were not able to participate today and I think you know who they are but hopefully we will get some of them tomorrow and then as we move along, we will get them all back in preparation to play an exceptional New England Patriot football team who has a 10-game winning streak since the time that we visited there.”

On why seven players sat out of practice….
“We are trying to be smart and not aggravate something that is there that will be able to be managed in a short amount of time and make sure that there is not anything else that happens.”

On if the schedule the next ten days is the same as ’07…
“With changes based on the location you are forced to do because of your practice facility being 20 minutes away, we may do most of our teaching right in the hotel rather than move over to a complex and teach, those are the kinds of things that we had to adjust. Basically, the format will be the same in terms of how we operate here and what the days off are, when we travel, and what we will do when we start up again.”

On of he thought Bill Belichick would be this good of a coach…
“I didn’t have any doubts that he would. He started very young and advanced with a lot of responsibility at a young age. He was constantly preparing for the opportunity that would come to him.”

On defensing Pats’ TE Rob Gronkowski….
“He has done a very good job of making the big catch as well. He is a person that Brady looks to go to in certain areas of the field and in the red zone. There are things that we have to do to slow that whole aspect down a little bit and that would be the way that we have to start out approaching it anyway.”

On what the Super Bowl means to him personally…
“When we presented it this morning we said, ‘And now, there are two.’ Last week it was four and now it is two and those are the things that I am talking about. It is an opportunity to be in the biggest game of them all again and that is exciting. That is what you work for. That whole year is about planning and preparing for this opportunity and for us, this team was pretty much written off at one point in time, so that makes it even more significant for all of us.”

Today, cooler heads have prevailed. Tom is not only here to stay, he’s bound to get a raise and an extension. The only way he leaves now is by his own hand. And don’t hold your breath waiting for that to happen.

At 65, he is the NFL’s oldest head coach, but he can match any of his contemporaries in stamina and intensity.

Earlier this year, a poll among NFL players revealed that Coughlin was one of the coaches they would least like to play for. In other words, losers…

Eli Manning on what he respects most about Coughlin:

“Just the way he prepares, the way he gets his team ready, his messages, the way his attitude is portrayed onto the players and the players kind of take on that attitude in their preparation and approach to play. He’s very passionate about football, about his coaching and being prepared and being committed all the way in to doing your job correctly. I think that’s what I see the most out of him and what leads his players to prepare and play that way.”

Justin Tuck had this to say about his coach…

“I think he deserves it and he has done a great job of continuing to believe not only in himself and what he brings to the table but also because of this team. At 7-7 everybody and their mom was counting us out but he just stayed persistent and stayed true to who he is as a coach and a person. It trickles down when you see a person has faith in you when nobody else does. It is kind of easy for us to continue to have his back and do our best. We have been rewarded for that.”

New England coach Bill Belichick, former co-worker and current rival….

“I have a lot of respect for Tom. I think he’s definitely stood the test of time in a couple organizations: in Jacksonville and at the Giants. Of course, BC [Boston College] but I’m saying at the NFL level, he’s withstood the test of time. He’s tough; his teams are disciplined. They play with great competitiveness and play smart. They’re a good situational football team. They force you to go out there and beat them. They do a lot of things well. That’s kind of the way Tom is: Tom is tough, he’s very detailed, he has a lot of experience, he’s an intense coach and I think that’s reflected in the way his teams play…

He’s a good friend of mine that I’ve been with a long time as I’ve mentioned before. When I was the secondary coach and Tom was the receivers coach at the Giants, we worked against each other daily and we also had great rapport off the field of helping each other out, talking about the different techniques and players of our upcoming opponents and suggestions of how to cover them or run routes, helping each other out on things like that as well as working with each other on the practice field. Of all the coaches I’ve worked with, it was as good as any. I had an excellent relationship with him for us being on opposite sides of the ball, but being able to help each other and our players help each other and have a good, healthy competitive situation, but also you’ve got the coach on the other side trying to help you and you trying to help them just get better. That certainly helped our secondary when I was with the Giants.”

On WR Hakeem Nicks, who left the game with a shoulder injury, but returned….
“(He) came right back and played. He’s sore, but I think he’s going to be fine.”

On S Tyler Sash, who was sent to the sideline with an apparent concussion…
“I think Tyler is going to have to go through all of the protocol, but he felt pretty good even on the plane last night. So I’m hoping that he will go ahead and pass all of his testing. A lot of that will take place tomorrow.”

On the team’s schedule this week….
“We’ll follow a routine that we developed a few years ago. We’ll end up practicing this week, trying to prepare as best we can while we’re here. We’ll practice Thursday, Friday and Saturday here and then when we get out to Indianapolis we’ll practice a normal Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.”

On the team’s temperament right now….
“There’s a great feeling. I talk a lot about spirit. I talk about emotions. I talk about vibes. I talk about feelings. I talk about an atmosphere that’s been created by the cooperation between players and coaches and the harmony and the great feeling that exists. It’s been that type of feeling that has sustained us really throughout the course of the year, but even more as I see people grow closer together. That naturally happens with success, but I’m talking about a real bonding and that’s what I sense. That’s what I feel – a very responsive team.”

transcript courtesy Giants communications dept

“They have grit now. They’re battle-tested. We’ve had five straight single elimination games. Somehow, someway we’ve found a way to scratch our way to a win. We prepare well. The guys really do know what’s at stake. I think the veteran guys really help our younger guys in that regard and they’ll have to do a lot of teaching from this point on too with these youngsters. I’m sure they have no idea what they’re getting into now.”

On if he’s surprised that his team is going to Super Bowl….

“I’m not surprised. I’m delighted. I’m excited. At times it’s very difficult to contain yourself. Even this past week when the excitement of this thing was building up, the days seemed to be flying by and I was nervous that we were doing all we could possibly do to put ourselves in a position to win, but these guys have gone out and done it against the best we’ve played. We’ve played an awful lot of superior football teams this year and down the stretch we’ve played a lot of them and that certainly has helped.”

The Daily News Live crew debates where Tom Coughlin and Jerry Reese rank among the all-time Giants’ general managers and coaches.