He is surrounded on a daily basis, almost every minute, by large bodies and a swirl of activity. That’s the way it will be today for Tom Coughlin as the Giants reconvene for the start of Phase Two of a season that thus far has been surprisingly fulfilling.
Coughlin, in his first year guiding the Giants, initially ruffled feathers but subsequently made believers out of players who sit at 4-1 with four consecutive victories, the last two on the road, heading into Sunday’s return to Giants Stadium to face the Lions. His supporters now outweigh his critics – but for Coughlin, the singular pursuit of excellence is often a solitary journey.
“It is a lonely job,” Coughlin confessed recently. “People learn. It’s wonderful to aspire, and we all do as young coaches, to be the head coach. Now you’re the head coach; well, who does the head coach talk to?”
Conversation is a rarity; Coughlin’s existence is one of constant motion. He tries to get six hours of sleep a night and awakens every day at about 4:45 a.m. He’s in the office at Giants Stadium by 5:15 and begins by lifting weights for 25 minutes.
“I feel better when I start the day like that,” he said.
If possible, he’ll hit the treadmill after practice; more often, that’s reserved for Friday afternoons and Saturdays. The routine rarely changes; Coughlin, 58, could be coaching in Charlotte or Cleveland. The allure of New York simply does not exist.
Asked if he believes he’ll ever take advantage of what New York has to offer, Coughlin said, “Somebody that goes about it like I do probably won’t. I don’t do anything but coach the football team during the season.”
One night a week, he catches up on sleep. A break came this past weekend, with the Giants off for their bye, and Coughlin sounded like so many married men when he was asked about his plans.
“I’m sure that my wife [Judy] will have some ideas on how that will be best spent,” Coughlin said. “We’ll certainly want to watch some college football and maybe just spend some time with the family, and spend some time with my wife.”
Before the Giants hired Coughlin, they wanted assurances that he had refined some of the rough edges that were so destructive in his final years in Jacksonville. Jerald Ingram, the running backs coach who’s been Coughlin’s assistant for 12 years, says his boss has changed in subtle ways.
“[He’s changed] as far as feel for the game and the player and the situation,” Ingram said, adding that Coughlin is calmer now than he was.
“I don’t know if that’s true or not,” Coughlin said. “I have a greater perspective. I’ve seen more things. I’ve allowed myself to study and look more.
“I’m probably not as volatile as I once was. On the other hand, I believe stronger in what I believe in than I ever have.
“I try not to lose it over something which, in the long haul, in the big picture, may not be worth that kind of thing,” the coach added.
“There’s been things I really wanted them to understand that maybe at one time they would have thought I was being negative. I’m trying now maybe to weave it a little bit differently so that they hear it in a little bit more positive aspect. That’s one of the changes I’ve tried. Tried to spin it, make it that way in the message – even when it takes me a little longer to do it rather than just hammer it.”