Feb. 4, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - A pair of former Penn State standouts, Jay Alford and Kareem McKenzie, played instrumental roles in helping the New York Giants defeat the New England Patriots, 17-14, in Super Bowl XLII.
Alford, a rookie defensive tackle, and McKenzie, a tackle in his seventh season in the National Football League, are the 29th and 30th former Nittany Lions to play for the Super Bowl winner. Penn Staters have won a total of 46 Super Bowl rings.
Sunday's game marked the 38th time in the Super Bowl's 42-game history that at least one Penn State alumnus was a member of one of the teams. Former Nittany Lion All-American Kyle Brady (Camp Hill) started at tight end for the Patriots.
With the Giants leading 17-14, Alford delivered a huge play on New England's final possession, dropping quarterback Tom Brady for a 10-yard sack with :19 to play. The Patriots were forced to use a timeout and faced a third-and-20 after the play, with Brady throwing two incompletions to give the ball back to the Giants. Selected by the Giants in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft, Alford had two solo tackles in the Super Bowl, including one of the team's five sacks.
Also the Giants' long snapper, Alford played in every game during the 2007 season. He recorded a sack in New York's 16-13 win at Philadelphia on Dec. 9 and made two assisted tackles in the 23-20 overtime win over Green Bay in the NFC Championship game. The Orange, N.J. product started 41 games at Penn State and in 2006 was selected a third team Associated Press All-American and earned second team all-conference honors for the second consecutive year. He is tied for eighth on the Penn State career sack list with 19 and is tied for 15th with 32 career minus-yardage plays.
New York's starting right tackle, McKenzie helped the Giants earn 80 and 83-yard touchdown drives in the fourth quarter. He was instrumental in helping New York gain 338 yards and hold onto the ball for 30:29, including a 9:59 drive that led to a field goal to open the game. McKenzie and the line helped Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning, a former Penn State summer football camp attendee, lose only eight yards on sacks.
Selected by the New York Jets in the third round of the 2001 NFL Draft, McKenzie played four seasons with the Jets before signing with the Giants. He has played in 101 career regular season games, earning 93 starts, including all 45 regular season contests he has played with the Giants. A product of Willingboro, N.J., McKenzie earned second team All-Big Ten honors in 2000.
Besides Alford and McKenzie, two members of the Giants' coaching staff - Pat Flaherty and Peter Giunta - were Penn State assistant coaches earlier in their careers. A native of McSherrystown, Pa., Flaherty was a member of the Nittany Lions' coaching staff in 1982 and '83, serving as a part-time assistant coaching the offensive line under Dick Anderson. Giunta was a part-time assistant at Penn State in 1982 and '83, working with the tight ends, and served an internship with the Nittany Lions in 1981. Both coaches helped Penn State win the 1982 National Championship.
In addition, former Giants Vice President and General Manager Ernie Accorsi was Penn State's Assistant Sports Publicity Director in the late 1960's. Accorsi joined the Giants in 1994 and was named General Manager in '98, a position he held until retiring after the 2006 season.
Ten former Nittany Lions playing in the National Football League were on 2007 playoff teams, with at least one Penn Stater on eight of the 12 squads vying for the Super Bowl XLII title. There were 30 former Lions active on 2007 NFL rosters, placing Penn State in the Top 15 nationally among schools in producing current NFL players.
More than 300 Nittany Lions have signed NFL contracts since Joe Paterno became head coach in 1966. The Hall of Fame coach has seen 232 of his players drafted by NFL squads.
Thirty-one Nittany Lions have been NFL first round draft choices since 1966, including tackle Levi Brown (Arizona), who was the No. 5 overall pick in 2007. A school record four Nittany Lions were selected in the first round of the 2003 NFL Draft and 11 Penn Staters have been drafted the past two years, including a pair of first round selections in Brown and defensive end Tamba Hali (Kansas City).