Former Giants linebacker Carl Banks only spent one year at Michigan State with Pat Shurmur as his teammate. However, the Giants Ring of Honor member is confident that Shurmur will be able to hold his own in New York as the next head coach of Big Blue.
“He’ll make it,” Banks said, via Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. “You don’t have to try to fit in, you just have to be yourself. That’s where a lot of people are so intimidated with the whole ‘being in New York type of thing.’ He grew up in Michigan like I did. I’ve been here for 35 years and doing OK.
“He just has to be himself. He’s got great values, he understands what comes with the job. He’s gonna have a big support system here in New York. There’s gonna be outside and there’s gonna be inside. The team is invested in his success. I think he’s not gonna have an issue with his players. He’s got a few Michigan State Spartans in the building, so he’ll be all right.”
The pair only overlapped at Michigan State for one season in 1983 when Banks was a senior and Shurmur a freshman. Banks and Shurmur struck up a relationship anyway. Banks played 12 seasons in the NFL with nine of those seasons coming with the Giants. He’s been a radio analyst for the team since 2007. Meanwhile, Shurmur went straight into coaching after his college career and is set to become an NFL head coach for the second time once his tenure as Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator comes to an end.
