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Mar 15, 2021 at 02:46 PM
Giants.com Senior Writer/Editor
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Nate Ebner has played in and won three
Super Bowls, but the sports spectacle that most captivated him was
disconnected from football and took place in another hemisphere.
As a member of
the United States National Rugby Team, the Giants' veteran safety participated
in the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games Rio 2016.
"You're on a different continent in a
country where they don't even really speak your language," Ebner said last
week. "We're in a two-hour opening ceremony where all these countries come
through – obviously, the United States is one of the last ones as a 'U.' When
the United States came out, the roar that I heard in that stadium gave me
chills, like nothing I've heard before. When you're in a different hemisphere
of the world and they're cheering for you like that, it shows you what you
represent and it's a lot bigger than you. To be a part of Team USA is extremely
special and being from this country and what it means to be an American, and
those things really resonated with me in the opening ceremony."
Ebner hopes to participate in another opening
ceremony at the Olympics this year. Beginning
today, he will join approximately 30 players trying out for the 12 spots on the
U.S. team coached by Mike Friday that will compete in the XXXII Olympiad,
which is scheduled to begin July 23 in Tokyo. The Games were postponed for a
year because of the pandemic.
"We are
very excited to welcome Nate back into the pack," Friday said. "He is
not only a talented athlete, rugby player and Olympian, he is a durable
individual who knows how to grind and is selfless for the cause.
"Nate is
an authentic, good man who carries himself with humility, has a burning desire
in his eyes to achieve and a passion to embed rugby and its values in the
American sporting landscape. He is a Dawg, a Pioneer and will be up for the
challenge as we look ahead to Tokyo."
The formal nickname for all USA Rugby
National Teams is Eagles, but Dawg and Pioneer each has a special meaning to
the USA Men's Sevens. Dawg stems from a poem that signifies the unique
differences of each individual where all work together as a pack to achieve a
common goal.
Pioneer, stemming from a 2018 documentary
series, illustrates the team's collective mission to cement the game of rugby
in America and leave a legacy for future generations.
The Giants fully support Ebner, who played in
all 16 games for the team in 2020, his first season with the team.
The Olympic rugby competition is scheduled
for July 26-28. Training camp will begin around that time, so Ebner could
theoretically miss just the first week or so – as he did five years ago, when
he was with New England. Giants coach Joe Judge was then the Patriots' special
teams coordinator.
"We are
proud to support Nate in his effort to earn a place on the United States
National Rugby team," Judge said. "This is the second time I have
been with Nate while he tries to make the team to represent our country in the
Olympics. We know that rugby has been an
important part of Nate's life since he was a young man, and Dave (Gettleman)
and I both encouraged him to pursue this opportunity. Nate's rugby training
will keep him in great shape this offseason, and we will stay in touch with him
as he goes through the process."
While
he would revel in the thrill of participating in another Olympics, Ebner is
determined to enjoy more success than he did in his first experience. In 2016,
the USA lost to eventual gold medalist Fiji, 24-19, in the Rugby Sevens
Competition, denying the team an opportunity to join the field of eight (from
an original group of 12) in the knockout round. It was a mark they missed by
just one point.
"Not
getting a medal in that last Olympics is something that really bothers
me," Ebner said. "When I reflect on what's important in my life, if
I'm being honest, that was high priority. People say, 'You were the guy who won
a gold medal in the Olympics,' and I'm like, 'No, we didn't win a medal.' Not
winning a medal, especially when I thought that we had the team to do it, and
as I look at the growth in the last five years, we definitely have an even
better chance this time around. It's something I would really like to be a part
of."
Ebner
is 32, but it's not just his age that separates him from many of his fellow
rugby players. He has played in 143 NFL games,
including 16 in the postseason. A special teams standout since entering the NFL
in 2012, Ebner played on the Patriots teams that defeated Seattle in Super Bowl
XLIX, Atlanta in Super Bowl LI and the Rams in Super Bowl LIII. He was
on injured reserve when New England lost to Philadelphia in Super Bowl LII.
Ebner joined the Giants as a free agent last year. He participated in a
team-high 328 special teams snaps and tied for second with six special teams
tackles.
"I've
been playing NFL football for the last (nine) years and that's not easy on your
body," Ebner said. "Over 30 in the NFL is an old person. In rugby,
there are some older guys, but really it's not about me being 32 in rugby, it's
the journey I've had. There are guys who are 24 and they've had all kinds of
injuries. Everyone's personal situation is different with their body and their
age and the wear they've had to endure, so hopefully I can hold up. That's
obviously something I'm going to have to manage."
If
anyone knows how to do that properly, it's Ebner. He
made his first athletic mark playing rugby in his native Ohio. Ebner was a
standout on the junior national team and played in three Junior World Cups.
After playing football in the eighth grade, he didn't put pads on again until
he made the team as a walk-on at Ohio State in 2009, the first of three seasons
with the Buckeyes. "I kind of wanted to play football my senior year in high
school," Ebner said. "I chose not to because of the Junior World
Cup."
Ebner is one of just seven players in NFL history to
participate in the Olympics and also win a pro football championship. He is the
only player to accomplish that feat in the same year.
Rugby
was an Olympic men's medal sport early in the 20th century. The USA were
back-to-back gold medalists in 1920 and 1924, but the sport was dropped by the
International Olympic Committee following the 1924 games in Paris and did not
return until the games in Rio 92 years later. Ebner was not going to enjoy its
return as a spectator.
"For
a sport that I grew up playing not being in the Olympics basically ever and
then it's all of a sudden in the Olympics the year I'm 27 … the stars really
aligned," Ebner said. "I had played that sport my whole life, I was
in my physical peak. Rugby is very close to my heart and obviously to represent
the United States on the Olympic stage is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
When you look at the culmination of all those different things, to me I felt
convicted, I felt pulled in that direction as if it was something I really had
to do. I felt I would feel an extreme amount of regret had I not gone to try
that.
"I
want the USA to experience rugby the way I have, and I think winning a medal in
the Olympics is a great step toward that, that recognition. When I really
assess everything, that's a big motivation to me. Even if I didn't make the
team, helping the team get to a place where they need to be going into the
Olympics to win a medal, that's a big motivation. There will come a time when
physically I'm not capable of doing any of this stuff. When that day comes, I
won't do it, but while I can I will."
The
Patriots backed Ebner's Olympics trip to Brazil. Before he committed to trying
a repeat, he wanted to ensure Judge was similarly supportive.
"Once
I settled into where I was mentally, I had that conversation with Joe and he
was very receptive and understanding," Ebner said. "Obviously, he
understands my background as a rugby player, what I did in 2016 and before
that. I will say, it did help that I came back that season after the Olympics
and had a stellar year, a really, really good year (a career-high 19 special
teams tackles). I was physically fit and I was moving well, and I couldn't
attribute that to anything but playing rugby for six months. I think that bodes
well when it comes to the argument for letting me go play. I came back in
really good shape and played really well. At the end of the day, it was just a
conversation we had to have.
"It
definitely eases the mind for me to really go out for something when I have the
support of the franchise behind me to go ahead and go for a once-in-a-lifetime
– luckily for me, a twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to represent our
country. I've been a part of nine NFL training camps, I'm pretty familiar with
it. I think it speaks to the trust they have in me as a player, what I
understand about the game and training camp and where I need to be that that
trust is there. Just having that support is huge for me when I'm pursuing this
that I can come back and know that they're riding with me, if you will."
If he
makes the team, Ebner should be able to catch up quickly after he departs the
Olympics and reports to the Giants. It's not like he would be going to Japan to
visit the Imperial Palace or sample local sashimi. Indeed, he will be engaged
in an athletic endeavor that might be more challenging than training camp.
"The
physical, cardiovascular demands of this game are through the roof relative to
football and it's not even close," Ebner said. "We don't get to stop
every six seconds after the play is over with. It's just absurd. (In 2016),
physically what it took for really six to eight weeks to get myself where I
needed to be was extremely difficult. At least this time around I know what to
expect physically because I've been through it. Last time I played, it had been
five years competitively (since he had played at a high level). I'm hoping I'm
in a better place this time around than I was five years ago, but I'm also five
years older."
He
has a long road to travel, but Ebner has a vision how he wants his journey to
unfold.
"Obviously,
you have to assess where you're at," he said, "but you would hope
within a week of competition I'm back and I'm in shoulder pads and a helmet and
I'm out there trying to get us ready to win some football games."
