Victor CRUZ

Post columnist Steve Serby caught up with 2011 Big Blue Super Bowl XLVI champion Victor Cruz for some Q&A before the team celebrates the 10-year anniversary of that title. Q: Is it hard for you to believe that it’s been 10 years since Super Bowl XLVI? A: Man ... I knew this day would come. While I was there, you see the ’07 team come back, or you see the 1990 team come back, and you’re just seeing all these guys and you’re like, “All right, that’s gonna be me (chuckle) one day.” And now the day’s come. It’s a crazy feeling.

Q: One moment from that season that stands out to you about Eli Manning?

A: I remember in San Francisco in the NFC [Championship] game, I’m coming back to the huddle, Eli’s getting pummeled, and I see him get up, and there’s grass everywhere all over his face, chinstrap up by his nose, he’s kind of like on his knees like on his way up, and got in the huddle, all the offensive linemen cleaned him all up, he buckled up his chinstrap and called the next play — and never batted an eye, never like ... and I was just like, “I gotta win for this f---ing guy.”

Q: What do you think of him and Peyton Manning on ESPN2’s “Monday Night Football”?

A: It’s incredible, like Eli’s flipping birds ... like what are you doing, Eli? (laugh). But I think it’s great for people to finally see their dynamic and how they are and how much fun they have together. It’s literally like a peek behind the curtain of just a dinner table with the Mannings, which is pretty cool.

Q: What do you remember about Eli’s relationship with his offensive linemen?

A: There’s one instance during the Super Bowl that pretty much embodies it. Eli set up a dinner for all of us at St. Elmo’s [a renowned Indianapolis steakhouse]. We’re walking to St. Elmo’s from the hotel, and I was like, “Are you sure you want to walk? It’s the Super Bowl, guys, and we’re in it!” So, boom, we walk out of the hotel, all five of our offensive linemen are surrounding Eli, throughout the entire walk. Like, literally in like a fortress where no one could get to him, and we walked smoothly all the way through some streets all the way into the restaurant. And I was like, “There’s no way we’re gonna lose this game now. We’re too much of a family to even remotely lose this game.”

Q: One memory from that season of Tom Coughlin?

A: The memory of him calling me into his office after I made the team, and he said, “Hey, if you don’t put up the same amount of energy and output that you put out the year before, there’s some guys on the waiver wire that we’re looking at.” (chuckle). And I was like, “OK. Noted.” That very next week was Week 3, against Philly [three catches, 110 yards, two touchdowns], and the rest of his history.

Q: That was your first salsa, after your 74-yard catch-andrun touchdown?

A: It was put into my ear at the time through my coach, obviously Coach [Mike] Sullivan. And it was just on my mind. As much as I didn’t want to have it on my mind, I was just like, “Well, what if I do get in the end zone?” And I was just like, “Man, if I get in there, maybe I’ll do it, whatever.” And the first I catch I have ... and I was just like, “Well damn, I gotta do it now. It just makes sense.” And then I remember coming home, my grandmother saw it, I guess they aired it on the Spanish channel, ’cause that’s the only channel she watches. She was like, “From now on, every time you’re out there and you score a touchdown, you gotta do that dance.”

Q: What did that one do for your confidence?

A: I mean, it was through the roof. It really just proves to me that I can play at this level and that like I belonged.

Q: Describe your 99-yard catch-and-run touchdown up the sideline on Christmas Eve against the Jets.

A: We were backed up, really not doing anything up to that moment, and then to make the play that kind of catapults us and puts some life into the entire team, I was happy to be the one to do it. Q: So that’s a top-three moment for you, maybe? A: Hundred percent. Hundred percent.

Q: What’s your No. 1 moment?

A: The No. 1 moment has to be the Super Bowl, right? Scoring a touchdown in the Super Bowl, you dream about that as a kid. My sister gave me a book when I was 7 about me being a football player and being in the Super Bowl next to Jerry Rice. It was like this weird book. It’s like an actual book, but they make it custom so they insert your name within the storyline. Basically the storyline was me watching the game on TV, falling asleep, waking up, I’m in the game. ... And then I end up like kicking the game-winner, which is hilarious (chuckle). And fast forward, I’m in the Super Bowl, Jerry Rice is walking the sideline, and I’m here scoring a touchdown.

Q: Describe your game in the NFC Championship game in San Francisco, when you had 10 catches for 142 yards?

A: I was just relentless, man. It was one of those games where I felt like everybody’s watching, everybody back home is watching, I can’t go out like a punk (chuckle), you know what I mean? Like I gotta make sure they feel me in this one. And I think Eli knew that, too. I think subconsciously or on his mind, he was like, “I’m gonna look for Vic early and often.” I could feel Coach [Kevin] Gilbride [offensive coordinator] setting me up for success throughout the week of practice, which gave me all the confidence in the world once game time came around.

Q: And when Lawrence Tynes kicked the game-winning field goal in overtime?

A: I mean, we’re going to the Super Bowl, baby! I just remember realizing in that moment like: “I’m about to go to the Super Bowl and play in the highest game of my life, the game that I’ve been dreaming about since I was a kid, since the first time I turned the TV on and saw what football was.” Like ... I’m going to that game. I was running around the field like a little kid, just enjoying that moment, man. It was a surreal feeling.

Q: How about Manning-toManningham?

A: Oh, my god, that’s probably the most perfect ball I’ve ever seen Eli throw ... ever. The way he put it right in the pocket, Mario doing what he does best, tightroping that sideline like he always does ... it was just perfect. And I remember looking at the replay when they were challenging it or going through the play, and me counting, like him catching it and taking the two steps and just being excited that he actually got the two feet in, I was just going crazy.

Q: No doubt in your mind that Eli’s a Hall of Famer, correct?

A: Not a single doubt, man. Two Super Bowl wins, two Super Bowl MVPs, slayer the dragon that is Tom Brady twice. He’s in there for sure, in my book.

Q: What do you suspect your emotions will be on Sunday?

A: Just nostalgic, like I’m just excited to just go through memory lane, and be with the fellas, and just have that camaraderie back for that day. I’m excited just to be around the guys again, man, and reliving those moments and the stories that I probably forgot about, that I’ll hear again.

Q: What do you hope Giants fans say about Victor Cruz’s legacy?

A: Aw man ... I just want them to just think of me as one of them. I was truly a person that came from just down the road in Paterson and played in front of my family, that’s the legacy I want, I want it to be like a family. And I always wanted to be able to come back and tap into my Giants family — fans, teammates, everybody.