Tucked in a classroom above the locker room at Don Bosco Prep on Wednesday, the offensive linemen intently studied a big-screen television.
With two days left before the nonpublic Group 4 state championship game in New Jersey, Chuck Granatell, the offensive line coach, repeatedly hit play and rewind while he cursed and barked at his players about the importance of protecting the quarterback who helped get them this far.
Matt Simms, the quarterback, sat off to the side, quietly spinning a football in his palm and listening to the sort of game planning he has heard his whole life.
Simms is the youngest son of the former Giants quarterback Phil Simms and the brother of Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms. He is a junior at Don Bosco of Ramsey and has led it to the title game in both of his years as a starter.
In a state with two NFL teams, top-level high school games are still the prism through which many fans view football. The private-school championship is expected to draw upward of 15,000 fans to Giants Stadium on Friday night to see Don Bosco (11-0) take on St. Peter's Prep (11-0). The appearance of Simms has turned the game into a marquee event.
Last season, Simms was at the helm when Don Bosco faltered, 13-10, in a defensive struggle against rival Bergen Catholic in the state final. This year, he is determined to win his first state championship.
"I didn't play that well," Simms said of last year's season-ending loss. "I kind of struggled in the beginning and I wasn't prepared because of my age."
Bergen Catholic coach Fred Stengel, whose team lost to Don Bosco this season, 24-14, said Simms had greatly improved over the past year.
"There was no doubt that he got rattled as a sophomore," Stengel said in a telephone interview. "The dramatic improvement was his growth and understanding of the game and developing an unflappable demeanor. That is something you would expect with someone with the name Simms."
Simms leads the state in touchdown passes with 30 -- nine more than the runner-up -- and passing yards with 2,579. Greg Toal, the Don Bosco head coach, was the defensive coordinator at Ramapo in 1997, when Chris Simms led the Raiders to the North Jersey Group 3 state title as a junior.
"He is as good or better than his brother at the same age," said Toal, who has taken Don Bosco to the state final in six of his seven years as coach and has won two championships.
The Simms brothers say they have a friendly competition in everything from video games to basketball in their driveway. They talk after their games, comparing performances. Matt was 5 years old when his father retired after a 14-year career with the Giants.
"I think it's true the big brother looks over the younger brother," said Phil Simms, who misses many of his sons' games because he is on the road as a commentator for CBS Sports. "I know that they both care what the other one does. Matt worries about his older brother, and I know his older brother worries as much about him."
Phil Simms keeps his distance, with exceptions. He bought the Don Bosco team pizza after a practice at Giants Stadium earlier this week.
"Phil has never made one suggestion since he has been here," Toal said. "He is just a parent."
That does not mean Simms is not protective of his sons. In October, Chris Simms was criticized by ESPN's Steve Young, who questioned Simms' mental toughness and attributed that flaw to growing up in "laissez-faire" atmosphere. Phil Simms blasted Young during a conference call promoting the Denver-Dallas game on Thanksgiving Day.
"I think maybe it's harder as a father than it was as a player," said Phil Simms, who declined to discuss the Young incident in a telephone interview Thursday.
Matt Simms said that after games, his father was just like any other father. "He says, `Great game,' and he's proud of me and all that stuff," Matt said. "Just like family is all it is."
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