Meteoric ascent

Without the program’s reputation to back it up, the comment from Boston College offensive line coach Dave Magazu about Chris Snee probably would have struck Montrose football coach Tom Lucenti as just another recruiting pitch.

“Dave Magazu was standing outside my room after watching film,” Lucenti recalled. “He said, ‘Coach, I’m not BS-ing you. If this kid comes up with us, he’ll be playing on Sundays.’”

Snee eventually went from Montrose to Boston College and he’s not just playing on Sundays. This weekend, he will be playing on Super Bowl Sunday when he starts at right guard for the New York Giants against the unbeaten New England Patriots.

“Once I saw how well he was playing in college, I knew that was true,” Lucenti, Snee’s high school coach, said of the only Division I recruit the program has produced. Going to Boston College, which had an offensive lineman drafted into the NFL each year from 2000 to 2004, and the coaching decision to keep him on the offensive side of the ball combined to steer Snee toward the NFL.

The same room where Lucenti watched film with Magazu and other Division I college coaches was the place where the former high school coach greeted well-wishers last week.

With pictures of Snee and other Montrose players on the wall, Lucenti posed for pictures and answered questions from an espn.com reporter who came to Montrose to find out more about one of the key players in Sunday’s game. It is not hard to trace Snee’s football roots these days. A walk or drive through Montrose, the Susquehanna County seat with approximately 1,600 residents, brings into view sign after sign, congratulating or wishing Snee well.

A late start in organized ball

Snee’s family, which lives on a dirt road outside of town, moved to the Montrose area from New Jersey when he was a child. As a young boy, Snee developed the width of an NFL lineman before the height. As one of four boys in the family, he played his share of pickup games, but was over the weight limits to play in the junior football program.

Snee’s debut in organized football came in eighth grade as a member of the Montrose junior high team. He stayed in the junior high program, learning the game as a freshman, but was ready to make an immediate impact by the time he was a sophomore. With Snee at right tackle, Montrose had the leader it needed for its favorite power running plays for the next three years.

The Meteors controlled the clock, won a couple of Lackawanna League titles and threatened the more established teams from the Wyoming Valley Conference in the District 2 Class 2A playoffs. Rich Gorgone coached Lake-Lehman to the 1997 district championship by beating Montrose, 21-20, in overtime in a snowstorm. His scouting reports told Gorgone the presence of Snee, then a sophomore, was going to make things difficult for the Black Knights.

“We knew going in that he was an exceptional athlete,” Gorgone said. “Whether I would have predicted what he is today, I don’t know. But, I remember how good he was and that he was a major factor for them.”

Snee recovered a fumble and ran it in for a touchdown and was still in Gorgone’s mind right up until the Black Knights won with a successful extra-point kick in overtime.

“I remember in the huddle, kicking the extra point to win the game in overtime, he was a topic of conversation,” Gorgone said. “We had to worry about him. He got a hand up and almost blocked it.”

Gorgone followed Snee’s career at Boston College and when he watches one of the NFL’s top linemen in action, it gives him reason to remember a championship season. With a strong class of athletes a year ahead of him, Snee was not finished. He led the Meteors to a 20-0 win over Hanover Area in the 1998 district semifinals before the team suffered another heartbreaking defeat on a late score in a 21-20 loss to Wyoming Area in the district final.

By the time his high school playing days were done, Snee was a two-time, all-state selection on defense and had 47 sacks in his career.

BC’s the one for Snee

Lucenti’s ultra-conservative, two-tight end, power-I offense had produced quality high school linemen that were ready for lower levels of college football. Snee’s arrival, however, put the coach in a new position and seeking advice on how to deal with the attention that ultimately produced more than a dozen full scholarship offers.

King’s College coach Rich Mannello was among those who Lucenti turned to for the most advice. With input from Mannello and others, Lucenti was prepared to be on the lookout for the schools that actually extended a scholarship offers before Snee’s senior season, and those that strung the process along, perhaps hoping to land a player simply with the offer of preferred walk-on status. Boston College was on the list of schools that made offers. Penn State was reluctant and seemed to fit the mold of what Lucenti had been warned about. The Nittany Lions chose to wait and see how Snee’s senior season progressed.

Snee decided not to wait and made a verbal commitment to accept the Boston College offer before starting his senior year. In his final chance to play defense, Snee was a terror in the annual Big 33 Game. He led the Pennsylvania all-stars to a 31-14 victory over Ohio with three sacks, another tackle for a loss and four more tackles. Once he arrived at Boston College, Snee redshirted a year, then stepped in as an offensive line starter midway through his freshman season, playing with current Patriots center Dan Koppen.

Although he showed early signs that he could have found success at other positions, Snee clearly fits in well as the right guard in a sturdy Giants ground game.

“Originally, his heart was at Penn State,” Lucenti said. “It turned out they did him a favor. He developed so much better. I don’t think Penn State was sold on where they wanted him to play. He could have been in limbo for a while there.”

Days after the season-opener of his redshirt junior year, Snee’s son Dylan was born. He met Katie Coughlin, daughter of Giants coach Tom Coughlin, while at Boston College. They are now married with two sons, Dylan and Cooper.

“It’s time to start making some money,” Snee said at the time when explaining the decision to declare himself eligible for the 2004 NFL draft. The time at Boston College prepared Snee for the next step.

“The tradition of the offensive linemen and the work ethic that the coaching staff demands is important,” Snee said. “That’s what you need at the next level.”

Fixture on Giants’ O-line

Snee won a job in his first professional training camp and has held it ever since. He has played in - and started - 59 of a possible 64 regular-season games in his four-year career.

The only exceptions were when an illness knocked him out of the lineup late in his rookie season. There was little question who would start at right guard when the Giants opened the 2007 season. Snee had already gained Pro Bowl alternate status the previous two years and was entering a season where he would again be on the list of potential substitutes for the NFL all-star game.

There were many questions, however, surrounding the team early in the season. The Giants lost their first two games and headed to the locker room at Washington facing a possible 0-3 start.

“We had our backs against the wall at Washington, down 17-3 at the half,” Snee said. “We came out in the second half fighting for our season and we kept our composure.”

The Giants rallied for a 24-17 victory, starting a recovery that produced a 10-6 record and wild-card playoff berth.

That turnaround meant the Giants would twice end up in position to ruin New England’s run at history. The Giants held the lead in the regular-season finale before falling, 38-35, as the Patriots became the first team to finish 16-0.

Now, after winning three consecutive road playoff games, the Giants have a chance to keep New England from joining the 1972 Miami Dolphins as the only NFL teams to be perfect including the playoffs.

Snee said the three-point gap between the teams on Dec. 29 is not important to Sunday’s game. The chance to evaluate particular matchups could give an indication of what is ahead.

“It helps in a sense of individual matchups,” Snee said. “What happened in the one-on-one matchups gives you an idea what to expect.

“As far as the whole team, it should be a whole different level from that game. You expect everyone to take it up a notch.”

Snee could be one of the key players. When Scouts Inc. ranked the 106 players in Sunday’s game for espn.com, it listed Snee as the 10th best player in the game. The drive blocking he learned at Montrose, combined with the pass blocking skills he has developed at Boston College and in the NFL, make Snee one of the prominent players in the Giants’ hopes of controlling the ball.

The Giants have a chance at denying the Patriots their shot at history. As the only active major league professional athlete and the first NFL player from Susquehanna County, it is an opportunity that Snee cherishes.

“I’m thankful for every opportunity I’ve had,” Snee said. “It’s come from a lot of hard work and good advice and maybe a little luck.”

CHRIS SNEE THROUGH THE YEARS

1987: The Snee family, which includes parents Ed and Diane and their sons Ed, Chris, Shaun and Dan, moves to Montrose.

1991: In the first Super Bowl he recalls, Chris watches the New York Giants hold off the Buffalo Bills, 20-19, with his family. "It’s a great first Super Bowl to remember because it was such a great game," Chris said.

1997-99: Three-time league football all-star. Leads Meteors to district finals before losing to Lake-Lehman in 1997 and Wyoming Area in 1998. Team plays in Eastern Conference playoffs in his senior year. All-state selection in football last two seasons.

1998-2000: Two-time division all-star in basketball. Earns all-tournament honors in the Munley Tournament at Crestwood and Crossin Tournament at Wyoming Valley West.

1999: Makes verbal commitment to accept full football scholarship from Boston College.

2000: Has three sacks to help Pennsylvania end two-game losing streak to Ohio with 31-14 victory in Big 33 Football Classic.

2004: Graduates from Boston College and declares himself for the National Football League draft.

2004-07: Returns to Montrose each July 4 to host the Punt, Pass & Kick competition and participate in other Susquehanna County United Way programs.

2008: Preparing for first Super Bowl appearance after helping Giants to overtime win over the Green Bay Packers.

“We knew going in that he was an exceptional athlete. Whether I would have predicted what he is today, I don’t know. But, I remember how good he was (in 1997) and that he was a major factor for them.”