DeOssie

FOXBORO — He watched his father play for 12 years, and he served as a ball boy for the Patriots when he was in high school.

But now that former Brown star Zak DeOssie is a professional football player himself, he’s “having a blast.”

The 6-foot-4, 250-pound linebacker hasn’t seen any time on the New York Giants’ defense, but he’s gotten on the field plenty, serving as a long snapper and on the other special-teams units. His father, Steve, enjoyed a 12-year career in the NFL in part because of his ability as a snapper, and Zak learned that a good snapper has a place on the roster.

After twice being named a finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, given to the best defensive player in I-AA, DeOssie was drafted in the fourth round by the Giants.

His father’s advice? “Just go in and hit somebody. Play through the whistle and keep hitting. You’re not there to make friends.”

There was an adjustment period, but DeOssie has enjoyed his rookie season.

“At first, throughout training camp, my head was spinning for a while,” he said. “Then you settle down, and I found a place [to live] in Jersey. You get used to the schedule and start befriending everyone on the team. It becomes a great opportunity and I’m having a blast.”

DeOssie made time to take in a Brown game, traveling to New Haven to watch the Bears play Yale during his bye week last month.

It has been an up-and-down season for New York, which started the season with back-to-back losses but has rebounded and is 10-5 and playoff-bound heading into Saturday’s game with New England. Seven of those wins came on the road.

DeOssie can’t pinpoint why the Giants have well away from Giants Stadium. “We’re focused, everyone’s ready to go and we’ve done a real good job on the road. These guys work very hard,” he said. “I’m very proud of this team and they do a good job.”

— SHALISE MANZA YOUNG