Giants training camp in West Virginia heads to Greenbrier resort
The Giants will spend 12 days at The Greenbrier, with cooler mountain weather, 10 practices and six sessions open to fans.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
3 min read
The Giants training camp in West Virginia is taking the team to The Greenbrier, a mountain resort in White Sulphur Springs, after the club needed a temporary camp base away from its New Jersey facility, according to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan.
Rookies reported last Thursday, ESPN reported. Veterans are due in New Jersey on Tuesday before the team travels later that afternoon to the resort in the Allegheny Mountains.
The trip will last 12 days and include 10 practices, ESPN reported. Six of those sessions will be open to the public, with each practice scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Eastern.
Why are the Giants holding training camp in West Virginia?
ESPN reported the Giants needed another camp site because the World Cup had just wrapped at the Meadowlands complex, where the team’s Quest Diagnostics Training Center is based, and the East Rutherford facility is undergoing renovations.
The decision to use The Greenbrier was already being worked on before new coach John Harbaugh was hired, according to ESPN.
Harbaugh told ESPN he sees the move as a chance for players to focus and spend more time together. He said the team will be away from the World Cup activity and construction in New Jersey, and he called the bonding time a plus because players will be together into the evening rather than going home.
What is The Greenbrier?
The Greenbrier is a resort in southeastern West Virginia, near White Sulphur Springs. ESPN reported that the closest substantial airport is in Roanoke, Virginia.
The site has hosted NFL teams before. ESPN reported that the New Orleans Saints held training camp there from 2014 to 2016 under Sean Payton, while the Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns have also used the grounds for camp.
Other teams, including the New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders, have used the facility for joint practices or as a short-term base between games, according to ESPN.
Veteran Giants tight end Chris Manhertz knows the setup from his time with the Saints in 2016. He told ESPN it was “a pressure cooker in a luxury setting.”
Manhertz also said the resort had the type of fields, grounds and amenities needed for a remote NFL camp.
What the Giants will have on site
ESPN reported The Greenbrier’s football setup includes two grass fields, a turf field available if rain becomes an issue, meeting rooms, offices, a weight room and locker rooms for players and coaches.
The team will also have access to a training room, hydrotherapy room and equipment room, according to ESPN.
The mountain weather is part of the appeal. ESPN reported temperatures usually sit from the low 60s to about 80 degrees with low humidity, cooler than the conditions around the Giants’ New Jersey home.
The resort side is a change from old training camp life. ESPN reported players will stay in hotel rooms and have access to 19 dining options on the property, rather than dorm rooms and cafeteria meals.
The Giants have held camp at their East Rutherford facility since 2013, according to ESPN. Before that, they trained at SUNY Albany from 1996 to 2013, except for 2011, when they stayed in New Jersey.
Kayvon Thibodeaux told ESPN he likes the idea of being in a new setting, comparing it to his college experience. He said the team will have to find ways to come together while away from its normal routine.
The schedule in West Virginia calls for four practice days, an off day on Aug. 2, then six more practice days before the Giants return to New Jersey, ESPN reported.
This story draws on original reporting from ESPN.com.