C.R. South's Justin Pugh adjusts to life as a Giant

The YouTube video blew up Friday. In it, after speaking by phone with New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin, Justin Pugh and his "crew" of nine buddies are seen celebrating, in dogpile fashion, in the offensive lineman's home in Holland, Bucks County.

Pugh, a standout left tackle at Syracuse and a Council Rock South High graduate, received word Thursday night, a little after 10 o'clock, that he had been selected by the Giants with the 19th overall pick in the NFL draft.

"I really had no idea it was going to be the Giants," the 6-foot-4, 310-pounder said. "My mom [Carolyn Gavaghan] bought hats for all 32 NFL teams, so I was ready for whatever team took me."

At C.R. South, the two-time first-team all-Big East performer was a three-year starter at guard and defensive end.

"In his senior season, he put on between 15 to 20 pounds," Golden Hawks coach Vince Bedesem said. "Our coaches were enthused with his growth. You could see his development."

Bedesem was at Pugh's home Thursday night. "It was great, a really nice atmosphere," said the only coach in C.R. South's 11-year history. "That was perfect for Justin, being around the people that have supported him the most."

In C.R. South's triple-option attack, Pugh, who earned Inquirer second-team all-Southeastern Pennsylvania honors in 2008, was a right guard. "He would block his assigned guy and then go to the next level," Bedesem said. "He would find the next person to hit."

Pugh's only Division I-A scholarship offer came from Syracuse. "After Doug Marrone was hired [in early 2009], he came to school and said to Justin, 'We want you. You're our type of kid,' " Bedesem said. "He was destined to go there."

The erstwhile ice hockey player interviewed with the Giants at the NFL scouting combine in February but did not privately work out for Coughlin and general manager Jerry Reese.

"I thought Dallas, at No. 18 [the Cowboys traded the pick to the 49ers], was a possibility for me," said Pugh, 22. "I kind of had a feeling I might go somewhere in that neighborhood, maybe 18, 19, or 20. You just hope to hear your name called."

With the Giants, who went 9-7 in 2012, Pugh is expected to vie for playing time on the right side of the line at tackle or guard.