Giants of the Round Table, full transcript

The Post's unprecedented New York Super Bowl Giants Roundtable Q&A brings together champions from each of the franchise’s three Super Bowl winners.

Hall of Fame Harry Carson (XXI), George Martin (XXI), Sean Landeta (XXI and XXV), Leonard Marshall (XXI and XXV) and current star defensive end Justin Tuck (XLII) joined Post columnist Steve Serby at the Timex Performance Center this week to reminisce about many of the impactful figures and events that shaped their lives and defined what it means to be a Giant.

Over the course of a riveting hour-and-a-half journey back in time, the champion Giants share their fond remembrances of the late, great Giants owner Wellington Mara, former coach Bill Parcells and his assistants Bill Belichick and Tom Coughlin, the incomparable Lawrence Taylor and Elite Eli Manning.

Carson and Martin, eyewitnesses to The Fumble that altered the course of Giants history, recall the joy of winning the Giants’ first championship eight years later, while Tuck, seven days from capturing his second championship in Super Bowl XLVI, listens intently as Landeta and Marshall compare their emotions winning their second to winning the first one.

Sit back and enjoy the Big Blue version of Champions Forever.

VIDEO: GIANTS OF THE ROUND TABLE

Q: What was your reaction on draft day when you knew you would be in New York?

Martin: I was projected to go in the first round — I was a college tight end at one time, I was ranked No. 2 in the nation. The problem was, the guy who was ranked No. 1 was also on my team, Russ Francis. So the New England Patriots wanted to draft me as a tight end but they didn’t think that Russ would be available. Russ was available, they drafted him in the first round, and I lingered around until the 11th round and was drafted by the New York Giants. ... I was scared to death, going to the concrete jungle; I’m a country boy. I went to school in Oregon, which is pretty rural. I thought that New York city was literally all concrete.

Carson: I didn’t find out until the 11 o’clock sports that I’d been drafted by the New York Giants.

Q: What did you know about the Giants?

Carson: Very little, except that I remember that they had two Hall of Famers who came to scout me — Rosey Brown and Emlen Tunnel. And like George, I was a little afraid, intimidated about coming to New York City, but my mother used to live in Newark, so at least I had some kind of understanding of what the area was about.

Q: Justin, what was your reaction on draft day?

Tuck: Kinda like George said, I’m a country boy. I thought I wanted to stay one. Being in rural Alabama all my life, and then having an opportunity to go to Notre Dame, not really knowing what to expect coming to the concrete jungle. But I understood that it was a great opportunity, it was an honor to be drafted by a franchise like this. I knew about the franchise growing up a huge football fan ... knew about the Mara and the Tisch family, and what it meant ... ’cause obviously, I got the opportunity to watch these guys play football. I was excited about it, but a little bit upset, because I too was projected to be a first-round pick. Coming out of college, that whole macho thing about a first-round pick is all you can think about at that point in time, so when it didn’t happen, it was a little bit upsetting, But honestly, looking back on it, I wouldn’t change it for the world.