Moments with eccentric Giants rookie pitcher Cam Schatipo
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — It was Friday afternoon. The New York Giants were winless after two weeks and coach Brian Daboll was in the middle of his regular press conference on Friday before his team played its home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs.
A reporter was asking Daboll a question when rookie Cam Scatepo, football’s version of the Tasmanian Devil, walked up behind the media pack. Scatepo stopped, smiled, and waved a sarcastic sidearm at Daboll behind the row of cameras.
Dabul closed his eyes, smiled, and shook his head. He lost his train of thought.
“Sorry, Scatipoo,” Daboll said as if this kind of humorous interaction was common. “Can you repeat? [that question]please.”
There’s no one quite like Cam Skattebo 🤣 pic.twitter.com/Lu3CHjYx0T
-New York Giants (@giants) September 19, 2025
At that point, all anyone at Quest Diagnostic Training Center could hear was Scatipoo’s trademark call.
“Woooo!” The rookie shouted as he ran onto the field.
This is Cam Schateppo, the energetic, idiosyncratic fourth-round pick of the Giants who never seemed to speak with an inner voice and had a habit of crashing into telephone poles as a young kid. He sprints onto the playground with the enthusiasm of a 10-year-old given carte blanche in a candy store.
This was his routine when he took the field in training camp. It extended into the regular season.
“It’s an everyday thing,” Daboll said after all of this unfolded several weeks ago.
Skattebo still isn’t finished.
“Woooo!” He shouted again moments later.
“Let’s go!” He added.
This is it Power type Scatepo brings something to the team, both in the building and on the field.
Scatepo and rookie quarterback Jackson Dart add a new element to the Giants, who enter Thursday night’s matchup with the rival Philadelphia Eagles (8:15 p.m. ET, Fox) coming off a tough loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. After Skattebo and his new quarterback had strong games in Dart’s first start, an upset win over the Los Angeles Chargers, last week was a reality check. Dart had three turnovers, and a Scatipo fumble in the red zone was returned for a touchdown in the 26-14 loss to the Saints.
But these are the players the Giants rely on to lead them forward offensively. Dart was a first-round pick out of Ole Miss. Skattebo was a Heisman Trophy finalist who proved doubters wrong everywhere from high school in Northern California to Sacramento State to Arizona State before falling to the fourth round. Their youthful enthusiasm gives the team a different feel.
“[Skattebo’s] “Pretty much like this all the time,” Daboll said after the news conference was interrupted.
It’s who Scatepo is as a player and teammate. It is clear from the stories told by his colleagues and parents:
Becky Schateppo, mom:
“Cam was always able to figure out how to get up and get over things. He would get out of every car seat you could find. That’s how he ended up being nicknamed ‘Houdini’ because if you didn’t want to be in a place, he would get out of the situation he was in. … He would put his brother’s shoulder pads on and crash into telephone poles. Once he got on the field, the punishment was no surprise to him.” It infects his body and others“.
Leo Scatipo, Dad
“So you guys only look at the football part of him. He’s not like that in his personal life. He’s very quiet, [has a] Very calm behavior in his personal life with us. But then anything that comes with competitiveness like video games or basketball or football, that’s when the intensity comes in. It’s like a switch that turns him on because if he’s not playing something or doing something, he’s the most relaxed kid ever. I’ve never asked him, but it’s kind of weird. He moves between the lines and sparks a kind of competitiveness and then his energy changes.
“When he was young, he didn’t have an outgoing personality with the team because he was always the best player. So he didn’t need to motivate the kids. The kids kind of gravitated toward him and they kind of fed off of him and then they relied on him. I think that tendency started maybe at ASU because I don’t think he was crazy about [Sacramento] The state is the same. I think ASU when he got with [coach Kenny] “Dillingham and that environment opened up his personality even more, I think in the locker room and then training.”
“He’s always been tough. So when he was younger, he would get in a lot of trouble from the refs and things like that because he would hit so hard. You get flags because, oh, he must have done something wrong because the other kid is on his back. His personality was always the type of person that would put all his energy on someone. And it was that way from day one. He was never shy about that at all.”
QB Jackson Dart, close friend and fellow rookie:
“Scat is a guy that it doesn’t matter where he is or who he’s around. He just acts like himself. I think that’s an early thing that people try to figure out when you don’t really know a person. But when you find out that he’s real, you find out what kind of friend he is, what kind of teammate he is. He’ll do whatever it takes to win. That’s something that guys really rally around. He’s a spark.”
“the first [time we met] We said three words to each other and butted heads. That was the beginning of our relationship. When we first got here [Giants] facility and met each other for the first time. We were able to spend more time on the plane to [NFLPA] The first show is for starters and they put us next to each one of them. Obviously we’re still getting to know each other. I fell asleep on the plane and woke up to this guy wet me and trying to put food on my face while I was sleeping. This is kind of an accurate representation. it’s 100% [who he is]”.
QB Jameis Winston:
“When he got drafted, he sent me a picture of himself eating a ‘W’.” [Winston’s signature bit] He said: “Let’s go!!!” On the same day he was drafted. I was like, “Man, I love you.” It’s amazing. And I always admired him at Arizona State. Once you see this, eat in Arizona. “I knew he was wild.”
WR/KR Gunner Olszewski:
“He says anything. You don’t know, sometimes it’s right, sometimes it’s wrong. But it’s always loud. That’s pretty much it.” [in] Any meeting we have. He will say something. He’s learning, though. It’s cool. It’s as real as they come. He’s really an idiot. [Reserved] Not in his wheelhouse. He doesn’t know where he is. Most rookies when they first get into the league say, “Oh my God, it’s the NFL.” “For him, it’s just another day of playing football.”
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr:
“Everyone says to me, ‘Brother, get your rook.’ I say to him, ‘Brother, what do you want me to do?’ Ask him to shut up?” He’s always yelling. He’s so loud. We’ll be in meetings and Skat will ask a question – he’ll just yell it. He might be wrong, but he’ll scream it loud and everyone will look at him. I. I’m like, “Bro, what do you want me to do?” Nothing crazy. Just like he’s always screaming. Whether it’s screaming in the boardroom or just screaming when he goes out to practice or something like that. It’s very loud. I think if you paid him money to stay quiet for a day, he wouldn’t be able to do it. That’s what I think.”
RB Dante Miller:
“I’ve never seen one [some]Chew the seeds louder. He eats loudly. He does everything out loud. It’s quiet [in the meeting room] He eats seeds and I say this is not normal.
“What’s a crazy cartoon character? That’s a pretty good comparison. Like the Tasmanian devil. I like that. But he chews his seeds very loudly.”
TE Daniel Bellinger:
“Zero candidate. The first time in a special teams meeting he asked, ‘What’s our job? Our job is to play fast, get off the ball. And this animal just says ‘physical force!'” And that doesn’t make any sense. [He] Just shouting things. There is no filter at all. Whether it’s right or wrong, he’ll shout it out. That’s scat for you. I mean I had some personalities. I feel it [Sterling Shepard] It was kind of wild. Some of these guys, Emir [Smith-Marsette] It’s a little wild. But this man is unique. There is no filter.
“The first time I met him we were in the sauna, and then we went into the ice bath and we were sitting there in the ice bath, and this guy, when we walked in, he started screaming. He was like, ‘Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh’, and I’m like, ‘Are you okay?’ This guy is a little different. “And I’ve never met any other colleague quite like him.”
WR Galen Hyatt:
“We’re looking at [his big block in the opener] And we definitely try to teach him to keep his head up, so he doesn’t get fined or anything. But it’s hard to do with him. He’s a running back, you know what I mean? He sees anyone, wants to pass through them. So it’s hard to know for running backs to keep their heads up. We are trying. “It may take some time.”
LB Bobby Okereke, defensive captain
“I love that. As a young player, that’s how you build a great roster. You have veteran leadership and presence and young energy. He definitely brings that. He breaks up the huddle. He yells and screams and motivates players. And from a physical standpoint, he brings that.”