Locals are gearing up for the big game today – Super Bowl XLVI – and a match up of this year’s two best teams in the NFL, the New York Giants and the New England Patriots.

Bruce Riley, of Nicholson, adorned his office at Misericordia University with Giants memorabilia even before realizing his favorite team would be in the Super Bowl.

“I’ve been a Giants fan ever since I was 7 or 8 years old,” said Riley, 35. “I lived in Florida and my dad really liked the Miami Dolphins, but I liked the Giants because they were my favorite color.”

There’s plenty of blue in Riley’s office. The collection includes framed covers of Sports Illustrated magazines featuring photographs of the last time the two teams met in the annual championship game in 2008 as well as an aerial view of the former Giants Stadium.

“In terms of being a fan, on a scale of 1 to 10, I’m probably a 12,” he said.

Riley’s family eventually moved to New York state, where he grew up, and he’s come to love all New York teams, most of which are represented by his favorite color, too.

“I like the Rangers, Mets, Knicks, (Syracuse University) Orange,” he said. “But my new favorite college football team is the (Misericordia University) Cougars.”

Riley grew up with the Giants, and he began to idolize former linebacker Lawrence Taylor, even using Taylor’s number, 56, when playing football in high school.

“The more I watched them, the more into them I got,” said Riley. “During the (most recent) playoffs, these past two games, I was a wreck in my living room on all fours.”

When he moved to Pennsylvania for the first time, being a Giants fan was not as commonplace as it was when he lived in New York.

“Everyone seemed to like the Philadelphia Eagles,” he said. “It was like being a pilgrim in a foreign land.”

But now as he settles into his life as assistant tutoring director and learning specialist at Misericordia University, he’s comforted by his sports collectibles and a few likeminded friends.

“There’s one student who also likes all the New York teams, and he comes in about two or three times a week to chat,” said Riley. “There are a few fellow staffers, too, that I talk to about the Giants.”

Riley could talk to Lou Yanora, of Dallas, about the Giants all day. Yanora, 54, has been a Giants fan since the early 80s, and his favorite player was Riley’s idol, Lawrence Taylor.

Yanora is excited about today’s game – primarily because of a bet he has with 14-year-old Patriots fan Connor McGovern, of Larksville.

McGovern is Yanora’s godson. The two are pretty close, but not too close to place a little wager on the Super Bowl.

The pair made a similar bet four years ago when the Giants and the Patriots went head-to-head in the Super Bowl that year. If the Patriots won, Yanora would fork out $50 to McGovern. But, if the Giants won, McGovern was supposed to clean up after Yanora’s German Short-Haired Pointer, Jake, for a week.

Needless to say, McGovern tried to call off the bet at the last minute, as he came to realize he would be picking up “doggie doo-doo” for the next week.

“It was three minutes to go and he made his dad call and say the bet was off,” laughed Yanora.

This year, Yanora bought a brand-new pooper scooper to sweeten the deal. He trying to teach McGovern not to bet, but the teenager doesn’t seem to be learning his lesson.

“I think the Patriots are stronger this year because they have fresh players,” said McGovern.