Q & A: Kate Mara

SI: So are the Giants going to show up for the first half one of these days?

Mara: I can't believe you went there on the first question. We had a rough game against Seattle, but then we had a bye [last week]. So we're resting--and then it's going to be awesome. Watch out.

SI: If the Giants are playing the Steelers, who do you root for?

Mara: You have to realize who you are asking this of. If I actually said I was rooting for the Giants, there would be hell to pay. So I root for both offenses. Or I root for whoever has a better chance to make the Super Bowl.

SI: What was a typical Sunday like for you growing up?

Mara: We'd go to church and pray that we'd win and that whoever was injured would get well soon. Then we would drive to Giants Stadium. We usually get there three hours early. We hang out in the [owner's] box beforehand. It's sort of our own tailgate thing, but not quite as rowdy as the people outside.

SI: As someone who grew up in a football family, do you feel a connection with the story behind We Are Marshall--the 1970 plane crash that killed 45 players and staff members from the school's football team?

Mara: I'm not even going to pretend to understand what it feels like to go through something like that. But I do understand the importance of football in a town or in a family. I can relate to that and to the way football brings people together. I wanted other people who don't necessarily have it in their lives to feel it.

SI: How do you watch a game?

Mara: If we're obviously going to win, then I'm O.K. and I'll interact with friends or family. But I usually bite my nails off and drink 10 bottles of water. There's nothing worse than people who want to make you feel better when you are losing. I just want to smack them.