By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Although he hasn’t yet seen the field for in-game action in his young NFL career other than some preseason snaps, LaPlace’s own Ryan Perrilloux will be making the trip to Indianapolis for Super Bowl XLVI as a member of the New York Giants practice squad, and family members say the former East St. John High quarterback remains confident that his chance to play will eventually come.

“He is high spirited and very excited to be a part of it,” said Perrilloux’s mother, Barbara Gibbs. “All he can do is stay positive knowing that the Giants continue to have an interest in him.”

Perilloux, who experienced a string of emotional highs and lows in his college career at LSU and Jacksonville State, has had a two-year career in the pros that has also been a bit of a roller coaster.

After going undrafted in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings invited Perrilloux, 24, to tryout. He was later signed by the Hartford Colonials of the United Football League. On Jan. 13, 2011, Perrilloux was signed to a reserve/futures contract with the New York Giants. Since that signing, Perilloux, who played through the preseason, has been waived and re-signed six times including being re-signed to the practice squad this week. Gibbs said she and Ryan have both come to understand that the situation is all part of the business of the league.

“Each time he has been let go, he comes right back a few days later,” Gibbs said. “Every week, he gets to speak to the team’s general manager to talk about the Giants plans for him. He is excited to be a part of the team and the team is excited to have him.”

Despite the appearance of instability, Gibbs said Ryan has never missed a weekly check from the Giants due to the way the cuts and signings were scheduled. Practice squad players, which are usually a group of eight players per team, make a minimum of $5,700 per week. As long as the player is on the roster at 4 p.m. Eastern each Tuesday, they earn a paycheck from the league regardless of whether they finish the week with the team.

“There are so many other stories in the NFL from players that are worse off than Ryan,” Gibbs said. “His agent, Bus Cook, said Ryan’s situation is unique in that he has never seen a team release and re-sign in that way. The Giants want him around, and that makes Ryan and us happy.”

As a quarterback on the practice squad, Perilloux gets to lead the scout team, which usually portrays the upcoming opponent in an attempt to help a team better understand what it will face that Sunday. In that role Perilloux is given the chance to play at his natural position, but he has also seen some practice time at safety and on kickoff coverage drills.

“He has a role, and he is happy, but he knows that next step will eventually come,” Gibbs said. “Practice squad players get their chances eventually.”

Gibbs said she has learned a lot about the league in following her son’s situation and added she has had to explain the circumstances to confused family members and friends, who would often ask if his release meant his career was done.

“I can understand why they don’t get it. It was hard for me to understand,” Gibbs said. “This situation could really be mentally rough, but Ryan takes it in stride and even jokes about it with other players. This is what he wants to do.”