Julian Love has one family advantage during Giants’ coronavirus wait

Julian Love is spending far more time in his family garage than ever before. It is there where his makeshift workout facility is coming together, where the Giants’ second-year safety is trying to stay in shape during this COVID-19 pandemic, where he will remain, in Chicago instead of the team facility in East Rutherford, N.J., …

Julian Love is spending far more time in his family garage than ever before.

It is there where his makeshift workout facility is coming together, where the Giants’ second-year safety is trying to stay in shape during this COVID-19 pandemic, where he will remain, in Chicago instead of the team facility in East Rutherford, N.J., for the foreseeable future.

Love is serious about claiming a spot within the starting defense this season. He is attempting to take a step forward while figuring out how to best utilize his time and the limited resources at his disposal, a 22-year old embroiled in the remote-living/learning maelstrom that has affected so many for too long now.

“I was about to head out to Jersey and my apartment but that was when things got really crazy so I had to stay here,’’ Love told The Post from his parents’ house. “My brother and sister are home. It is interesting being all together.’’

So many are feeling the same thing – it is interesting being together under the same roof, hour after hour, day after day, week after week. Prepping for an NFL season and shelter-at-home orders were never supposed to be linked together but here we are, and here Love is, doing the best he can.

Craig Fitzgerald, the Giants new director of strength and performance, reached out to Love, offering aid for procuring equipment for the home. Love purchased “a bunch’’ of kettle bells, dumbbells, a weighted vest and several different resistance bands. In about a week, he is expecting a shipment of a squat rack with a barbell and bumper plates. Love estimates his out-of-pocket expense will be close to $4,000.

“You got to spend it,’’ he said. “I would consider it an investment. Investing for the future.’’

All the equipment is and eventually will be situated in the garage.

To get out and simulate football activity, Love heads over to the field at his former high school, Nazareth Academy, where he and his younger brother get in a workout. It is fortunate Michael Love is a wide receiver at Northern Illinois, allowing for routes-vs.-coverage repetitions. Mixed in is agility training, speed work and position-centric drills.

“We can push each other and really talk about certain things,’’ Julian Love said. “I’m older than him so I can tell him certain things about what I’m expecting and what I’m feeling and what I’m seeing and help him improve his game, so we can really build off each other.’’

There are not many people allowed onto the field and thus social distancing is maintained.

“Quick in-and-out,’’ Love said.

Last Monday was supposed to be the start of the Giants’ offseason workout program but with the team facility shut down, players scattered around the country are starting to receive information on their iPads. Love said he has not yet seen the playbook detailing the scheme defense coordinator Patrick Graham will run.

“We were going to start this next week, we’ll probably get it this Monday when things are sent in off the cloud to the iPads so we can really analyze things and talk about things,’’ Love said. “The Giants are trying to make this really efficient and keep everybody on the same page. We’re coming through this together, it’s the first time through this for a lot of people.’’

Love said he has had “a pretty good amount of contact’’ with the new coaching staff. He already met Jerome Henderson, the defensive backs coach, when Henderson was with the Falcons and Love was coming out of Notre Dame and involved in the draft process.

“Everyone’s super proactive during this time,’’ Love said. “It’s important for us to really get in contact with each other. All the new guys that signed, we’ve been in contact with each other. The coaches have been calling us every other day. Really get on a personal level. We having a Zoom call in the next few days to talk shop and just talk with each other. So we can build that level of camaraderie and chemistry while we’re all in different places.’’

This spring, Love is finishing up the 21 credits he needed to graduate from the Business School at Notre Dame with a degree in Management Consulting. He was on campus in South Bend, Ind. but after the campus closed his classes resumed online. He was looking forward to walking at graduation in May. “But that’s cancelled now,’’ he said. “Unfortunately.’’

Whenever he can get back to New Jersey, he will. Until then, Julian Love is hunkered down at his family home, one of the many Giants dealing with a new normal.

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