44-year-old construction company owner among 60 hopefuls as NY Dragons begin player tryouts
Sixty hopefuls signed up for tryouts this month in Farmingdale, but only 18 will make it.
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The New York Dragons indoor football team starts playing games this summer, but first it needs some players.
Sixty hopefuls signed up for tryouts this month in Farmingdale, but only 18 will make it.
"We want guys who can pay both sides of the ball. We want guys who are going to play for Long Island. Most, if not all, of our roster will be Long Island players," said Dragons general manager Peter Schwartz.
Construction company owner Rob Digiorgio, of Medford, hopes to be one of them. The 44-year-old never played high school or college football. He said he hasn't tackled someone on a field in 12 years and hasn't put on pads in that long, too. But that's not stopping him.
"Don't let anyone tell you how old you are. Don't ever let anyone say you can't do something, that you're not good enough or smart enough. You won't know until you try," said Digiorgio.
So, there he was on Tuesday night in Farmingdale - running sprints, hitting blocker bags and doing the shuttle run just like everyone else.
"I'm just hoping to show them at my age you can get out here and perform," he said.
Digiorgio has played flag football for 20 years and says "it's the best." He plays on multiple teams in the USA League and has won a handful of championships. He said people underestimate the physicality of flag football and that some aspects of it will carry over if he makes the Dragons.
He said making the team would be a "milestone" and that his sister jokingly was worried about him even trying out.
"She said you're going to die," Rob chuckled.
But sorry sis, Rob survived the night. Now he hopes he can survive the team cuts.
