The Jets weren’t the only ones who had difficulty scoring on Sunday. The four contestants in the $100,000 “Kick for Cash” Field Goal Challenge at halftime were also shut out.
The field of four included two Long Islanders – Ashley Castanio-Gervasi from Oceanside and Daniel DeCastro of East Setauket – who were both short on their attempts from 30 yards. Had either connected from that distance they would have advanced to the final and kicked from 40 yards and a shot at the $100,000. The only contestant who hit from 30 was Ryan Vispoli from Chester, NY, but he was short from 40. Bobby Moore from Brick, NJ, was the fourth competitor.
Castanio-Gervasi was initially told she was ineligible for the contest earlier this week because she coaches the high school team at Long Beach. She had also played college soccer for Stony Brook. The Jets eventually reversed that decision and allowed her to compete. The lifelong Jets fan had said she wanted to participate to honor her late father, Frank Castanio, who died of esophageal cancer at age 55 in 2011.
Had she won she said she would donate a portion of the $100,000 to cancer research.
“The thought of my dad knowing his kid was going to get on the field and kick was a bigger deal to me than the money,” she told Newsday after she learned she would be allowed to participate.
She got that chance.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday’s Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.