There wasn't
much chance that
Larry
Piediscalzo was
going to be
drafted by an
NFL team.
That kind of
thing happens in
fairy tales: A
kid from a small
school like Pace
going up to the
podium and
putting on an
NFL jersey and
hat and mugging
for the cameras.
"I knew I was a
long shot,
coming from a
Division II
school,''
Piediscalzo
said.
But he had a
dream, which
topped out in
the NFL, at
least for a
tryout, but in
reality had him
playing some
level of pro
football,
perhaps in
Europe or the
Arena League. "I
believe I could
have played
somewhere, that
there was a
place for me to
play,'' he said.
That dream was
wrecked along
with his right
knee during
Piediscalzo's
senior season,
on Oct. 27,
2001.
And this past
weekend, when
Willis McGahee
was drafted 23rd
by Buffalo
despite having
the same
devastating type
of knee blowout,
Piediscalzo must
have appreciated
McGahee's
remarkable
recovery as much
as anybody.
"He hurt
himself Jan. 3
in the national
championship
game, and he's
already
squatting and
running a little
bit, and he was
the first
running back
picked in the
draft,''
Piediscalzo
said. "I was
like, 'Wow. It's
been a year and
a half for me,
and he's gone
farther in those
four months.'
"It's also,
that's his job.
I have to make a
living for
myself, so I do
have to work
also, not just
rehabbing.''
Piediscalzo,
now 23, tends
bar in
Westchester and
continues the
grueling
therapy, with
his eye still
trained on
resuming a
football career.
Before the
injury,
Piediscalzo was
quite the
player, Division
II or not. He
was twice named
All-American,
and at the time
his collegiate
career ended he
was leading the
country in kick
returning, and
was third in
Division II in
all-purpose
yards.
A halfback,
he had the two
longest runs
from scrimmage
in school
history (96 and
90 yards); the
second- and
third-longest
kickoff returns
for TDs (97 and
96 yards); had a
Pace-record 7.7
yards per carry
one season; and
ranks second in
school history
in touchdowns
(25) and third
in rushing yards
(1,599).
He had been
to an NFL
scouting combine
at Hofstra, and
one team,
Arizona,
expressed
interest. Then
came the crash.
Piediscalzo can
tell you all the
details. It was
the first series
of the game
against American
International,
the seventh
play. He jumped
to catch a pass
in the flat,
planted his
right leg to
turn upfield,
and a safety
clobbered his
leg with helmet
and shoulder
pads. He said he
knew it was
serious before
he hit the
ground.
"It was a
little bit of
everything,'' he
said. "I've
never felt any
pain like that
before. And it
was rough
because it was
right up the
sideline and my
whole family was
right there on
the sidelines —
my grandfather,
aunts, uncles,
nephews, my mom,
my girlfriend —
everyone was
right there. I
was scared to
even think. I
knew it was
pretty bad. All
that stuff came
into my head: I
was done
playing. That
was it.''
Piediscalzo
suffered a torn
ACL, torn MCL,
torn posterior
cruciate
ligament, torn
cartilage —
almost identical
to McGahee's
injury.
"Yeah, that's
one for the
ages,'' said
Dr. Gregg
Cavaliere of
Hudson Valley
Bone and Joint
in Tarrytown.
"You don't see
them very
frequently.
There aren't
many combination
ligament
injuries like
that, although
they do happen
in trauma, like
in car accidents
or motorcycle
accidents.''
Dr.
Cavaliere
used donated
tendons from
cadavers to
rebuild the
knee. A second,
arthroscopic
procedure was
done to get back
Piediscalzo's
range of motion.
Dr.
Cavaliere
figured his
football career
was over, too.
"You certainly
portray that
side,'' he said.
"Dr.
Maddalo
did a guy who
wound up an
Empire State
wrestling
champion 10
years later.
Generally, you'd
expect that
would be a
career-ending
injury.'' It
takes patience,
because with the
rarest of
exceptions like
McGahee, time is
required.
Piediscalzo
could run a 4.47
40 in August
2001. Two weeks
ago, in his
first outdoor
sprint attempts
after the long
winter,
Piediscalzo was
clocked at 4.8.
He figures he
can get that
down to 4.6 just
by getting out
and regaining
his regular
running
condition. His
strength is
almost the same
as it was
pre-injury. He
still dreams
about playing
pro football
every morning
when he awakens,
every night when
he goes to bed,
and with every
repetition in
the gym. He
hopes to work
out with the
semi-pro Orange
County Bulldogs,
maybe even spend
the summer
season with that
team, to get a
better idea
where his dream
stands. And if
it's still alive
then, perhaps 10
months from now
he'll be back at
the combines,
trying to catch
somebody's eye.
Trying to start
over.
