Hazlet Teen Gets $1K For Raritan Football; Advances In Contest

HAZLET, NJ — The Raritan High School varsity football player who was nominated for a "Heart of a Giant" award from the New York Giants has advanced to the finalist round of the competition.

Because he got enough votes, Hazlet teen Danny Fiore is one of ten finalists across New Jersey, New York and Connecticut who are now in the final round. Because he got so many votes, Danny was chosen out of hundreds of teens in the tri-state region. The winner will be selected in early/mid-December.

Because Danny made it to the final round he already achieved money to buy new equipment for the Raritan High football program: All ten finalists will receive $1,000 for their high school’s football program. The teen who is chosen as the final winner will get an additional $9,000 for their high school's football program.

The grand prize winner will be selected based on video submissions stating why they have the "Heart of a Giant." That teen will be honored on the field during a New York Giants’ home game before the season ends. The videos will be reviewed by the presenting sponsors of the award: USA Football, Hospital for Special Surgery and the New York Giants.

Danny, a 17-year-old senior at Raritan High, was nominated by Raritan head football coach Anthony Petruzzi because he has struggled with reading his entire life.

"When Danny was in first or second grade, the school wanted to assign him a special reading coach," his mother, Hannah Fiore, told Patch when he was first nominated. "He fought me so hard on that. He didn't want to stand out or have anyone treat him differently. We bought him a special $2,000 reading program and he worked so hard on his own, teaching himself how to read at home."

And yet an outsider would never know that Danny still struggles with reading, even to this day. He is No. 4 in his class at Raritan, has a perfect 4.0 GPA and is currently taking six Advanced Placement classes. Last year, he got a 5 (the highest score) on AP exams such as U.S. history, calculus and physics and a 3 on the AP language test.

"It just takes Danny longer to read," says his mother. "He knows what he has to do."

Danny says playing football for the Raritan Rockets was his escape: "On the field, I was different because I was good at it and I understood it," he said. "So, I dedicated myself to getting better at playing and to getting better at reading. Football helped me develop confidence and a positive self-esteem."

"Danny has inspired his teammates in both his friendship on and off the field," said Coach Petruzzi. "He has been recognized as a school leader and a future mover and shaker of our community."

Danny also plays varsity baseball and basketball for Raritan.

At the start of every fall football season, the New York Giants ask high school football coaches across the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) to nominate certain players. The student-athletes are chosen usually because they overcame a person struggle: For example, this Keansburg High School football player who had his arm amputated due to childhood cancer was also nominated.

Fiore advanced in part because on the number of votes he received, so the Hazlet community really rallied behind this local young man.

So congrats to Danny for making it this far and securing new equipment for the Raritan Rockets!!!

Original Patch report: Hazlet Football Player Nominated For NY Giants Award