New York Jets Cancel $100K Field Goal Challenge Invite For Superfan Honoring Her Late Father
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
The New York Jets added another disappointment to their already disappointing fans. The team canceled a $100,000 halftime field goal challenge just days before the game.
Ashley Castanio-Gervasi, a longtime Jets season ticket holder from Long Island, had earned her spot in the “Kick for Cash” contest by making a qualifying kick. She was set to take part during Sunday’s Jets vs. Patriots game at MetLife Stadium. On Monday, the team informed her that she would no longer be allowed to compete.
Castanio-Gervasi attends Jets games to honor her late father, Frank, a lifelong fan who died from esophageal cancer in 2011. She told the New York Post that the decision crushed her and her family. “This is life-changing money for me,” she said. “I was confident I could have made it.”
The Jets said they followed contest rules. The policy bans recent players and coaches from soccer, rugby, and football at the Olympic, college, or high school level. Castanio-Gervasi serves as the head coach of the Long Beach High School girls soccer team. Her college career at Stony Brook from 2010 to 2014 did not violate the rules.
How Castanio-Gervasi’s Invite Unraveled
Jets staff first noticed Castanio-Gervasi after she made an impressive kick at a Jets-Bills tailgate in September. That moment caught the team’s attention and earned her an invite to the contest.
She came back a few weeks later during a Jets-Panthers game and made another kick, which sent her to the finals. Moreover, she was the only woman to reach that stage of the challenge.
Castanio-Gervasi said the Jets staff only asked about her college soccer background. According to her, no one mentioned any issues about her coaching job until just days before the game. “This was the first time I was hearing of any of these questions,” she told the Post.
The New York Jets even promoted her story and allowed local media to cover it. A December 12 article in the Long Island Herald mentioned that she works as a varsity coach. Not long after that, the team called her to review the rules and then removed her from the event.
The Jets stated to the Post. “In accordance with competition rules and regulations, one individual who successfully made the qualifying kick will not be able to advance,” the team said. The franchise offered an alternative benefit and pledged a donation to the Esophageal Cancer Education Foundation.
Castanio-Gervasi said the offer missed the point. At least 15 family members bought tickets to watch her kick. They sold them in protest. She also skipped her first home game in a decade.
“My dad would have ditched his tickets over this,” she said. “Me and my whole family are let down.”
All this happened at a time when the Jets were already dealing with fan frustration, especially after the team failed to reach the playoffs for 15 consecutive seasons.
