Johnston Football Player Pulls Off Ultimate Trick Play
On Thanksgiving Day, lots of local high school teams took their respective fields for some football, but only one game mixed gymnastics with the runs and passes. Wide receiver Joe Acciardo from Johnston High School in Rhode Island has been a dancer since he could walk, and his moves on the dance floor came in handy on the football field last Thursday.
In a clip captured by WPRI12, Acciardo can be seen performing a series of backflips down the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped and a touchdown is easily scored. You can also see (and hear) just how surprised the Pilgrim defense was by the moves. Seriously, careful how loud you watch this one in the office.
Back at the beginning of the season Acciardo was interviewed by the Providence Journal about his unusual moves and credited his dance background for the flipping ability. His mother owns High Steppin' Dance Academy and Acciardo's dance history may be even more impressive than his flips.
The All-State player has been on stage with Justin Bieber, auditioned for Jennifer Lopez and performed in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. His biggest Thanksgiving performance to date almost didn't happen, though.
On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Pilgrim High School's planned opponent Toll Gate pulled out due to lack of players. As luck would have it, Johnston had been looking for a team to play on Thanksgiving for weeks and the new matchup was booked.
Lucky for us all the team got close enough to the end zone to use this incredible trick play that I'm pretty sure has never been pulled off before. Johnston went on to win the game over Pilgrim 29-12.