Dom DiSandro
{{Short description|American football staffer (born 1978/79)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Dom DiSandro
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| current_team = Philadelphia Eagles
| position = Senior Advisor to the General Manager/Director of Gameday Coaching Operations/Chief Security Officer
| birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|44|2023|1|23}}
| birth_place = South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| high_school = George Washington {{nowrap|(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)}}
| college = Penn State
| pastexecutive =
- Philadelphia Eagles ({{NFL Year|1999}}–{{NFL Year|2011}})
Assistant to the Chief Security Officer - Philadelphia Eagles ({{NFL Year|2011}}–present)
Senior Advisor to the General Manager/Chief Security Officer - Philadelphia Eagles ({{NFL Year|2024}}–present)
Director of Gameday Coaching Operations
|highlights=* 2x Super Bowl champion (LII, LIX)}}
Domenico DiSandro (born {{birth based on age as of date|44|2023|1|23|noage=1}}),{{Cite news |last=McLane |first=Jeff |date=January 12, 2023 |title=Meet the Eagles' mystery man, their 'Papa Bear' head of security with a heart of gold |url=https://www.inquirer.com/eagles/eagles-dom-disandro-security-guard-philadelphia-nfl-doug-pederson-20230112.html |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer}} nicknamed "Big Dom", is an American football employee who is the senior advisor to the general manager, director of gameday coaching operations and chief security officer for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL).
Early life
DiSandro is a second-generation Italian American with roots in Molise{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IdUduk1vqs |title=Nick Sirianni & Dom DiSandro of the Philadelphia Eagles |date=2023-05-30 |last=National Italian American Foundation NIAF |access-date=2024-05-17 |via=YouTube}} and was born in South Philadelphia in 1978 or 1979. He attended George Washington High School in Northeast Philadelphia and played football as an offensive lineman. He earned an athletic scholarship to play for the Penn State Nittany Lions but did not appear in any games, being dismissed from the team for unspecified reasons. He received a degree in sports management from Penn State.
Career
DiSandro received a job recruiting from the Big East Conference for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1997 after meeting their general manager. According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, he "started assisting with small jobs and organically became the players' liaison, while [Butch] Buchanico, [the team's then-director of security], handled [coach Andy] Reid and high-level projects." DiSandro officially was hired by the Eagles in 1999 and worked in these roles until he was named the chief security officer one year after Buchanico retired in 2011. He also became the team's senior advisor to the general manager; according to the Eagles' website, in these roles he "oversees all safety and security matters for players, coaches, and executives," and "directs security at the team's training complex, is responsible for security measures related to team travel and logistics and provides education on the NFL's personal conduct policy."{{Cite web |title=Dom DiSandro |url=https://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/team/front-office/dom-disandro |access-date=January 5, 2024 |publisher=Philadelphia Eagles}} He has assisted the Eagles front office, including general manager Howie Roseman, with investigative work in scouting potential additions to the team.
Although considered a "mystery man" – DiSandro has never spoken publicly – he has become popular among players and team fans.{{Cite web |last=Kerr |first=Jeff |date=December 3, 2023 |title=Who is Dom DiSandro? A closer look at the man who was ejected with Dre Greenlaw in Eagles-49ers |url=https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/who-is-dom-disandro-a-closer-look-at-the-man-who-was-ejected-with-dre-greenlaw-in-eagles-49ers/ |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=CBS Sports}} He has been described as a "central figure" and players have called him "family"; Jason Kelce gave him the nickname of "Papa Bear". DiSandro is known for being well-connected around the city of Philadelphia and has helped players navigate legal issues ranging from minor infractions such as parking tickets to issues involving arrests and criminal charges. The Inquirer described him as "the
DiSandro released merchandise during the 2023 NFL season to support the Eagles Autism Foundation.{{Cite news|url=https://www.inquirer.com/eagles/dom-disandro-eagles-merchandise-autism-foundation-20231129.html|newspaper=The Philadelphia Inquirer|title=Beloved Eagles security chief Dom DiSandro releases new custom merchandise|access-date=January 5, 2024|author=Carroll, Gabriela|date=November 29, 2023}}
In a game during Week 13 of the 2023 season against the San Francisco 49ers, he was involved in a scuffle with 49ers player Dre Greenlaw that resulted in both being ejected from the game; DiSandro received a standing ovation from fans.{{Cite news |last=Bumbaca, Chris |date=December 3, 2023 |title=49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw, Eagles security chief Dom DiSandro ejected after sideline scuffle |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/49ers/2023/12/03/dom-disandro-dre-greenlaw-ejected-niners-eagles/71794944007/ |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=USA Today}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.nj.com/eagles/2023/12/who-is-eagles-dom-disandro-who-got-niners-lb-dre-greenlaw-ejected-from-game.html|work=NJ.com|title=Who is Eagles' Dom DiSandro, who got Niners' LB Dre Greenlaw ejected from game?|author=Manahan, Kevin|access-date=January 5, 2024|date=December 3, 2023}} Walt Anderson, the NFL senior vice president of officiating, stated that DiSandro's disqualification from the game was warranted as he "was contributing to that escalation."{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5109224/2023/12/03/who-is-big-dom-dre-greenlaw/|access-date=January 5, 2024|website=The Athletic|title=Who is 'Big Dom'? Eagles security officer ejected after Dre Greenlaw interaction|date=December 3, 2023}} Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni apologized to 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan for the incident after the game. However, Sirianni defended DiSandro, saying, "He's going to always try to defuse situations... That's what he does. That's his job."{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/12/04/eagles-49ers-fight-security-ejected/|newspaper=The Washington Post|title=NFL could discipline Eagles, security staffer for sideline incident|date=December 4, 2023|author=Maske, Mark|access-date=January 5, 2024|url-access=subscription}} Although he and Greenlaw exchanged apologies through intermediaries afterwards, the NFL decided to ban DiSandro from the sidelines for the subsequent game against the Dallas Cowboys, and then for the rest of the regular season.{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/eagles-security-disandro-49ers-greenlaw-595e6c14141fb055b2a08e36d25902c5|work=Associated Press News|title=Eagles security guard DiSandro banned from sideline for Sunday Night Football vs. Cowboys|access-date=January 5, 2024|date=December 9, 2023|author=Gelston, Dan}}{{Cite web |last=Simmons, Myles |title=Report: Eagles' Dom DiSandro banned from sideline for rest of regular season |url=https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/report-eagles-dom-disandro-banned-from-sideline-for-rest-of-regular-season |access-date=January 5, 2024|date=December 16, 2023 |website=ProFootballTalk |publisher=NBC Sports}} He also received a $100,000 fine; the team's appeal of the sanctions was denied.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.si.com/nfl/eagles/news/big-dom-disandro-loses-nfl-appeal-philadelphia-eagles-hero-pays-100000-fine|magazine=Sports Illustrated|title='Big Dom' Loses Appeal: Eagles 'Hero' Pays $100,000 Fine|date=December 23, 2023|author=Fisher, Mike}}
On June 9, 2024, the Eagles added the title of Director of Gameday Coaching Operations to DiSandro's role.{{Cite web |last=Allen |first=Ely |date=June 9, 2024 |title=Eagles Announce Numerous Updates To Front Office |url=https://www.profootballrumors.com/2024/06/eagles-announce-numerous-updates-to-front-office |access-date=June 11, 2024 |website=Pro Football Rumors |language=en}}
He has been a part of two Super Bowl winning teams for the Eagles in the 2017 and 2024 seasons.{{cite web | last=Wilner | first=Barry | title=Foles, Eagles outshoot Patriots for 1st Super Bowl, 41-33 | website=AP News | date=2018-02-05 | url=https://apnews.com/general-news-066eef805dd24fc4b57359a3d4746c08 | access-date=2025-02-17}}{{cite web | last=Maaddi | first=Rob | title=Eagles deny the Chiefs a Super Bowl three-peat with dominant defense in a 40-22 rout | website=AP News | date=2025-02-10 | url=https://apnews.com/article/super-bowl-2025-eagles-chiefs-score-e2ff209c074a00a6faff39750ff048f8 | access-date=2025-02-17}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Philadelphia Eagles}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:DiSandro, Dom}}
Category:American football offensive linemen
Category:American people of Italian descent
Category:Pennsylvania State University alumni
Category:Philadelphia Eagles executives