Lawrence C. DiNardo (born August 18, 1949) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

who played for the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is a college football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana (CDP), Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the ca ...

team of the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

, and was recognized as a consensus

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

in 1970. After college, he practiced law in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Early life

DiNardo a native of

Howard Beach, Queens Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, Queens, Ozone Park, to the south by J ...

, is the older brother of college football coach

Gerry DiNardo Gerard Paul DiNardo (born November 10, 1952) is an American former football player and coach. He played college football as a guard for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish where he was selected as an All-American in 1974. DiNardo served as the head fo ...

. He attended St. Francis Preparatory School in

Fresh Meadows Fresh Meadows is a neighborhood in the northeastern section of the New York City borough of Queens. Fresh Meadows used to be part of the broader town of Flushing and is bordered to the north by the Horace Harding Expressway and Auburndale; to ...

neighborhood in New York City borough of Queens where he graduated as

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States. The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...

in 1967.

Playing career

DiNardo played for the

team under coach

Ara Parseghian Ara Raoul Parseghian (; ; May 21, 1923 – August 2, 2017) was an American football coach and player who coached the University of Notre Dame to national championships in 1966 and 1973. He is noted for bringing Notre Dame's Fighting Irish footb ...

during the 1968, 1969 and 1970 seasons. Following his senior year, as a 6-foot, 1-inch, 235-pound

, he was recognized as a consensus first-team

, having received first-team honors from several publications and organizations including the Associated Press (AP), and United Press International (UPI).''2014 NCAA Football Records Book''
Award Winners
, National Collegiate Athletic Association, Indianapolis, Indiana, pp. 4 & 14 (2014). Retrieved August 19, 2014. That year, he was a co-captain and helped the Fighting Irish to set a then all-time school record of 510.5 yards per game for total offense. DiNardo ran into some controversy after returning home from an

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

-sponsored trip to boost the troop morale during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. In an interview he called the war "a total waste." Later he told a reporter with ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'' that he was conservative and did not want to be "a hero of the new left." He also added he didn't think his comment was that controversial, saying "I mean, who's not against the war?"

After college football

DiNardo was drafted by the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

in the seventh round (158 overall selection) of the

1971 NFL draft The 1971 NFL draft was held January 28–29, 1971, at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York. The Boston Patriots, who did not officially change their name to New England Patriots until after the draft, used the first overall pick ...

. He played in 5 preseason games before getting cut. Instead of trying to make another team, he chose to return to Notre Dame and enter law school. He graduated in 1974 began practicing law in

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

. Later he joined the firm of Seyfarth, Shaw and Fairweather in

, and eventually became a partner at

Jones Day Jones Day is an American multinational law firm based in Washington, D.C. As of 2023, it is one of the largest law firms in the United States, with 2,302 attorneys, and among the highest-grossing in the world with revenues of $2.5 billion. Foun ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:DiNardo, Larry 1949 births Living people American football guards Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players All-American college football players Illinois lawyers Notre Dame Law School alumni People from Howard Beach, Queens Players of American football from New York City