Football: Young QB getting football education at Shenandoah (11-3-05)
By Michael Petre (Daily Staff Writer)
WINCHESTER — Struggling to keep his head above water, the thought of quitting — just leaving it all behind — crossed John Bergida's mind.
"When we started learning all the plays and everyone else was so far ahead, it was a little tough," Shenandoah's freshman quarterback said Wednesday. "It was like a totally new language."
Bergida came to Shenandoah to study languages, but this was ridiculous. At just 15 years old, the home-schooled Front Royal native was trying to feel his way through the first few football practices of his life.
It wasn't going well.
"I had never taken snaps," said Bergida, who turned 16 in September. "I was fumbling, messing up the footwork."
Having never experienced even a second of competitive football — nothing beyond backyard games — he had to learn the diction, description and dedication that make football a confusingly simple sport.
"All the other players already knew a lot of the techniques," he said. "It sort of left me behind in the dark a little bit."
* * *
Bergida grew up in a Roman Catholic home, and the family's religious dedication compelled Mike and Theresa Bergida to home-school their children. Without a point of communal learning, high school sports were out of the question, but John couldn't snuff the competitive itch.
"John had a point to prove to himself," Shenandoah coach Paul Barnes said. "I think he just wanted to prove everybody wrong."
Although he was just 15, college football was an option. Having already scored a satisfactory SAT score, Bergida had the classroom acumen to cut it at SU. What he didn't know — at first — was that football was an option.
"I didn't even know Shenandoah had a football team," he said. "I just thought of it more as the close music school."
As summer unfolded, the idea took root in Bergida's mind. With Barnes' approval, Bergida hoped to join the back-to-back USA South Conference co-champions, who were coming off their first Division III playoff appearance. Shenandoah doesn't offer athletic scholarships, but money wasn't an issue. Attaining Barnes' agreement — perhaps more importantly, his understanding — became the goal.
"He knew how I felt about him coming out," Barnes said. "I had a lot of concerns — the age difference, the physicality difference. I didn't tell him he couldn't, but I said it's going to be tough."
Bergida understood those worries but trudged on regardless.
"I really love playing football," he said.
After a little negotiating with his parents, it was settled: Bergida would attend Shenandoah and join the team. He hoped to find a niche as a linebacker, but Barnes drew the line there, feeling the physical demands of the position were too much for Bergida's 5-foot-9, 205-pound frame.
The options: Wide receiver or quarterback. The latter position earned the nod, somewhat to Bergida's chagrin.
"I like hitting," he said with a smile. "During practice, if they need somebody to go out there and block a punt or something, I'll run out there — even though I'm a quarterback — and hit somebody."
The Hornets have had special teams problems this season, but Bergida's number hasn't been called just yet.
* * *
After making the decision to come to Shenandoah in a matter of weeks, Bergida arrived on campus in August, ready to hit the practice field.
The practice field was waiting to hit him back. Barnes prides himself on the Hornets being the best-conditioned team in the country, meaning Bergida was in for a rude awakening.
"It was a lot more than I expected," he said. "I wouldn't have expected all this fast running in pads, or running up hills and hitting bags."
Bergida had to learn the intricate details of Barnes' Ace Wing offense, which is not overly complicated but certainly can dazzle a player without an organized football background. If the rest of the Hornets' freshmen quarterbacks were infants in the system, Bergida remained in the womb.
"The other kids, who had played through high school, already had a basic knowledge of that," Bergida said. "It's a new name for them, but, for me, I'm learning it from scratch."
The odds were already stacked against his freshman quarterback, but Barnes saw enough early on to know Bergida was there for the long haul.
"Once I saw him going though summer camp and working hard, he was going to be all right," Barnes said. "I don't think many 15-, 16-year-olds can do that."
As camp wrapped up, Bergida remained buried on the depth chart. When the Hornets' junior varsity schedule opened Sept. 7, Bergida was hoping just to get a chance, at some point.
It only took a week, when Bergida took a few uneventful snaps at Bridgewater. He'd play two more games, even lining up as a receiver for a handful of plays in a home game against Bridgewater on Oct. 6.
Upon each snap, Bergida charged hard at the opposing defensive back — even though the Hornets had called a running play to the other side of the field.
"I tried to lay the guy out," Bergida grinned.
Much to the pleasure of the crowd, which had chanted for Bergida mere moments earlier. Many of the Hornets' varsity players were in attendance, and they had taken a shine to "Big John." They wanted their man on the field.
"The quarterbacks took him under their wing and did a good job with him," Barnes said. "Not many people can do what they did. The kids love him a lot, but I don't want to experience it all the time, either."
* * *
Bergida's presence puts Barnes in a delicate position. He won't cut an under-performing player on ability alone, but he doesn't want Bergida to injure himself or someone else, either. Barnes is conflicted about the situation but has grown to appreciate what Bergida brings to his program.
"We have to get ready to play a game," Barnes said. "He knows that, and he's fine with it. As a coach, I'm still responsible for him and I really have to watch the situations I get him in."
That's something Bergida can deal with. With one season in the books — the Hornets have two varsity games left, but their JV schedule concluded last weekend — he's hoping for more in chapter two.
Even if it won't be at linebacker.
"If I'm not on varsity, I want to get a lot of JV time in," Bergida said. "And just keep improving."
