The Willow Glen Resident Photograph by Jeff Kearns Loving Legacy: Former Willow Glen star quarterback Bob Berry Jr. was on hand Saturday when the high school field was dedicated in the name of his father, the late Bob Berry Sr. Willow Glen stomps San Jose 47-0 By Dick Sparrer It was quite a day for Willow Glen football. It was homecoming on the Cottle Avenue campus, and the Rams were pounding San Jose Academy at both the varsity and frosh-soph levels. What's more, there was a special dedication ceremony to name the Willow Glen football complex in honor of the late Bob Berry Sr. The day couldn't have been more complete. Well, it could have, if Pioneer had just completed that pass for the two-point conversion just a few miles down the Almaden Expressway. So what's a Pioneer pass completion have to do with Willow Glen? Plenty. The Mustangs were hoping to celebrate their own homecoming with an upset win over first-place Santa Teresa. And they came within a two-point conversion of doing just that. A Pioneer win would have helped Willow Glen in the race for the title in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League. The Rams are 2-1 in league play, and their only loss was to the Saints. So for the Rams to get back into the title picture, they need someone to knock off Santa Teresa. And Pioneer almost did it last Saturday. A win by the Mustangs would have made the day complete for the Rams. But it was still quite a day. Rain hampered homecoming activities, but, despite the rain that fell for most of the game, the Willow Glen frosh-soph rolled to an easy victory. The sun came out in time for the field- dedication ceremonies. On hand for the event were Berry's wife, Mavis, his daughter, Nancy Berry Smith, and his two sons, Bob Jr. and Ken. Frank Fiscalini of the San Jose City Council, Ron Edwards of the San Jose Unified School District and former Willow Glen football star Roger Olsen each addressed the crowd before team captain Nich Holt presented a plaque to Mrs. Berry. A day earlier, the school district had spruced up the Willow Glen facility, painting the scoreboard and installing the "Bob Berry Field" sign on top of it. "The fact that the sun came out made for a real nice day," Willow Glen football coach Bob Parker said. The sun continued to shine for the Rams, who had a pretty nice day themselves, scoring seven touchdowns against San Jose. The nonleague win left the Rams 5-2 for the year as they prepare to return to Santa Teresa Division play this week. Willow Glen will host Pioneer in a key game on Oct. 31, 1:30 p.m. The Mustangs are 1-3 in the division after losing the 17-16 heartbreaker to Santa Teresa last Saturday. Pioneer is 3-4 for the year. Santa Teresa and Piedmont Hills share the division lead with matching 3-0 records, and Willow Glen and Valley Christian are close behind with 2-1 marks. The Rams must beat Pioneer, Piedmont and Prospect to close out the season, and hope for someone else to knock off the Saints, if they have any hopes of winning even a share of the title. Pioneer almost did it. Greg Haskell hit Kevin Gray with a 31-yard touchdown pass with just 29 seconds left to cut the lead to 17-16, but his pass for the two-pointer was intercepted. Willow Glen was cheering for Pioneer last weekend, but the Rams sure won't be pulling for the Mustangs this Saturday when the two rivals meet for the first time in two years. "We know one thing: [head coach Mark] Krail's teams never give up," Parker said, looking ahead to the Saturday game. "And both teams learned this weekend how to play in the rain." Parker expects a sloppy field for Saturday's game. The Willow Glen turf was in poor shape after last Saturday's double header, then there was a youth football twin bill on the field on Sunday. What's more, Parker said, more rain is forecast this week. The rain didn't actually fall on the Willow Glen varsity on Saturday, but the field was soaked after a morning downpour. The Rams got off to a slow start on the soggy field, but when they did finally get going there was no stopping them. David Macchi's first pass of the day was picked off, and the Rams couldn't move on their next possession. But Cory Hare recovered a San Jose fumble, and a play later Eddy Sanchez took off on a 42-yard touchdown run. Hare had a key downfield block on the play. Holt's extra point made it 7-0, and that's how the first period ended. "Then we got on a roll," Parker said. Leon Thomas, who led the ground attack with eight carries for 64 yards, blasted over from the two, then Macchi hit Holt for 22 yards and a touchdown. Macchi tossed to Sanchez for the two-point conversion, and the Rams led 21-0 at the half. Mike Strangis, who supported Thomas with 51 yards on seven carries, scored on a two-yard run, and Shane Lamar returned an interception 20 yards for a TD. Daniel Lopez ran for a two-point conversion after the Strangis touchdown. San Jose was forced to go to the air; defensive end Kyran Warren nearly picked off a pass. On the next play the other defensive end, Greg Mansfield, did intercept a San Jose toss. The interception set up a 12-yard touchdown run by back-up quarterback Will Rideau. Willow Glen capped the scoring in the fourth when Jon Ross shot over from the one. Macchi was five for 12 for 81 yards in the win. Hare and Brian Hyland led the defensive effort for the Rams, and Warren "played hard and made some great plays," Parker said. Hare, Jeremy Downs and Rocci Garrett each recovered San Jose fumbles in the game. "Our kids had a good time," said Parker after the lopsided victory. [ Back to Contents Page | Willow Glen Resident Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Willow Glen Resident, October 28, 1998. ©1998 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.