AfterGlow: Bergamo

The Coin Toss - Tails never Fails!

My grandfather, Frosty Westering, coached at Pacific Lutheran University for over 30 years, racking up over 300 wins and 4 National Championships, and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.  However, it is not the “Scoreboard” that is his greatest achievement… nor is it how he would want people to remember his coaching career.  During his time at PLU, he introduced many revolutionary ideas about coaching and sports psychology, and taught his players to become better people by understanding that football is more than a game… it is a way to learn LIFE LESSONS, to GROW AS A PERSON, and to ultimately become MORE THAN A CHAMPION – by helping others & seeing life through a positive point of view.

One of the most important & memorable traditions that he started, which is continued today by my uncle Scott Westering (Frosty’s son and current PLU Head Coach), is something called AFTERGLOW.  He believed that you put so much work into preparing for a game during the week, that you should not just go your separate ways the moment it is over… that there are stories, memories, and lessons that should be shared with family, friends, and fans after the game.  Therefore, about an hour after EVERY PLU GAME, the “family” of PLU Football gathers for an “Afterglow” to share the post-game experience.  It is led by the coach & captains, and players share with everyone the amazing JOY of playing a game you love – often laughing, crying, talking, praying, and carrying on for well over an hour.  There is usually food brought by different families, and it is not uncommon for the Afterglow to be almost more memorable for the players than the game itself.  (All of this seems very Italian to me!)

Growing up as a ballboy and lifelong member of the PLU Family (my brother also played quarterback for PLU – making 3 generations of PLU Football!), I have attended hundreds of Afterglows… and therefore feel it a little strange not to have one after our Italian Games.  THEREFORE, here is my own personal ‘Afterglow’ session about the Bergamo Game and the many great memories that were made:

THE ADAMS FAMILY.  When we fly to away games, we fly commercial airplanes filled with normal people.  However, as the plane is about to take off, the entire team braces to “help” the stewardesses teach people about the safety features of our aircraft.  IRONICALLY, THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT THE PLU TEAM DOES WHEN IT FLIES!  As she pulls out the safety information card, suddenly 35 cards are thrust into the air, often making the stewardess laugh and start having a great time.  We all are sure to point out that there are 2 exits to the front, 2 to the side, and of course, 2 to the rear.  When she shows you how to buckle your seat belt, loud metallic clicks from our own can be heard echoing through the plane.  Before you know it, everyone else on the plane is smiling too… fun is contagious!  After she finishes, the whistling begins – THE ADAMS FAMILY.  You can be sure that everyone on the plane knows the part of the song where our seatbelts loudly replace the snapping, going “Click Click.”

ENRICO: SO QUICK HE HAS 2 NUMBERS.  Our new Red Uniforms are great – the bright red color of “Mt. Etna Molten Lava” just glows in the sun.  However, when producing new uniforms for an entire team, some funny things can happen.  Our shifty running back, Enrico Lombardo, is so quick that people often think he is in two places at once.  Trying to capture this, our uniform manufacturers decided it would be best to give him 2 DIFFERENT NUMBERS – one on his chest, and a different one on his shoulders.  So be sure to keep an eye on number 37/33 in your program!  

NOW AT QB: JACK JOHNSON!  For some reason, the Bergamo stadium announcer had trouble with my name.  Not once, but for the entire game.  I was playing and obviously unaware, but after the game was told by my teammates that on different plays, Jason Johnson, Jeff Johnson, Jack Johnson, Jason Jackson, and John Jefferson all took snaps at quarterback.  No wonder they could not figure out our offense!

SPEAKING OF ANNOUNCERS… The Bergamo stadium announcer did much more than just call me different names.  It is not confirmed, but I have been told that the announcer was actually a high-ranking Bergamo official.  That being said, he was able to use his “eye in the sky” to also become the “voice of God” – telling their defense where our players were lining up and giving them little ‘tidbits’ of information that one might find useful.  My favorite was this one (announced to the whole stadium):  “CATANIA IS READY TO RECEIVE THE KICKOFF.  AMERICAN MATT EPPERSON HAS MOVED UP ON THE RIGHT SIDE TO CATCH A SHORT KICK – IT WOULD BE A VERY GOOD TIME TO KICK IT DEEP…” (which some how they did?)

MADDEN IFL: THE VIDEO GAME.  As the shootout wore on – and with 7 touchdowns scored in the second quarter alone, I got the strange feeling that we were actually just inside of some video game.  I made sure at this moment to just sit in the sun, allowing the craziness of Italian Football to hit me, and it all made me smile.  So what if after two games I’ve only seen one punt… win, lose, or draw, this is FUN!  As we battled back and forth, we all began joking about this on the sideline.

MATT EPPERSON: I AM BATMAN!  In the second quarter, Matt started playing some defense, and after hitting their QB on a scramble, was more than just a little ‘woosy.’  We rushed his to our bench, where he would only speak Italian at first, just saying, “Aqua! Aqua!  Aqua!”  I told him to just relax for a few minutes, that we still had a whole other half to play.  He said, “Are you serious?  We’ve been playing forever!”  At least he didn’t tell people he was Batman!

STATS: For some reason, our league has not published the stats from the game yet.  Matt Epperson had 6 catches for 130 yards and 2 TDs, Claudio Mangano had 6-112, Gregorio 3-38, Enrico 4-23, Guiseppe 1-22, and Salvo 1-4.  Overall, we were 21-38 passing for 330 yards.  Enrico carried the ball 17 times for 80 yards.  Of course, we were playing on a 90 yard field with no single yard lines and a big line only every 10 yards, so these stats are as good as we could estimate.

IFL: THE SOUNDTRACK.  One other great aspect of Bergamo is the continuous music played… the entire game!  It is turned up between plays, and just turned down a little when the game is actually on.  After a while, I felt like I was playing the game with my iPod on… a funny sensation.  Before long, I was singing along as some of the Top 40 Tunes in America came playing through.  My favorite song was a rap beat mixed with some Spanish Trumpets… I still have it in my head!  Maybe I can download it somewhere… 

BOUQUETS!  As the PLU Afterglow wraps up, players stand and acknowledge the efforts and great plays of their teammates – something that Frosty began calling “Bouquets” (Like giving them flowers for their self-confidence!)  Here are some Bouquets to a few of my teammates, great job!

ROBERTO CONTI, Linebacker: Has been our most consistent playmaker on defense, and has made up for missing a month of preseason practice (due to a business trip to Israel!) with great instincts and a nose for the ball.  We all can follow his lead with EFFORT and determination! 

CHRISTIAN DI MAURO, Safety.  In only his second year of organized football, “Crazy Christian” is flying around the field with reckless abandon.  He leads our defense in tackles, and is a LEADER on our team in terms of effort.  If everyone on our team played as hard as him, we would be much improved.  My favorite play he had on Saturday was when he received a short kickoff and immediately headed straight up field – not worrying about the on-coming tacklers!  As the first defender approached him, he jumped straight in the air, hurdling him and actually putting his leg in the middle of his chest!  It was a sweet play, and defined the great heart that he has!

CLAUDIO MANGANO, Receiver.  The “Sheriff” has continued to improve every game, and his hard work and positive attitude are contagious.  This past game, he had his first hundred yard game, catching many passes that were often in tight coverage over the middle!  I know his ribs must not being feeling great (sorry my friend!) but I really have enjoyed playing with “Otto-Cinque” (the Italian equivalent of a certain Bengals receiver nickname he gave himself).  Great game, Claudio!

IN CONCLUSION: THE ATTAWAY.  Frosty’s favorite chant to tell people they were doing a good job was with what he called his “Attaway Cheer!”  So to finish, please (silently if you are reading this from an office computer) repeat after me: Hey Elefanti!  Go Elefanti!  Attaway!  Attaway!

 

~ J. Twice