Paying Back Chargers With Interest : Rookie Quarterback Yearns to Turn Debt Into a Super Profit

Paul Berner, a rookie quarterback looking for a job with the Chargers, believes he owes a debt to owner Alex Spanos.

However, he will have to earn the right to pay that debt in training camp, which begins today at UC San Diego.

Berner’s debt to the Chargers’ owner was incurred when the rookie was a quarterback at Mesa College and Spanos, a prominent University of Pacific supporter, sent one of his private planes to transport Berner to Stockton for a recruiting visit. Berner repaid part of that debt when he broke 11 Pacific records.

Reunited with Spanos, Berner now has bigger goals in mind.

“I’d really like it to pan out, so I can repay Mr. Spanos--with interest,” Berner said. “I’d really love to take the Chargers to the Super Bowl.”

Berner’s dream won’t be easy to fulfill, particularly for a quarterback drafted in the ninth round.

Along with 76 other rookies and free agents, Berner reported to the UCSD campus Friday for the official opening of training camp. There will be physical exams and fitness tests today, and two-a-day drills begin Sunday. Two days later, there will be a scrimmage against the Los Angeles Rams in Fullerton.

Coach Don Coryell was in an upbeat mood after putting the big group through a week of get-acquainted drills at the stadium.

“The guys learned what the hell is expected of them, and it should help (them) make the team,” he said. “Some of these guys wouldn’t have had a chance without these workouts, and we’re appreciative of (owner) Alex Spanos letting us bring everybody in a week early. It was expensive, and it shows how badly he wants to win.”

Coryell was asked if this will be the most competitive camp he’s conducted.

“Hell no,” he said. “It’s always competitive. But all anybody has to do is look at the numbers to know there’s going to be pressure.”

The odds against Berner and the dozens of other hopefuls are prohibitive, but that means nothing to a rookie. You’re beaten if you don’t believe in yourself.

“I can’t picture myself being cut,” said Berner, a 6-foot 3-inch, 207-pound San Diego native who played football at Clairemont High School and Mesa before moving on to Pacific.

Spurning offers from bigger football schools such as Georgia and Michigan State, Berner had a big career in the little city of Stockton.

His education as a football player might have been furthered at a different school, but his overall education was well-served by attendance at Pacific. He is a year away from earning an engineering degree, and his future is not solely dependent on football.

That is probably fortunate, because Berner faces several problems in making the Charger roster.

Behind starter Dan Fouts are veterans Bruce Mathison and Mark Herrmann, journeymen at best, but experienced nonetheless.

With rosters trimmed from 48 to 45 this year, it’s possible the Chargers will carry only two quarterbacks on their active roster, although another probably would be listed on injured reserve.

Berner, though confident, is hardly cocky.

“Hey, being drafted on the ninth round was sobering,” said Berner, who had expected to go in the third. “I have confidence in my physical ability, but I’m quite impressed with Bruce Mathison’s arm. It’s stronger than mine--or Dan Fouts’.”

It’s hard to get a feel for how good Berner may be. After all, he doesn’t know himself.

“I had no idea until after my senior season,” he said. “Then I saw some other quarterbacks at the Blue-Gray and Senior Bowls and realized I might have a chance.”

Berner was crushed when his name was not announced in the early rounds of the draft. Then the Chargers called.

“I felt about as low as you could get until that phone rang,” he said. “After I got the call, I went out with some buddies and had a few beers to celebrate.”

He had been yearning to play for the Chargers since childhood.

Berner, who remembers watching Chicago linebacker Dick Butkus chase Charger back Dickie Post all over the lot in the first NFL game he ever saw as a kid, was a lineman until his junior year at Clairemont.

That season, his first as a quarterback, he quit the team after hurting his ankle and rupturing a bursa sac in his knee. As a senior, he said he was “terrible.” He didn’t have command of the game and didn’t start to progress until his second year at Mesa.

However, with his experience at Pacific behind him, Berner thinks he is ready for the trials of training camp.

“Hey, anytime they want to pay you good money to have fun, it shouldn’t be an easy job,” he said. “I’m one of those guys who doesn’t even mind practice.”

He may have a different attitude a month from now, if he’s still around.

“I’m not worried about it,” he said. “You’ll really get messed up if you worry. I didn’t win any prizes, but I threw well this week and got an introduction to what camp will be like.

“I learned you can’t be perfect all the time. You keep wondering what degree of perfection is required, but no coach tells you.”

The answers will start coming Sunday. Coryell said he will begin trimming players as soon as it’s obvious someone just doesn’t have a prayer.

Rookie Paul Berner would like a chance to pay back a debt to Charger owner Alex Spanos. See Chris Cobbs’ story, Page 4.