Three Glittered Brightest Above the Shining Stars : Coach’s Look Into Future Was Accurate : Back of the Year: Development of Point Loma quarterback Danny White was foretold by his coach, Bennie Edens, who saw a star in the making.

Give Point Loma Football Coach Bennie Edens an A for clairvoyance.

Three years ago, he took one look at a kid named Danny White, who was tall, skinny and still a bit awkward, and decided he had found a quarterback. So he made plans to restructure Point Loma’s offense. The running game would soon become passe in favor of the pass.

“We could see it coming very early with Danny,” Edens said. “When he was a 10th-grader we switched the JV over to the passing attack. It got him thinking along that line.”

This season, his second as the varsity starter, White won the high school arms race, leading the county with 177 completions in 288 attempts for 3,169 yards and 26 touchdowns. He has been chosen the Times’ Back of the Year.

“We’ll never have another one like him,” said Bill Settles, Point Loma’s quarterback coach. “Real class kid.”

Perhaps nothing better indicates White’s abilities than his performance in Point Loma’s 48-35 victory over Orange Glen in the semifinals of the 3-A playoffs. The game was in overtime, and the Pointers were faced with fourth and goal from the Orange Glen 14. If they didn’t score, the season was over. White hit receiver J.J. Stokes over the middle for a touchdown.

“That kid delivered,” Settles said. “That’s the bottom line.”

White’s accomplishments aren’t surprising. Football runs in the family. His father, Jack, was a quarterback at Penn State.

Certainly, credit for his success has to be distributed. White’s receivers, Brett Callan and Stokes, were first and second in the county in receiving. But it was White’s work ethic that prepared him to effectively run Point Loma’s intricate offense.

“He has paid the price to become a good throwing quarterback,” Edens said. “He put in a lot of extra hours. He’s a good leader. He’s not a kid who’s cocky or flamboyant in any way.”