Chamberlain Still in Coma, but He’s Improved

Mike Chamberlain, the Mission Bay High School booster club president who collapsed Friday during the school’s football game at La Jolla High School, remained in a coma at Mission Bay Hospital Saturday. But his condition has improved slightly, according to a family friend and physician.

Dr. Nancy Lane, an internal medicine specialist from San Francisco whom family members call Chamberlain’s “adopted daughter,” said Chamberlain, 49, suffered an attack of arrhythmia, not a heart attack, in the stands during the first quarter while watching his oldest son, David, who plays center for Mission Bay.

Chamberlain remained on a respirator in the Mission Bay intensive care unit late Saturday night. Lane termed his condition “stable but guarded” and said his blood pressure, heart rate and comatose conditions have improved. She also praised the efforts of paramedics who worked to revive him in the stands for nearly 30 minutes before he was transported to the hospital.

“Nothing could have been done any better,” Lane said. “Everything was done right from the beginning. That’s why he’s alive.”

Lane said Chamberlain, a handyman who is president of the Buc Football Club at Mission Bay, suffered no heart damage but experienced what doctors call “sudden death.”

“Although he’s not conscious yet, he’s showing signs of improvement,” Lane said. “We’re optimistic he’ll come to in the next few days.”

The Chamberlain family, meanwhile, has received an outpouring of support, mainly because of Mike Chamberlain’s significant contributions to Pacific Beach youths. He has coached dozens of youth sports, is a former Boy Scout leader, president of the PTA and started the Pacific Beach Whalers soccer league.

“Every kid on the Mission Bay side (of Pacific Beach) knows him in one way or another,” said Chamberlain’s wife, Betsy. “The support has been absolutely fantastic. People are calling from all over.”

David Chamberlain said he was aware there was a problem in the stands, but wasn’t notified about his father’s condition until the second quarter, when he ripped off his shoulder pads and jersey and sprinted across the field and into the stands to join his family en route to the hospital.

“He loves life and he loves his football,” David said. “I want him back watching me play football soon.”

Chamberlain, who was with his younger son, Rusty, 14, graduated from La Jolla High School in 1960 and played football on the same field. His coach was the late Gene Edwards, who retired in June and died of a heart attack Aug. 1.