PREP FOOTBALL ‘93: Century League : Villa Park’s Pearsall Beefs Up to Elude Pain

There were two parts to Grant Pearsall’s season in 1992. The Villa Park running back enjoyed the ecstasy, then endured the agony.

The dividing line was against Loara in the fifth game of the season.

Before, Pearsall had cut and slashed his way through defenses. He even rattled Los Alamitos, at the time Orange County’s No. 1-ranked team.

After, he was reduced to running on one leg as he was hampered by a sprained ankle. The difference was noticeable. He did not have a 100-yard game after the injury.

“We taped it and we heated it every week,” Pearsall said. “I would stay off it during practice, then try to play. It was painful.”

The pain is behind him now and Pearsall is looking to put the hurt on the Spartans’ opponents, just as he did through the first four games of last season.

Pearsall, who has been clocked at 4.5 in the 40, has added flex to his flash. He spent the summer improving his strength. He is 10 pounds heavier, up to 184, and just as quick.

“I tried every kind of protein drink there is,” Pearsall said. “I ate as much as possible. I spent hours in the weight room. I want to be durable this season.”

That would be a refreshing change. Pearsall has been banged up the the past two seasons. He was a starting defensive back as a sophomore, but played most of the season with a pulled groin. Then came the ankle injury last season.

Of course, it was Pearsall’s extra effort that led to his injury. He was straining to get into the end zone, with a defender around his leg, and ended up straining ligaments in his ankle. Pearsall scored on the play, but it was costly.

“He lost all ability to cut in the open field,” Spartan Coach Pat Mahoney said. “You could really see the difference when he ran.”

It also showed in his numbers. Pearsall had 623 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns through the first four games. He finished with 1,090 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Villa Park went from Century League contender to battling for a playoff spot. The Spartans lost the struggle, finishing fourth.

Pearsall wasn’t supposed to be the Spartans’ offensive force last season. He was going to play defensive back, wide receiver and return kicks. Senior Ryan Tsui was going to be the team’s tailback.

But Tsui suffered a pulled hamstring before the season and Pearsall was moved to running back, where he was asked to provide big plays.

The first time he touched the ball, he returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown against Valencia. He finished with 125 yards and two touchdowns in a 38-21 loss to the Tigers, who won the Southern Section Division VI championship.

Pearsall opened eyes in the third game of the season when he shredded Los Alamitos’ defense. He finished with 226 yards and scored four touchdowns, including a 13-yard run that pulled the Spartans to within one point, 28-27, with seven minutes left. “I remember that one because I ran through five guys,” Pearsall said.

The Griffins, who were Division II co-champions, hung on to win.

“I don’t like to say a kid did something single-handedly, because there are people out there blocking for him,” Los Alamitos Coach John Barnes said. “But Pearsall came close to doing it by himself.”

But Pearsall’s season went south after the Loara game. He tried to play, but did so in pain--a family trait. His brother, Brian Pearsall, now a lineman at Cal Poly Pomona, played his senior season at Villa Park with a torn rotator cuff.

“You just can’t get Grant off the field,” Mahoney said. “We’d keep asking him if he felt all right and he’d say he was.”

But he wasn’t. Pearsall wasn’t even close to 100% until the final game of the season, when he set a school record by returning a kickoff 99 yards in a 27-13 upset of Orange, the league co-champion.

“There are nights when I felt really ready,” Pearsall said. “I knew I would do something big.”