It Was a Net Loss for One Elway

A smorgasbord of notes, quotes and opinions from across the San Fernando Valley and its surrounding communities:

Here’s the tale of a 20-year-old unsolved mystery involving John Elway when he was a junior at Granada Hills High in the spring of 1978.

Former baseball-football teammate Bernie Forbes said he decided to build a batting cage at his parents’ house with the help of Elway.

“We’d hit hour after hour, but the balls were getting messed up,” he said. “We needed a batting net.”

Forbes suggested Elway borrow the field-goal net used at Cal State Northridge, where Elway’s father, Jack, was football coach.

“I remember John saying, ‘There’s no way, man. My dad would kill me.’ We got another net from another high school,” Forbes said.

But soon after, somebody stole the football net at CSUN. And to this day, according to Forbes, Jack Elway still wonders who took the net.

“Once a year his dad will bring it up and John swears, ‘Dad, we did not take the field-goal net,’ ” Forbes said. “And we didn’t, man.”

Today, like many of Elway’s former Granada Hills buddies, Forbes will watch the Super Bowl rooting passionately for Elway’s Denver Broncos. But win or lose, he’s an Elway fan for life.

“Those were magical years,” he said. “He was so much fun to be around.”. . . .

Another Elway story comes from former Granada Hills tailback Paul Scheper. Four years ago, Scheper’s brother, Bobby, was dying in a North Hollywood rest home of complications from juvenile diabetes. Elway sent Bobby a poster.

“It resuscitated his life,” Scheper said. “He lived another month because of the excitement of that poster by his bed.” . . .

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Chaminade (17-1) isn’t going to lose another basketball game this season, and here’s why: The Eagles are the region’s best rebounding team. They’ve outrebounded opponents, 637-328.

To beat Chaminade, a team must shoot 50% or better from the field because getting more than one shot on offense against the Eagles is a rarity. The only team to do it was Simi Valley, which shot 50% in the Eagles’ only loss.

Justin Stewart, a 6-foot-2 senior, is averaging 7.6 rebounds, followed by 6-5 senior Scott Long (7.6), 6-7 freshman Scott Borchart (7.1) and 6-6 senior Justin Beach (3.5). Opposing teams have only 117 offensive rebounds in 17 games.

“Having a 6-6 guard [Beach] really helps when we crash the boards,” Borchart said. . . .

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Freshman pitcher Jeremy Holiday, a former Antelope Valley High star, threw seven shutout innings for San Francisco earlier this week against Hawaii Hilo. . . .

The junior college baseball season begins next weekend. For once, local teams are stocked with quality pitchers.

College of the Canyons has former Hart pitcher Chris Baker, who dominated two years ago as a freshman at COC but was academically ineligible last season. Pierce has UC Santa Barbara transfer Barry Zito and former Kennedy right-hander Derek Morse. Glendale has freshman Wes Hutchison, who led Burroughs to the Foothill League title last season. . . .

Beware of junior first baseman Jon Bringuier of Granada Hills. He’s going to be a top power hitter this season. . . .

Burroughs junior right-hander Tony Sandoval is known as Dr. Death because “he loves to wear black,” assistant coach Craig Sherwood said. . . .

Chaminade baseball Coach Scott Drootin, on his young team: “We’re so young that half our players still get money from the tooth fairy.” . . .

Best wishes for a speedy recovery to longtime Taft principal Ron Berz, who had colon surgery. He could be sidelined four to six weeks. Former district administrator Dick Browning is filling in. . . .

Former Crescenta Valley basketball coach John Goffredo was honored Friday before the Falcons’ game with Hoover. But don’t anyone think Goffredo is permanently retired. He’s spending the next two years helping coach his son, a seventh-grade basketball player. By the year 2000, Goffredo will be a young, invigorated 48 and ready to return to coaching. . . .

An announcement is scheduled for Tuesday on the college choice of Notre Dame High tailback Justin Fargas. He has been meeting this week at his home with coaches from UCLA, USC and Michigan.

Anyone who thinks they know where he’s going is making a guess. Since last August, he clearly has been going back and forth. One school leads, another declines. USC was the favorite in the fall with Michigan close, then UCLA got back into the picture.

On Notre Dame’s campus, there are factions rooting for him to stay local. Some lobby for UCLA, others for USC. It’s a tough choice.

UCLA is on the rise under Coach Bob Toledo. The Bruins’ potential recruiting class, rated No. 3 in the nation by one publication going into this weekend, is loaded with big linemen. No one knows if Fargas could develop into an Olympic sprinter, but the Bruins have in their favor track Coach John Smith, one of the best in the world.

USC hurt itself by the way it handled the dismissal of John Robinson, but new Coach Paul Hackett has made a positive impression, and Fargas has always admired the Trojans’ tailback tradition, from Marcus Allen to Charles White.

It’s going to come down to where he’s most comfortable and what kind of future he envisions.

He’s the best football player to come out of the region since Russell White in 1989. He has the speed, toughness, dedication and desire to become a top college running back.

USC seems to be the favorite. By Tuesday, we’ll know for sure.

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Eric Sondheimer’s local column appears Wednesday and Sunday. He can be reached at (818) 772-3422.