Rejected by First Love, Vossmeyer Is Moving On

Some day, Scott Vossmeyer will have to answer for that Christmas card his family sent out in a mass mailing last year.

There he is, in complete USC regalia, standing with his similarly dressed family in the middle of the USC campus during homecoming.

There’s no telling when he’ll have to answer for it, but he will.

One day, the former Crescenta Valley High quarterback will stride into his Oregon locker room and find it posted on a bulletin board.

Or, maybe, Trojan fans will wave enlarged copies of the picture from the student section when Vossmeyer and the Ducks visit the Coliseum.

Truth is, Vossmeyer would have loved nothing better than to be a Trojan. It was his life’s ambition.

His brother, Steve, will be a senior pole vaulter at USC next season. His parents, Dick and Debbie, met at a USC dance. His uncle on his mother’s side attended the school. So did his aunt on his father’s side.

It was assumed he would follow their paths.

“That was my dream,” said Vossmeyer, who started Friday night for the West in the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame All-Star game.

“And it looked pretty promising there for a while.”

Then, USC’s recruiting coordinator, Steve Greatwood, was fired and quarterbacks coach Ken O’Brien quit.

The Trojans stopped talking to Vossmeyer, something his high school coach is still trying understand.

“I don’t know how they missed him,” said Coach Alan Eberhart, also a die-hard USC fan. “This kid is an incredible athlete, and he was born and bred to be a Trojan. I was disappointed for him, but also for myself. This guy was going to get me tickets!”

With USC out of the picture, Vossmeyer chose Oregon over California, coached by Tom Holmoe, a former NFL defensive back who played at Crescenta Valley.

“I just love the way the people are in Oregon,” Vossmeyer said. “Everyone says hello and they’re friendly. You don’t have to worry about who you look at, fearing they might shoot you.”

At 6 feet 4 and 208 pounds, and with a howitzer for a right arm, Vossmeyer was perhaps the region’s best-kept secret entering the 1999 season.

He earned the starting job at Crescenta Valley early in his junior season but suffered a broken leg in his first start.

Division I-bound quarterbacks Casey Clausen of Alemany, who committed to Tennessee, Matt Cassel of Chatsworth (USC), Zac Wasserman of Westlake (Penn State) and Brandon Hance of Taft (Purdue) received most of the attention early last season.

Vossmeyer needed to prove himself before gaining that kind of recognition.

He did, passing for a school-record 2,025 yards and 19 touchdowns and leading the traditionally run-oriented Falcons to a share of the Pacific League championship.

Now, it seems every time Vossmeyer’s phone rings, it’s an invitation to play in an all-star game.

When Eberhart, the West coach in the Hall of Fame game, called to recruit him, Vossmeyer had to confirm with Oregon coaches that he hadn’t already exceeded his limit of all-star games.

“I didn’t want to lose any eligibility or screw anything up,” said Vossmeyer, who will redshirt next season.

He was told that rules allow graduates to play in two all-star games.

Vossmeyer played last month in the Valley Youth Conference East-West game and has committed to play next Saturday at the Rose Bowl in a game featuring top players from California and Florida.

Oregon coaches told him since the Valley Youth Conference game was played June 10, before Vossmeyer’s graduation, he could accept Eberhart’s invitation.

Vossmeyer was his East’s most valuable player in the Valley Youth Conference game, completing 11 of 13 passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns in a 34-0 victory.

“He originally wasn’t on our roster,” said Coach Mike Herrington of Hart, the East coach. “We told the organizers of that game, ‘We want that kid.’ He has all the tools. In a couple of years, I bet he’s competing for a starting job [at Oregon].”

Vossmeyer couldn’t pull out a victory for the West in the Hall of Fame game at Arroyo High in El Monte, as the West lost, 13-10, to the East.

He won’t have much time to rest.

Vossmeyer is scheduled to leave for Oregon on Aug. 5.

Hopefully, the Duck faithful won’t hold that Christmas card thing against him.

“I don’t think they will,” brother Steve said. “After all, that was taken well before he committed to Oregon.”

His family is keeping its season tickets to USC games and everyone will still dress in cardinal and gold. Most of the time.

“For the first time, I’m going to be rooting for Oregon to finish No. 1 in the Pac-10,” Debbie said. “USC can finish second.”

Vossmeyer wouldn’t want it any other way.

“If I were given the choice all over again, my childhood dream of USC or attend Oregon, I’d pick Oregon in a second,” he said. “Not even close.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

* WHAT: California vs. Florida All-Star football game

* WHEN: July 22

* WHERE: Rose Bowl

* KICKOFF: 7 p.m.

* PLAYERS TO WATCH: Travis Johnson of Notre Dame (defensive end); Patrick Norton of Hart (fullback/linebacker); Manuel White of Valencia (tailback); Matt Cassel of Chatsworth (quarterback); Scott Vossmeyer of Crescenta Valley (quarterback); James Bethea of Cleveland (tailback); Keary Colbert of Hueneme (receiver); Will Svitek of Newbury Park (tight end); John Wall of Birmingham (kicker); Adrian Ayala of St. Bonaventure (tackle); Steve Nevarez of San Fernando (Guard); Gregg Guenther of Taft (tight end).