Brooke Point to face Massaponax

STAFFORD — Prior to the start of the 2009 football season, Gary Pisall had exactly one attempted pass as a member of the varsity squad at Brooke Point High School.

The result of that throw? An interception, coming in an Oct. 24 match-up with Albemarle.

Since then, it’s been nearly all positive. And Pisall is proof of the cliché: good things come to those who wait.

He spent two years as a backup, watching Brian Hudson break several school records and lead the Black-Hawks to two consecutive Commonwealth District championships.

Now, in his one and only year under center, Pisall has 1,290 passing yards and nine touchdown tosses. An impressive stat line to say the least, but according to his head coach, he still has room to improve.

“There’s a lot more out there for him,” Jeff Berry said. “He needs to get better and work on some things. We’re hoping he gets better in practice because we do see improvement from week to week. He’s gotten better incrementally.”

In leading the Hawks to a 4-1 start, Pisall has done best the recent district clashes. Last Friday, Pisall riddled the North Stafford defense by throwing for three touchdowns and 325 yards in a 28-9 home win.

That was a fine follow-up from his outstanding effort one week earlier against Mountain View, going 17-of-32 for 388 yards and four scores. Three of those came in the first half, as Brooke Point built up an 18 point lead after two periods of play. It nullified any chance of a continued letdown after the Black-Hawks dropped their only game of the year, a 20-0 loss to Loudoun Valley.

“We wanted to rebound from (the last week) and show everybody we’re here to stay,” Pisall said.

Pisall’s cast includes wide receivers E.L. Smiling, the recipient of a 62-yard third quarter score last weekend, and Alex Figueroa, who caught a 90-yard pass to pay dirt in the same evening.

Berry isn’t surprised by his ability to learn the Black-Hawks’ spread offense with relative ease.

“He’s been ready to play,” Berry said. “We felt very confident in him as a backup last year. We felt he was always ready to go. It was just a matter of him getting his shot and he’s making the most of it. He’s showing everybody that he has some pretty good natural ability.”

Some of his ability on the field is a result of his relationship with Brooke Point’s former quarterback. Hudson and Pisall continue to be good friends, and the current signal caller is benefiting from his predecessor.

“He taught me so much, like how to read (defensive) coverages,” Pisall said.

Pisall and Brooke Point continue their run at a third straight district title when they travel to Massaponax on Friday.

Brian Wright is a contributing writer for the Stafford County Sun and the content coordinator for CoachesAid.Virginia. Reach him at info@staffordcountysun.com.