Quarterback Black Shines in Early Surge

As a football-obsessed lefty growing up in the Bay Area, it's no shock that Graeme Black plastered his bedroom walls with posters of 49er quarterback Steve Young as a kid. But that Black would one day become a lefty quarterback with quick feet, a strong arm and leadership skills for Tam High was by no means a foregone conclusion.

Throughout his years of playing Pop Warner, Black spent most of his time on the defensive side of the ball, only focusing on quarterback in the past four years. But now he's at the helm of an offense that racked up five touchdowns in a 34-8 win over Lincoln High last Saturday.

With a road test tomorrow night against Sonoma Valley at 7:30pm, Black hopes to continue his hot play. Head coach Kevin Goyer said the junior has exceeded all expectations, both on and off the field.

"There's nothing I've had to say or imply for him to do anything more than what he's already doing," Goyer said. "I'm incredibly happy with what he does. He's a student of the game, he's a high-achievement guy in the classroom, and he's just a really good person for us to have at quarterback."

Black said he's had plenty of help. He's quick to give credit to his offensive line, which protected him so well against Lincoln that he was 11 of 16 for 132 yards, with his five incompletions a product of drops and his own misreads.

"I've barely gotten hit," he said. "Last week was awesome. I pretty much had my way."

Black's emergence isn't a surprise to Goyer, who gave him quality playing time in two playoff games last season after starter Alex Ritchie got hurt. Goyer was impressed enough to know that Black would be the starting quarterback this year.

"He showed early that he was good at controlling the offense and taking control of the huddle," Goyer said.

That experience gave Black plenty of time to glean leadership skills from players like then-senior fullback and safety Gabe Bram, who had several lengthy conversations with Black during the summer about how to carry himself.

"He was kind of like my mentor," Black said. "He really helped me grow as a football player."

Black has also leaned heavily on senior Brian Scott, who anchors the defense at linebacker, as one of only two returning starters from last year's team, along with offensive linemen Charles McMahon.

"I've learned to be constructive whenever possible and never negative," Black said.

Like a true coach's son – Black's dad Jon is the Tam freshman football coach – Black said he still sees plenty of room for improvement.

"I've been spending a lot of time watching film to look at the reads I've made and missed," he said. "A lot of this stuff just takes time to figure out in terms of the different coverages I'm seeing."

It's too early to get overly excited about Tam's success so far with most of the MCAL season ahead. But Black said he is determined to do what he can to continue to rewrite Tam's recent reputation as a football doormat. Last year's 8-4 season and its 33-13 upset playoff win over El Cerrito went along way toward that effort, and Black wants to keep the momentum going in his two seasons left with the Red-tailed Hawks.

"We're trying to change the dynamic around here," he said. "We've got a lot of young kids out here but we've got a lot of talent. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing this team grow."

As for what comes after that, Black's sister Julia attends UC-Berkeley, giving him the chance to tour the campus and check out the Bears' football facilities.

"Something to aim for," he said.