I remember growing up and my dad taking me to Oak Grove High School football games. I remember watching these games and thinking I wanted to be an Eagle one day.
There was only one problem: I didn’t live in the right zone to go to Oak Grove. I was zoned for Santa Teresa High School and as a football player, Santa Teresa was not really where you wanted to be.
My dad started coaching football at Oak Grove High School a few years before I was supposed to go to school and we found out that I could transfer through the magnet program. The problem was I was down on the waiting list. After patiently waiting, I was finally accepted to Oak Grove High School and the rest is history.
I went to Oak Grove because at the time we had the best public school program in the area and I had a dream to play Division 1 college football. We actually weren’t just the most dominant public school program but the best program, period.
Superstars rolled through the school before I did: Andre Carter, Mark Grieb, Tim Ryan, Marty Mornhinweg, James Hodgins, Rossi Martin and many more. Then I had the pleasure of playing with Jon Barragan, D’Shaun Crockett, Calvin Edwards, Jamaar Julien, Marcus Reese, Nick Gardiner, Ben Fritz, G.B. Wilson, Kellen Taylor, Jamaal Jackson, Eric Frampton and many more. The men that I have named are some of the biggest names in OG history and went on to have great college careers and for some, professional careers. I know I am not even close to hitting them all and there were a ton of studs that played there that didn’t continue to play.
Like I said, OG was the most dominant program around and the amount of talent that came out of here was absolutely crazy. But as talent rolled through, one thing stayed the same: the leadership of Coach Ed Buller.
When I got pulled up to varsity my freshmen year, that was when I got my first taste of Coach B. There was something about the way he lead his teams that stood out. Coach B was definitely a player’s coach but also found a way to balance out having a disciplined football team. Players loved playing for Coach B and that was one of the main reasons we won so much. We had a ton of talent, but we were well coached and had a passion for the game that came from the top.
Like the best coaches do, Coach B didn’t try to do it alone. He surrounded himself with the best coaching minds around: Coach Black, Coach Lee, Coach Evans, Coach Jeff Evans, Coach Huck were all college caliber coaches. You could guarantee every Friday night we were the more prepared team with this coaching staff.
In my four years at Oak Grove, we played in the CCS championship every single year. We won two of them and the two we lost was by a combined two points.
By my Senior year, I was the starting quarterback and being one of Coach B’s QB’s was a lot of fun. Coach B taught me a ton about the game of football from the X’s and O’s to all the study habits. I remember watching game film with Coach B and him showing me truly how to break it down and what to watch for. As a high school senior you really don’t see how impactful all that is, but I can tell you right now as an adult and having played major college football, the time I spent with Coach B one-on-one with him in his office was invaluable.
After my time at OG, I went to West Valley JC to continue playing. Upon completing my sophomore season at West Valley, I was ready to transfer to a four year but to be honest the opportunities just weren’t out there like I thought they would be. That was until I went to visit Coach B and ask him to help me get some opportunities. Within days, I was having conversations with SJSU, Fresno State and Nevada. I decided to attend the University of Nevada and a lot of that had to do with Coach Jim Mastro and it didn’t hurt that my best friend Jamaal was already playing there.
I got to live out my childhood dream of playing college football and the reality of it is that I never would have been able to without the help of Coach Buller. Not only did he prepare me to be the best football player that he could be, but he did everything he could to help me get to the next level.
I am forever grateful for Coach Buller opening the door to that opportunity and for always pushing me to be my best. I know I am one of hundreds that have been impacted by Coach B.
I just wanted to say thank you Coach B for all that you have done for me and for the men that played with me. I look forward to celebrating you on Saturday night in receiving the most deserving reward of having the field named after you.
Cheers to Eddie B!!!!
