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For love of the game
By STEVE HASEL, Times Staff Writer INVERNESS The movie Rudy is a football classic, a tale of never-say-die determination and grit, of setting the seemingly impossible goal and achieving it. The movie is based on the true story of a persistent, undersized athlete who walked on to the Notre Dame team and was immortalized because he wouldn't be denied his dream. Joey and Matt Burke love Rudy. And now the Citrus High students are playing out their special version of the story. The twin brothers, age 18, have Down's syndrome. For two seasons, they have served as water boys for the Citrus squad, helping players during practices and games. This fall, with support from the coach and team, the Burke twins will dress out as varsity players for the Hurricanes. They won't participate in games or ever take a hit from another player, but they will practice and stand on the sidelines cheering their teammates each Friday night. "They bring the glow of happiness and love to our school," offensive coordinator Jonny Bishop said. "They're an asset to our student body. This will be a lonely place when they finally leave." "They've seen it (Rudy) over 50 times," said the boys' mother, Pam Burke. Wednesday night after practice, they hurried to shower and get home because the movie was on TV. But sports aren't something the twins just watch. They have lived and breathed athletics since they began competing in Special Olympics events in the early 1990s. The Burkes have done it all: basketball, track, bowling, baseball, weight lifting and karate, in which they earned blue belts. Matt and Joey are in denial, big time, about their disability, their mother said. "Matt came to me a few weeks ago and stated, "I'm not handicapped ... the devil is handicapped,' " Pam Burke said. Three months earlier, Matt had told her: "The doctors lied to all of us when they told us we had Down's syndrome because we don't." Not only were the doctors right, but Joey was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 18 months old and underwent chemotherapy for three years. Despite their disability, and their enjoyment of other sports, the boys always have had one goal: For six years, the twins drilled their parents about playing football. "It drove me nuts," Pam Burke said. "Every day at lunch," Bishop said, "they told me, "Me gonna play football.' I let them join the weight lifting team last spring, but it was always, always about football. They idolized their uncles, Troy Simon and Shawn Berlin, who played football here at Citrus." Actually, only Troy is an uncle. His best buddy, Berlin, befriended the boys and was treated as a favorite uncle. Add Pam's love of sports (she played powderpuff football as a younger woman and watches the Bucs, Dolphins, Jaguars, Gators and Seminoles with the boys whenever time allows), and it's no shock her sons fought to join the team. "We're into football around here," Pam Burke said. The boys' parents were understandably concerned. But the Citrus club stood strong when the parents tried to talk the boys out of playing. It was similar to Rudy, when Notre Dame players threatened to quit unless the coach let Rudy play. "One guy just said no, that they wanted Matt and Joey on the team," recalled the twins' sister, Kristin, a Citrus sophomore. When the Burkes made the move from water boys to players, their new teammates welcomed them with open arms. They run before and after practice and participate in certain drills. They slap high fives and receive constant encouragement from the 'Canes. "You've got to love it," said Steve Strong, who plays tight end and defensive end. "It gives you a good feeling to come out and see them. They're so excited when they come out to practice. Everybody on the team loves to have them out there." But make no mistake: The boys take their playing seriously. During a physical exam, Matt, who's husky at 5 feet 5 and 178 pounds, tried to convince Bishop, the offensive coordinator, that he was 6-8. Then there was the closing day of spring practice in May, when plays were called so both boys could break through the line and run 80-yard touchdowns as teammates tried to tackle them in vain. Three months later, they argue over which was first to score his touchdown. Head coach Larry Bishop (the offensive coordinator is his brother) said liability doesn't worry him. "The only ones that hit either one of them will be the other one," he said. "My greatest fear is that I'll turn my back for a moment and one of them will go rushing out there onto the field," Jonny Bishop said. "That's my fear too," Pam Burke said. Living in a rural community has been good for the family. "Everywhere we go, people know the boys and treat them with love," Pam Burke said. "The last time anyone picked on them was on a school bus three years ago. But others on the bus put a stop to it, and it hasn't happened since. If anyone messes with them now, the whole football team will stick up for them. "This entire community has made this dream possible for them. Not only the coaches and players, but their classmates," she said. "It is kids like Mike Wilburn, Isaiah Webb, Matt Sakowicz, Alex Felton, a friend named C.J. and so many others who I can't even name. They are my heroes. This wouldn't have happened in most towns. This is just the whole package." "I think it's great," Citrus quarterback Casey Snyder said. "And it's unbelievable what the coaches are doing for them." Pam and her cousin, Lisa Henderson, a Jacksonville-based writer, have written a book about the boys. It's called Above Your Dreams, God Has a Plan. Now that each boy is playing out his dream, perhaps one day their story will inspire other overachievers.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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