SPORTS

Farmington Hills' Todd
Gesund expects to
be a starter this
fall for Division II
ower Grand Valley State.

ROBERT ELLENSTEIN

Special to The Jewish News

F

ootball is far from
being the Jewish na-
tional pastime.
With only three former foot-
ball players in the Michigan
Jewish Sports Hall of Fame,
Todd Gesund may be paving
the way for future stars.
The Grand Valley, State
University wide receiver has
hauled in enough passes to
nearly secure a starting posi-
tion for this season. But Todd
recognizes the lack of Jewish
participation in the sport.
"There are no Jewish foot-
ball players on my team," he
said. "Jewish people are great
athletes but they just don't
play football.
"My mother didn't want me
to play but she started corn-
ing to the games and she
started liking it."
But Todd's parents, George
and Nancy Gesund of Farm-
ington Hills, have had plenty
of time to adjust to football.
After 13 years of playing
hockey, Todd decided to try
football during his sophomore
year at North Farmington
High School. "At my first
practice, I didn't know how to
put pads on," Todd said.
After two decent seasons,
Todd got a shot at first string
during his senior year and
took advantage of it. As a
wide receiver, Todd led the

school in pass receptions (35)
and receiving yards (520). On
defense, he led the team with
six interceptions.
"I was team MVP that
year," he said. "That's when
all the honors started coming
in — All Area, All Division,
All Metro and All State
Special Mention. I came out
of nowhere and started get-
ting a lot of press."
Todd also was awarded the
Tom Moore Memorial Schol-
arship from North Farm-
ington. His prize was a $1,000
scholarship for being an out-
standing student/athlete.
Colleges across the country
also began to take notice of
the 6-foot, 185-pound end.
Schools from California,
Arizona and a slew of

Michigan universities con-
tacted Todd about playing
football. After narrowing his
choices to Grand Valley State,
Hillsdale and Eastern
Michigan, Todd decided on
NCAA Division II power-
house Grand Valley State.
"As a freshman coming in-
to camp you don't know any-
body. A lot of guys go in real-
ly scared," Todd said. "There
was a lot of extra shoving in
the scrimmages on the
younger players.
"You're a star in high
school and then in college
everyone's a star."
After being redshirted his
first year, Todd was edged out
for a starting position his se-
cond season and wound up
starting only three games.
"I was slated to start and I

"You're a star
in high school,
but in college
everyone's a
star':

— Todd Gesund

took it for granted," he said.
"I did not give it my all and
I came into camp and lost my
starting job.
"I was disappointed in my-
self and I decided to give it
one more try."
It paid off. Todd caught 13
passes for 249 yards last
season as Grand Valley State
led the Midwest Inter-
collegiate Football Con-
ference with a 9-1 record (10-2
overall). The team was nudg-
ed out of the Division II play-
offs in the opening round, los-
ing to. East Texas State, 20-14.
But Todd's most memorable
performance came in a thrill-
ing 38-34 defeat to Hillsdale
College. Trailing 38-14 with
4:23 left in the game, Todd
and quarterback Jack Hull
hooked up for four pass recep-
tions totaling 121 yards, in-
cluding a 50-yard score with
49 seconds remaining. The
performance set a school
record for yardage gained in
a quarter, but the loss ended
Grand Valley State's regular
season winning streak at 22
games.
Todd is already looking
toward next season. The Spor-
ting News has Grand Valley
State ranked third national-
ly in its pre-season Division II
picks, and a third straight
conference championship
may be on the horizon.
"Our whole offense is retur-
ning," Todd said. "Defensive-
ly we have some holes to fill

but offensively we should be
dynamic."
Todd spent this summer as
an assistant beach and boat
director at the Pine Lake
Country Club. He stays in
shape by lifting weights four
days a week and running five
days a week.
When he returns to school
this month, Todd will be play-
ing for a new head coach,
29-year-old Brian Kelly. But
the coach is not a newcomer
to the program and speaks
highly of Todd.
"On paper, Todd is our star-
ting split end," Kelly said.
"His biggest asset is he's a
very good possession receiver.
"Every good football coach
would like to have someone
like him."
Fortunately, Todd has not
sustained any serious injuries
during his career, with the ex-
ception of some cracked ribs
in a game against Northern
Michigan last year.
"But I'm sore after every
football game," Todd said.
"Sometimes I can't even get
out of bed."
And after every game, Todd
receives phone calls from his
parents and his brother Ryan,
a sophomore at Eastern
Michigan.
When the cleats are put
away, Todd hopes to own his
own business as well as go to
law school. As a finance ma-
jor, he has compiled a 2.8
grade point average. ❑

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 51