28 | NOVEMBER 11 • 2021

SPORTS

A

very Gach has played
football for only two
seasons.
But the still-growing 6-foot-5,
235-pound Birmingham Groves
High School freshman has
already made his presence felt.
Gach started at right tackle
on the Groves offensive line for
much of the season this fall.
What he did hadn’t been done
at Groves in at least two-plus
decades.
Only three freshmen have
started for Brendan Flaherty
is his 21 years as the Groves
football coach. The others were a
fullback and a defensive end.
“It’s tough for a freshman to
play on the offensive line on a
high school varsity team because
of the physicality involved, but
Avery is tough and strong,
”
Flaherty said. “
And he’s fearless.
He isn’t intimidated.
”
Gach’s first experience with
football was in the Birmingham
Patriots club program when he
was a seventh-grader.
He didn’t play football when
he was in eighth grade — either
for Berkshire Middle School
or in the Southfield Falcons
club program — because the
COVID-19 pandemic wiped out
the season.
With only the one season of
football experience under his
belt, Gach played for the Groves
freshman football team in the
first week of the season this fall.
That arrangement didn’t last
long. Flaherty said he brought
up Gach to the varsity after the

first week initially to see how he
would do at practice.
“You could see very quickly
that he belonged on the varsity
team,
” Flaherty said.
After getting occasional
playing time in the next three
Groves varsity games, Gach was
promoted to the starting lineup
Sept. 24 in an overtime victory
over Oak Park.
He started the Falcons’ final
five games.
Flaherty said Gach improved
incrementally during the season
as he got more reps and played
more games and learned from
older players and the team’s two
offensive line coaches.
“
Avery really clicked in our
last game of the season, against
Sterling Heights Stevenson,
”
Flaherty said. “He was pancaking
guys with his blocks.
”
Gach said his biggest issue
when he first joined the varsity
team was “over-thinking” what

he was doing because of the
amount of plays he had to learn.
“So Coach Flaherty told me if I
wasn’t sure what I was supposed
to do on a play, just go hit
someone,
” Gach said. “I always
tried to be the most aggressive
player on the field. Keep the
motor going.
”
Eventually, what Gach was
supposed to do came to him
naturally.
“I agree with Coach Flaherty.
I played well against Sterling
Heights Stevenson. But I feel I
actually started playing well in
our second-to-last game against
Clarkston,
” he said.
Gach didn’t play defense for
the Groves varsity team this
season. But look for him to rack
up many minutes on that side of
the ball in the future, probably at
defensive end.
“
Avery is a future two-way
starter, no doubt about it,
”
Flaherty said. “When is up to
him.
”
Gach feels he’s ready now.
“I want to be a two-way starter
the next three years,
” he said.
It was a tough season for the
Groves varsity team. The Falcons
finished 2-7 against a murderous
schedule that included several
state-ranked teams.
While the losses piled up,

Gach said he piled up valuable
experience against talented and
college-bound defensive linemen.
Gach, 15, also is an
outstanding baseball player who
has played travel ball since he
was 10, currently with the North
Farmington/West Bloomfield
Cobras. He’s a first baseman,
catcher and pitcher.
He plans to try out for the
Groves baseball team in the
spring.
But first, he may try out this
month for the Groves boys
basketball team.
David and Amy Gach are
Avery’s parents. The family lives
in Bloomfield Hills.
David Gach played football,
basketball and baseball at Berkley
High School and he also was
on the Berkley wrestling team
before he graduated in 1996.
He had several offers to play
college football at Division II
and Division III schools, but he
decided to attend Michigan State
University to study business. He
didn’t play sports there.
Avery’s brother Eli, 12, is a
seventh-grader at Berkshire.
Avery said Eli has a passion for
acting.

Please send sports news to

stevestein502004@yahoo.com.

Avery Gach proved he belonged on
the Birmingham Groves offensive line

Fearless
Freshman

STEVE STEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

MURRAY GOLDENBERG/CLASSIC PHOTOGRAPHY

Avery
Gach

Birmingham Groves
offensive lineman
Avery Gach stands
his ground against
Southfield A&T.

AMY GACH