Brook Berringer
Encyclopedia
Brook Warren Berringer was an American
quarterback
for the University of Nebraska football
team in the mid-1990s. Berringer came to Nebraska from Goodland, Kansas
, and played a back-up role to Tommie Frazier
. He was best known for replacing an injured Tommie Frazier during the 1994 season and leading the Cornhuskers
to seven consecutive wins and to the Orange Bowl national championship game against the University of Miami
Hurricanes.
, Nebraska
. At the age of 7, Berringer's father died from cancer; soon afterward, he moved with his mother and two sisters to Goodland
, Kansas
. Throughout his childhood, he played several different sports.
schools. He picked the University of Nebraska to attend. In 1992, as a freshman, Berringer was a backup. In 1993, as a sophomore, he was again a backup.
had a blood clot in his leg. Berringer completed 94 of 151 passes (62%) for 1,295 yards, 10 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Prior to this year, Berringer had completed only 17 passes. The team made it to the Orange Bowl, and Frazier recovered in time to start for it. During the game, Frazier threw an interception on the second play of Nebraska's second series. Berringer took over, and threw a 19-yard TD pass to Mark Gilman that drew the Huskers within 3 points. Nebraska eventually won the game 24-17 with Berringer playing through the middle quarters before Coach Tom Osborne re-inserted Frazier in the fourth quarter.
victory over Florida.
, but he died in a plane crash just two days before the draft. Berringer (a private pilot
), was in control of a 1946 Piper Cub over Raymond, Nebraska
, when the aircraft went down in an alfalfa
field. Friend Tobey Lake, the brother of Berringer's girlfriend Tiffini, was also killed in the crash.
A memorial service for Brook was held on April 20 at Memorial Stadium
, before the start of the annual Red-White spring football game. A somber crowd of 48,659 attended.
recorded "The Nebraska Song" in tribute to Berringer. (The song was actually written before his death; he never got the chance to hear it.) The song appears as Track 18 (the same number as Berringer's jersey) on the group's 1997 album Six Days on the Road
, and its first live performance was in the Devaney Center on the University of Nebraska campus during the 1997 Nebraska State Fair Sawyer Brown lead vocalist Mark Miller was a pallbearer at Berringer's funeral.
Following Berringer's passing, the Nebraska Cornhusker football program established the Brook Berringer Citizenship Team in his honor. Awarded annually before the Spring Game, the Brook Berringer Citizenship Team recognizes Cornhusker football players who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to provide excellent leadership, involvement, and service. In 2006, the Nebraska Athletic Department unveiled a life-sized statue of Berringer and Osborne outside the Osborne Athletic Complex on the north side of Memorial Stadium.
A trophy case dedicated to Berringer's memory can be found in the lobby of Goodland High School's Max Jones Fieldhouse.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
for the University of Nebraska football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team in the mid-1990s. Berringer came to Nebraska from Goodland, Kansas
Goodland, Kansas
Goodland is a city in and the county seat of Sherman County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 4,489.-History:...
, and played a back-up role to Tommie Frazier
Tommie Frazier
Tommie James Frazier, Jr. is a former American football player and coach in the United States. He played quarterback for the Nebraska Cornhuskers....
. He was best known for replacing an injured Tommie Frazier during the 1994 season and leading the Cornhuskers
Nebraska Cornhuskers
The Nebraska Cornhuskers is the name given to several sports teams of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference...
to seven consecutive wins and to the Orange Bowl national championship game against the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
Hurricanes.
Early life
Berringer was born in ScottsbluffScottsbluff, Nebraska
Scottsbluff is a city in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 15,039 at the 2010 census. Scottsbluff is the largest city in the Nebraska Panhandle, and the 13th largest city in Nebraska....
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. At the age of 7, Berringer's father died from cancer; soon afterward, he moved with his mother and two sisters to Goodland
Goodland, Kansas
Goodland is a city in and the county seat of Sherman County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 4,489.-History:...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. Throughout his childhood, he played several different sports.
Freshman and Sophomore Seasons
Because of his successful high school career, Berringer was recruited by many Big 8Big 8
-Sports:*Big 8 Conference , an American athletic association*Big Eight Conference, a former American athletic association*Big Eight Conference , an American athletic association*WIAA Big Eight Conference, an American athletic association...
schools. He picked the University of Nebraska to attend. In 1992, as a freshman, Berringer was a backup. In 1993, as a sophomore, he was again a backup.
Junior Season
In 1994, as a junior, he started seven games because starter Tommie FrazierTommie Frazier
Tommie James Frazier, Jr. is a former American football player and coach in the United States. He played quarterback for the Nebraska Cornhuskers....
had a blood clot in his leg. Berringer completed 94 of 151 passes (62%) for 1,295 yards, 10 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Prior to this year, Berringer had completed only 17 passes. The team made it to the Orange Bowl, and Frazier recovered in time to start for it. During the game, Frazier threw an interception on the second play of Nebraska's second series. Berringer took over, and threw a 19-yard TD pass to Mark Gilman that drew the Huskers within 3 points. Nebraska eventually won the game 24-17 with Berringer playing through the middle quarters before Coach Tom Osborne re-inserted Frazier in the fourth quarter.
Senior Season
As a senior, he again was a backup. He played sparingly, completing 26 of 51 passes for 252 yards in 9 games played. For a third consecutive year, the Nebraska Cornhuskers played in the national championship game. Berringer played [mop-up duty] at the end of the game scored a 1-yard TD for his team's final points. They won 62-24 Fiesta BowlFiesta Bowl
The Fiesta Bowl, now sponsored by Frito-Lay and named with their Tostitos brand, is a United States college football bowl game played annually at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Between its origination in 1971 and 2006, the game was hosted in Tempe, Arizona at Sun Devil...
victory over Florida.
Plane crash
Berringer was expected to be selected in the 1996 NFL Draft1996 NFL Draft
The 1996 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 20–21, 1996...
, but he died in a plane crash just two days before the draft. Berringer (a private pilot
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
), was in control of a 1946 Piper Cub over Raymond, Nebraska
Raymond, Nebraska
Raymond is a village in Lancaster County, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Lincoln, Nebraska Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 186 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Raymond is located at ....
, when the aircraft went down in an alfalfa
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
field. Friend Tobey Lake, the brother of Berringer's girlfriend Tiffini, was also killed in the crash.
A memorial service for Brook was held on April 20 at Memorial Stadium
Memorial Stadium, Lincoln
Memorial Stadium is located on the campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. It is the home of the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team....
, before the start of the annual Red-White spring football game. A somber crowd of 48,659 attended.
Epilogue
The country group Sawyer BrownSawyer Brown
Sawyer Brown is an American country music band founded in 1981 in Apopka, Florida, by five members of country pop singer Don King's road band: Bobby Randall and Jim Scholten , both from Midland, Michigan; Joe Smyth , Gregg "Hobie" Hubbard , and Mark Miller...
recorded "The Nebraska Song" in tribute to Berringer. (The song was actually written before his death; he never got the chance to hear it.) The song appears as Track 18 (the same number as Berringer's jersey) on the group's 1997 album Six Days on the Road
Six Days on the Road (album)
Six Days on the Road is the title of the twelfth studio album released by the American country music band Sawyer Brown. It was released in 1997 on Curb Records. Its title track and lead-off single is a cover of the Dave Dudley hit from 1963. This cover reached #13 on the Billboard country charts...
, and its first live performance was in the Devaney Center on the University of Nebraska campus during the 1997 Nebraska State Fair Sawyer Brown lead vocalist Mark Miller was a pallbearer at Berringer's funeral.
Following Berringer's passing, the Nebraska Cornhusker football program established the Brook Berringer Citizenship Team in his honor. Awarded annually before the Spring Game, the Brook Berringer Citizenship Team recognizes Cornhusker football players who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to provide excellent leadership, involvement, and service. In 2006, the Nebraska Athletic Department unveiled a life-sized statue of Berringer and Osborne outside the Osborne Athletic Complex on the north side of Memorial Stadium.
A trophy case dedicated to Berringer's memory can be found in the lobby of Goodland High School's Max Jones Fieldhouse.
See also
- Albert Scott CrossfieldAlbert Scott CrossfieldAlbert Scott Crossfield was an American naval officer and test pilot.-Biography:Born in Berkeley, California, Crossfield grew up in California and Washington. He served with the U.S. Navy as a flight instructor and fighter pilot during World War II...
- Jessica DubroffJessica DubroffJessica Whitney Dubroff was a seven-year-old pilot trainee who died attempting to become the youngest person to fly an airplane across the United States...
- John F. Kennedy, Jr. Piper Saratoga crash
- John T. WaltonJohn T. WaltonJohn Thomas Walton was a decorated United States war veteran and a son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. He was also the chairman of True North Partners, a venture capital firm...
- Paul WellstonePaul WellstonePaul David Wellstone was a two-term U.S. Senator from the state of Minnesota and member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which is affiliated with the national Democratic Party. Before being elected to the Senate in 1990, he was a professor of political science at Carleton College...