Gerry Bertier - High School Career

High School Career

Bertier began his high school career at Hammond High School and joined the football team. He became a key player, soon becoming the backbone of the defense. As a sophomore, he was starting linebacker, a position for which he won many honors. However, he was only able to play three seasons, when Hammond H.S. was merged with two other Alexandria high schools to form T.C. Williams High School. The consolidation meant there were many new faces on the football team as well as on the coaching staff, which caused racial tension between team members. This new mixture of Titans was forced to come together as a single successful team, dealing with the issue of racial prejudice, a difficult battle for many members of the team. As a captain, Bertier, along with friend and teammate defensive end Julius Campbell, supported their teammates through this time of struggle. Even though the team was still struggling with prejudice as the season opener rolled around, the strife was not evident in the way the T.C. Titans began the 1971 season. The Titans went 13-0, including nine shut outs, and went on to win the Virginia State Championship. During the Titans' undefeated season, they also outscored their opponents by a 338-38 margin. Bertier's stats during the season included 142 tackles, 42 sacks. Bertier was named team Defensive Most Valuable Player. He was named National Prep School Football Player of the Year, and received First Team All-Region, All-State, and All-American honors. As he prepared to move to the next level, Bertier received many football scholarship offers from prominent colleges like Notre Dame.