Gogebic's Jess Mazzon makes best of season-ending injury

BESSEMER – Jess Mazzon, a talented young athlete was dealt a real bad break, but he has turned it into something positive and special.

Early last summer, Jess Mazzon had everything going his way, especially sports-wise.

He and his Gogebic Miner teammates had earned their second straight playoff berth the previous season and this close, talented crew that had played together for years were looking forward to going out with a bang in their senior year.

"The seniors were all pretty excited," Jess Mazzon said. "We thought we could probably go pretty far. We wanted to have a home playoff game and win a playoff game. We thought, 'This is it.' And we had our best turnout for weight-lifting and conditioning."

In his junior year, Mazzon shared the Wide Receiver of the Year award in the Great Western Conference and was a GWC All-Conference running back.

"He was one of our best all-around football players," assistant coach Mark Movrich said. "He was a difference-maker on the field and a very versatile player. We had a lot of talented backs, but what people didn't realize were the intangibles he brought to the game. His knowledge of the game, his ability to get people lined up in the right spots, his leadership and he always put the team first."

It was as if the son of head coach Mark Mazzon was an actual coach on the field.

But on June 15, Jess Mazzon's world changed dramatically.

"I was playing summer league basketball and I was playing defense," he said. "A shot went up and I got the rebound. I took off down court and there was someone in the lane and I came to a jump-stop. I planted my feet, but my leg gave out and I fell to the ground."

Mazzon has played in hundreds of pick-up games and being the aggressive player he is, he had fallen or been knocked to the floor many times, but he always got up. This time he couldn't get up.

"I heard a pop and my reaction was 'Oh boy, what did I do now?'" Mazzon said. "They helped me to the bench, but I couldn't put any weight on it. I hoped for the best, but..."

After a trip to the emergency room and the doctor's office, X-rays and a MRI revealed Mazzon had suffered a torn ACL and meniscus injury to his left knee.

Mazzon's best option was surgery on July 10. The surgery was a success, but then came the news no one wanted to hear. No sports for six months from the day of the surgery. That meant even with a lot of rehabilitation and physical therapy, he couldn't play football and would miss a lot of the basketball season.

"I was really disappointed," Jess Mazzon said. "All the work and this was the last year of my high school career and I wouldn't get to play."

Mark Mazzon not only lost one of his best all-around players, but his oldest son would be deprived of his last chance to play football, which was his favorite sport.

"It was very difficult, but it's not like life or death," Mark Mazzon said. "It was such a stunner. You wait for your senior year and for some reason it's taken away."

Jess Mazzon's teammates were shocked at the news. Paul Buerger, a fellow captain on the team, said he felt like it was "a shot to the gut."

"He was a teammate and one of the best guys I've ever met," Buerger said. "He was the guy you always counted on. He was always there and always ready to play."

Since the injury, Jess Mazzon said the hardest part was when the realization set in that he would never play high school football again and there was nothing he loved more than playing the sport.

Jess Mazzon said he appreciated all the support and kind words he has received from people at school, in the community and most especially his teammates. But he showed his maturity by saying he wants to get on with the rest of his life.

"Injuries happen in sports and there's always adversity and problems in life, but you have to deal with it," he said. "There's people out there with life or death things that are more important than this."

It's been said that when one door closes, another door opens.

Mazzon felt that if he couldn't help his Gogebic teammates by playing, maybe there was a different way to help the team.

He had been called "a coach on the field," so why not be a coach on the sidelines? But Jess Mazzon would only want to be "a real coach" and not one who was given the title merely to make him feel better about missing his senior season.

And being about the same age as the players, Mazzon had to have the respect of the team before they would listen to him or follow his lead.

"The whole team respected him," Buerger said. "When he got hurt, he really stepped up for us. He understands the game really, really well and he explains the game so well. He helped our defensive backs a ton. He's a great coach."

Movrich has watched for years as Mazzon developed as a young man.

"Whatever he decides to do in life, he will be successful at it," Movrich said. "If he wants to coach, he'll be a great coach. He's goal-driven, knowledgeable and he's always thinking about sports. He has maturity, compassion and always puts the team first. He could be on my staff at Gogebic right now. He never suited up for a practice or a game, but he still had a huge impact on the team. People outside the program don't understand that."

During the season, Mazzon went to school every day, saw physical therapists twice a week and rehabbed on his own six days a week, sometimes coming out of study hall at school. But he never missed a Miner practice or game.

"If I couldn't play, I thought it was the next best way to help the team," Jess Mazzon said. "I tried to help wherever I could. Suggestions, kids coming up on the sidelines, talking to them, advice. I liked coaching and it was fun for me. I'm real interested in coaching.

"I think I probably enjoyed helping out the younger kids the most and watching them grow as football players. Guys like Max Samardich, Ben Bogaczyk, Tim Buerger and Jason Turula. They could have some great teams coming up."

Gogebic qualified for the MHSAA Division 8 football playoffs for the third straight year but lost to a powerful Crystal Falls Forest Park team 42-22 in the opening round of the playoffs.

Mazzon said he sweats a lot in his rehab, but it is "going good" and he hopes to be playing basketball by the end of January but didn't want to rush it. That decision on his return will be made by the doctor and physical therapists.

Many who have had knee surgery say the mental part of returning to play is the hardest.

"I'll have to learn to trust my knee again and trust all the hard work I did," Mazzon said.

Mazzon plans on going to college next year and if the opportunity presents itself, he would like to hit the gridiron one more time.

"I love to play," Mazzon said. "There's nothing I love more than playing football."

If playing football doesn't work out, he could be a heck of a coach for some team.