Back from broken neck, Boyertown QB Marinello returns with a fearless attitude
The play will find its way into conversations between the Marinello brothers for the rest of their lives.
That pass. That catch. It was just like when they were kids in the backyard.
Mason thought it was underthrown and watched in surprise as Roman slowed down, created just enough space and cradled it between the numbers. It was a 42-yard score.
“I just started sprinting to the end zone,” Mason said. “I was happy for him. He caught his first touchdown.”
This one not over. Mason Marinello connects wit Roman Marinello for a 42-yard TD pass. 26-21 Pottsgrove with 3:23 left. pic.twitter.com/NhrYSGxbfC
— Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue) September 7, 2019
The photo of the brothers hugging after that magical moment against Pottsgrove three weeks ago has become the lock screen on Mason’s phone.
This is why he came back from his frightening injury. It’s why he wanted to play one more season of football at Boyertown.
“He’s fun to watch right now,” coach T.J. Miller said. “He gets the ball in his hands and he makes a lot happen. He’s enjoying it. He brings a smile to my face.”
A different play, the one that sent Mason to the hospital and briefly made everyone fear the worst, hasn’t gone away. It never will. A scare like that sticks in the back of a person’s mind.
What Mason Marinello and his coach remember first is how normal it seemed. It was a regular punt return. A typical attempt at a tackle.
If Marinello stood up afterward, no one would have thought twice about it. But he didn’t stand up.
Miller has seen his players get injured before. It didn’t take long for him to realize this time was serious.
“He was laying there,” the coach said. “He wasn’t moving. You could tell he had a little panic. That’s when they brought the ambulance out.”
Marinello, then a sophomore safety and backup quarterback, whiffed on a tackle and went helmet first into the ground.
As he was resting on the field, the next several minutes were agonizing. He had no feeling from his shoulders down his arms.
“I was scared,” he said. “I started to cry. I thought for a second I could be paralyzed.”
After he was transported to Lehigh Valley Hospital, the feeling started to return and fear was gradually replaced by relief.
Marinello said he suffered a fracture of the C-6 vertebrae at the base of his neck. He left the hospital after three days, wore a brace for six weeks and recovered without rehabilitation.
One of Boyertown’s future stars, its next quarterback, didn’t play the final five games of the 2017 season. Even though he was cleared to return, he sat out his entire junior year.
Marinello was worried about injuring himself again. He didn’t believe he was strong enough, yet.
“I don’t blame him,” Miller said. “To go from having a broken neck to playing full-speed football, it’s a hard thing to do.”
Marinello watched the first two games after his injury from the press box. He didn’t enjoy it because he couldn’t interact with his teammates. He decided not to spend his junior year as part of the team. He watched from the student section with everyone else.
“I missed it,” he said. “I wished I was on the field. I was at every game. It was killing me at first. Then I realized I probably shouldn’t be out there right now.”
Marinello’s hope was he’d feel ready to return as a senior. He wanted to play alongside his friends who were lifelong teammates and Roman, a sophomore playing his first varsity season.
When Marinello showed up in the spring and was handed his helmet, it was like he never left.
“He was definitely ready to get back out there,” Roman said. “He’s having no regrets right now. He’s going full throttle.”
Marinello split time at quarterback through the first four games as the Bears went 1-3 against a tough schedule. He was named the starter before Boyertown played Methacton Friday.
The 6-0, 170-pound option QB rushed for 113 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-7 win. Roman caught both of his brother’s completions for 39 yards.
Marinello, who also plays basketball and lacrosse, is a two-way starter. He still plays safety and still likes to hit. He no longer frets about another injury. He just plays.
Miller wondered if there’d be any lingering effects after such a frightening ordeal. That question was quickly answered.
“Throughout the spring and the summer we said, ‘Let’s see when we put the pads on,’” Miller said. “‘Is he going to be afraid?’ First day, he sticks his nose in there. He wasn’t afraid at all.”
Boyertown’s coaches looked at each other and knew. Mason was back.
Nearly two years after he left the field on a stretcher, he was a football player again.
