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SALT LAKE CITY - When it comes to football, JASON GESSER has it covered as player, coach and commentator. "I don't know what else I could do. I guess I could be a trainer. I love the game and have a passion for the game - first of all playing," he said. Gesser, a quarterback for the Utah Blaze, just completed his seventh season in professional football, and during the offseason he spends his time working camps and clinics, serving as the offensive coordinator at Franklin Pierce High School (Parkland, Wash.) and working as a college football analyst for Fox Sports Network. For him, it's one perfect football circle. He can get better in one aspect of his football life by working the other two, while at the same time he can give back to the game that has given him so much. "I felt like I got the good end of the stick with football coming out of Hawaii and I'm trying to do the same with the kids out here (in Washington) – trying to give them any kind of advantage to get better not only in the physical side of the game but the mental side as well," he said. Gesser starred at St. Louis High School in Hawaii before playing collegiately at Washington State University. While at Washington State, he was a three-year team captain and led the Cougars to back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2001 and 2002. Gesser, who led the Cougars the 2003 Rose Bowl, and USC's Carson Palmer were co-Pac-10 Offensive Players of the Year. Palmer went on the win the Heisman Trophy and Gesser finished seventh. Professionally, Gesser has played for the Calgary Stampeders of the CFL and the Tennessee Titans of the NFL, as well as the Blaze of the AFL for the last three seasons. For the last three years he has coached at Franklin Pierce High and he will begin his second season with FSN this year. "Being a coach definitely helps out in being a player. I think my game has risen up so much in the last couple of seasons just because of the fact of being a coach and having the game plan," he said. "It helps me understand where the coaches are coming from and how they are organized and how they are doing things. I think I enjoy being a coach so much because it helps me so much as a player." This year as a commentator, Gesser will do in-studio work for the Washington State/Oklahoma State and Oregon/Washington football games, and he will do color commentary when his Cougars host Cal. "It (being a commentator) helps you with the scheme of the game a lot better. It helps you understand the personnel of the game a lot better. It brings a whole different realm by looking at the game from the box," he said. "You're so used to being at eye-level, being in the line of fire, being in the contact right there and you don't get that eye-in-the sky view other than by watching tape. It really is a different perspective on the game." ABOUT THE UTAH BLAZE The Utah Blaze were recipients of the Best Support Staff Award for the 2006 and 2007 seasons as recognized by the Arena Football League. Tickets are available by logging onto www.utahblaze.com or by calling (801) 257-3111. The Blaze are owned and operated by the Ken Garff Automotive Group – www.kengarff.com.
