Childhood incentive plan has paid off for 49ers' Newberry

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

Every time Jeremy Newberry, their Pro Bowl center son, lays a spine-rattling hit on an opposing player, Dave and Cheryll Newberry share a knowing smile.

You couldn't convince opposing linemen that 49er center Jeremy Newberry once was too timid to hit others. Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser

"Because," Dave says, "we don't have to pay him anymore."

Long before he was earning a seven-figure 49er paycheck, Jeremy was straining the Newberry family's own modest "salary cap." Well before he was the biggest kid on the block in Antioch, Calif., Jeremy also had the most imposing piggy bank.

For while the 6-foot-5, 315-pounder is officially a fifth-year pro in the NFL's eyes, unofficially, he's been getting paid since his Pop Warner days.

"When he first started playing football, at about 9 or 10, he was, well, a little timid," Cheryll said. "He didn't like to hit. He thought it hurt too much."

"So, I started giving him a dollar every time he knocked the other player off his feet and I could see the other guy's cleats," said Dave, who played for California. "Unbeknownst to me, his mom was giving him $5 every time he knocked somebody out of the game, too."

In no time at all, Jeremy was earning "$10-to-$15 a week" and a string of most valuable player awards.

Suddenly, Jeremy said: "I thought hitting was a lot of fun. I wanted to hit everybody on the field. I'd knock somebody down and then look up in the stands to make sure they (his parents) saw it."

So accomplished a blocker and so punishing a performer has Newberry become that few of his teammates can imagine the day when he didn't relish bowling over opponents or playing with outspoken confidence.

"That would be hard to believe because he is as tough as they come," marvels 49ers' quarterback Jeff Garcia. "He plays with a passion. He is the kind of a guy you appreciate having in front of you because you know he is going to fight all the way to the final whistle — and beyond sometimes."

A four-year starter and a second-year Pro Bowl selection, Newberry often steps boldly out of the shadows in which most who play at his position labor. Most centers are only noticed when they miss a block or botch a snap. The sound bites usually belong to the wide receivers. But Newberry isn't what you would call the strong, silent type. Strong, yes. Silent? Hardly.

When the 49ers were considered heavy underdogs to the New York Giants in the playoffs, Newberry suggested otherwise in unequivocal, if graphic, terms. The quotes made bulletin board headlines in the Giants' locker room and inspired his teammates.

Newberry merely shrugged his massive shoulders. "If I believe in something, I'll say it," he says. "Some people will criticize you for it or applaud you for it, but that's the way it goes. I don't worry about being politically correct or firing up the other team. If you're a pro, you should be playing hard anyway. I will be."

Garcia says: "You can talk about how tough Jeremy is, how that fuels his fire to make him the great player he is, but there is another side, a softer, giving side, to him, too. He's always giving back to kids, the community and his family."

Indeed, with 28 friends and family members here for Sunday's Pro Bowl — 10 of their trips paid for by Jeremy — the Newberrys will be out in force at Aloha Stadium.

"They supported me in everything I do and this is a small way to say 'thank you' for all the support they've given me," Newberry said.

And, for his parents, perhaps a return on their investment.