Kai Brusch might have grown up in Hamburg, Germany, but the 18-year-old is now living his dream of playing ‘American' football in the United States as a member of the USA Football International Student Program.
The initiative gives student-athletes from around the world the chance to play football and study at prestigious U.S. prep schools. In 2008-09, a total of 12 student-athletes from three continents are participating at schools in five states as the program kicks off its third year.
Brusch was a squad member of the German Junior National Team that won the 2008 European Junior Championship in Sevilla this summer and is now entering his first semester in the ISP as a junior at the Salisbury School in Connecticut. He has swapped the familiar surroundings of northern Germany for the picturesque setting of the Berkshire foothills.
Brusch was encouraged by friend and fellow Hamburg native Kasim Edabli to apply to the program. Edabli, who returns for a second year as a senior at Kimball Union Academy in Meriden, N.H., had a successful first season, drawing recruiting interest from the University of Connecticut, Boston College and other Division I-AA programs.
"I am really good friends with Kasim, and he told me about the program," Brusch said. "I asked him a lot of questions like, ‘How do you apply?' and ‘What should I do to get ready?'"
Having prepared as best he could for the life-changing experience across the Atlantic, Brusch has noticed some differences in football compared to his experience in Germany in the short time he has been at the Salisbury School.
"First of all, it is faster," he explained. "It is way faster than Germany. In Germany everyone is kind of bigger, but a lot slower. I mean, everyone in America is really, really fast, and everyone knows what they're doing.
"What also stood out the most was that bonding with teams is really great here. In Germany, everyone knew each other really well, but bonding was not that big. The bond within teams here is great. We go to class together each day and are together all the time. It is a great experience."
Brusch, who has been playing since the age of nine, has always played as a receiver at home in Germany, but since arriving in the U.S., he has practiced in a number of different positions.
"In Germany, I was actually just playing receiver," he explained. "Here I am in the second group of receivers. I am probably going to start at outside linebacker, and I have never played there in Germany before. I was a defensive end, played some safety and now I am an outside linebacker. It is a whole new experience, but I am really enjoying it."
His switch to the defensive side of the ball paid dividends immediately as he recorded a sack and an interception when the Salisbury School scrimmaged against the Berkshire School.
The ISP also focuses on an overseas student's academic qualities and development, so the German youngster's daily schedule is filled with more than just football. Athletes must satisfy their school's academic criteria and excel in the classroom, as well as on the football field.
Brusch typically begins his busy schedule at 7 a.m. After attending classes until 2 p.m., he then heads off to the football field. Once practice is finished, he and his teammates go to a study hall to complete all the day's assignments and in his own words, Brusch has learned to "study, study, study."
With the preparatory school curriculum already challenging, Brusch faces the added difficulty of having to learn his subjects in a second, and ultimately foreign, language. Despite speaking excellent conversational English, some phrases are not easily translated.
"I guess I am doing good," Brusch said. "I had to change a mathematics class. In the first class, I did not get all the mathematic terminology. I have to adapt to that in the next couple of months. Hopefully I will do fine."
Brusch is one of seven German players in the 2008-09 ISP class and is excited to have the chance to play against two of those compatriots when his Salisbury School Crimson Knights face the Kent School in Connecticut on Oct. 17.
Center Oliver Woltdeit and receiver/defensive back Gregor Lietzau - both from Berlin - are entering their first and second years, respectively, at Kent School.
"I played with Team Germany and those two players at Kent School are also from Team Germany so I have met them," Brusch said. "I look forward to playing them."
The Salisbury School is coming off a successful 7-1 NEPSAC (New England Preparatory School Athletic Conference) season, and the team has a lot of new faces. Head coach Chris Adamson is quietly confident as his team enters the new season.
"It is a really hard-working, focused, high-character group," said Adamson, who has been impressed by Brusch's performance on and off the football field in his short time at the Salisbury School.
"He has been great and has a lot of personality," he added. "He is mature and he has been picking up things pretty quickly. I am impressed how prepared he is football wise. They obviously are getting good coaching and preparation to come here and be successful."
Traveling beyond the familiar borders of Europe for the first time, Brusch has enjoyed his time so far and even likes the food being served in the school dining hall. But naturally, he misses some aspects of home.
"Mostly, my family," Brusch admitted. "I miss my mom, my dad, my brother. That is pretty much it. I miss a lot of my friends too, but I can call them and talk to them."
Brusch's father, a football trainer, is the one who introduced him to the sport of American football, which led him to watch Ohio State and the Philadelphia Eagles.
At a young age, Brusch could hardly have dreamed that he would one day be treading the gridiron in the country that the sport calls home.
