Through USA Football's International Student Program (ISP), 12 student-athletes spanning three continents are given the opportunity of a lifetime to play ‘American' football and study at U.S. prep schools. Prospective students apply online at usafootball.com, and provided they are suitable candidates, they are eligible for financial aid from both USA Football and the host schools that they select.
Four overseas athletes have already made an impact on prep school football in Illinois, North Carolina and Pennsylvania this season, while eight members of the program will kick off the new NEPSAC (New England Preparatory School Athletic Conference) season on Sept. 19 and 20.
A newcomer to the ISP and football in the United States is Kai Brusch from Hamburg, Germany, who is enrolled as a junior at the Salisbury School in the picturesque setting of Connecticut's Berkshire foothills. Brusch and his new Crimson Knights teammates will begin the NEPSAC season at home against the Hotchkiss School on Saturday with a 7 p.m. kickoff, as Brusch lines up in an unfamiliar defensive position.
"In Germany I was actually just playing receiver," Brusch explained after making an interception in scrimmage action against the Berkshire School. "Here I am in the second group of receivers, but I am probably going to start at outside linebacker. I have never played linebacker in Germany before, only some safety and defensive end. It is a whole new experience, but I am really enjoying it."
Salisbury School head coach Chris Adamson welcomes a German ISP athlete to his school for a second year running and believes Brusch has all the attributes to be a success both on and off the field.
"I am impressed how mature he is and how prepared he is football wise," Adamson said. "They obviously are getting good coaching in Germany and getting good preparation for being here. Things are clearly being done the right way in Germany, and USA Football is doing a good job of identifying kids that are ready to come here and be successful."
Brusch first learned of the ISP through close friend and fellow Hamburg native Kasim Edebali, who will begin his second football season in the United States aiming to help Kimball Union Academy in New Hampshire defend the NEPSAC Championship they won with an unbeaten record last year.
Edebali is one of five ISP athletes on the Wildcats roster for Saturday's opening game at 2 p.m. at home in Meriden, N.H., against the Dexter School. Also returning to KUA for a second year are Christoph Kurzer of Berlin, Germany, and Kevin Gangelhoff of Odense, Denmark, who has verbally committed to play football at the University of New Hampshire in 2009. Joining them are newcomers and juniors Robert King of Copenhagen, Denmark, and Luke Robinson of Sydney, Australia.
When the Kent School opens its campaign at home to Choate Rosemary Hall on Friday with a 6:30 p.m. kickoff, two players from Berlin who helped Germany win the 2008 European Junior Championship will line up on offense. Wide receiver Gregor Lietzau, who will also expect to see time at defensive back and kicker, returns for a second year in Kent, Conn. Enrolling as a junior on the offensive line is center Oliver Woltdeit.
"The whole football and school experience has made me a better person, and I am very excited to be back," Lietzau said. "I have told Olli that the Kent School is a great place to be and a perfect opportunity for him to get a great education and also become a better football player."
Already making an impact at Lake Forest Academy near Chicago is versatile Danish wide receiver Shujaa Benson, who in his first three games had four receptions for 44 yards, including a 3-yard touchdown in a 30-20 loss to Wayland Academy. Benson has also carried the ball 19 times for 46 yards and returned three kickoffs for 68 yards. Serving as his team's kicker, he made a 32-yard field goal and three of four extra point attempts. Defensively, he has contributed 12 tackles.
"At home in Denmark, we don't face players that are of the same quality as the ones I am facing now, such as cornerbacks who were very tough to play against," Benson said, whose team plays at home to Aurora Christian High School on Saturday with a 1 p.m. kickoff. "Playing at this level will make me a more complete player."
Hailing from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, kicker and wide receiver Danny Agee, who is in his second year at Christ School in Arden, N.C., split the uprights with a 40-yard field goal in a 10-0 win over Northside Christian Academy and also went three-for-three on extra point attempts. The all-state selection has punted 11 times for 306 yards. In the most recent contest, Agee contributed to a dominating 37-6 win over Southside Christian with a perfect five of five extra point attempts.
One of Christ School's three returning starters on the offensive line, Hannes Toewe of Jersbek, Germany, has also been featured in three games so far this season. He and Agee line up away to Westminster Catawba Christian at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 19.
Curits Feigt of Schönefeld, Germany, is enjoying a second year at Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania having verbally committed to West Virginia for 2009. Feigt, who impressed at summer camps run by the Mountaineers and also by Boston College, Rutgers and Penn State, had his season kickoff delayed because of Hurricane Hannah.
When Mercersburg was finally able to take the field, he posted three tackles as his Blue Storm team suffered a narrow 22-21 loss to St. Albans, after relinquishing a 14-point lead. On Saturday, Sept. 13, he recorded five tackles in a 33-19 loss to Landon School, despite a strong second half performance after falling behind 21-0 early in the third quarter. Mercersburg travels to the Hun School at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
"He loves the defensive side of the ball, and he's a tremendous pass rusher right now," said Mercersburg head coach Dan Walker. "West Virginia really likes him in their system. I see him as a defensive lineman right now, but he'd never played offense before, and he learned it so fast they could probably stick him in there if they wanted to."
