"Reggie Berrios"

FOR MANY KIDS growing up in Bellport, being a part of the high school football team brings a special feeling. Ask anyone who has ever worn the red, royal and white colors and played in front of a capacity crowd at Joe Cipp Field, and they will tell you it's an experience few get the chance to enjoy and most never forget.

Reggie Berrios is one of those kids living the dream, and the 5-9, 170-pound senior running back doesn't want to wake up until after Bellport (7-2-1) meets Garden City (9-1) in the Long Island Class II Championship Game at 4 p.m. Saturday at Hofstra.

"When I was a freshman, I watched the '92 team win the Long Island championship," Berrios said of Bellport's 8-6 win in the 1992 Long Island title game that snapped Garden City's 30-game winning streak. "I told myself after that year, `That's what I want to do.' "

Berrios began bleeding Clipper Red well before his freshman year. His older brother, Sidney, was a wide receiver and defensive back on the 1986 Bellport team. An 8-year-old Reggie could then be found tagging along, wearing Sidney's No. 83 jersey proudly around town.

"I used to like coming to the games," Reggie said. "There's something different about football at this school. The people are so much more supportive here than anywhere else I've seen."

And to be a member of the varsity is like earning a lifetime membership to a tight-knit fraternity. One that boasts names such as Gus Palma, Harold Jasper, Antonio O'Ferral and coaching legend Joe Cipp.

"Everyone looks out for each other," Berrios said. "All the older guys come back and support you."

That kind of love can grow on a team, especially a young one like last season's Clippers, who lost to West Islip, 38-14, in the Suffolk Division II final. Berrios said the returning players had been preparing for last Saturday's championship since last year. Last Saturday, Berrios gained 86 yards and ran for three touchdowns to lead the Clippers to a 36-0 win over Huntington in the Division II championship. For the season, Berrios has 720 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns.

"We used to get together in the summer and play at the middle school," Berrios said of his current teammates. "We used to work on practice stuff. Everybody was really into it this year."

And no one in the county puts it to practice better than the Clippers and Berrios, who teams with fellow senior running back Jamie Thomas and quarterback Rich Palmese to form a dangerous triple-threat ground attack. "We have what I think is that fastest backfield in the county," Berrios said. "It's hard to key on just one person."

Garden City has more to worry about than just containing Bellport's running game. The Trojans will also have to contend with the dreams of every young boy who always wanted to wear the colors of the Bellport Clippers.

Reference: Newsday, 11-30-1995, pp A78.