Brewer, as He Does, is Turning a Challenge into a Positive

Ron Bailey, Publisher

"Old School" Ray Brewer

February 19, 2006 – Ray Brewer seems to be the type of young man who listened to his elders when he was young. Everybody has heard the saying ‘When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade’. Brewer epitomized that can-do mentality when he recently said, “I feel as if I’ll come back stronger” due to the rehabilitation process assigned him after a recent knee surgery. Those around this young guy are not surprised by that outlook, and have no doubts that Ray will make the prediction materialize.

Before attending Lenoir, NC’s Patterson School, Brewer starred at Eleanor Roosevelt High School. While attending that Greenbelt, MD institution, the 5’11” point guard played for Glenn Farello, garnering first team All-Met honors his senior year with statistical averages of 20.4 points, 5.2 assists, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, per game.

Farello had the pleasure of working with Ray for several years at Roosevelt, and values the opportunity. “Ray means everything to our program, I love him to death” he said. “He’s one of the best players in Roosevelt history”, which is saying something considering two Raiders are currently playing in the NBA, and several others are playing professionally elsewhere.

Though he did well academically later on at Eleanor Roosevelt, Ray didn’t concentrate on this books as much as he should early on in his high school career, and as a result decided attending prep school would be necessary. The Patterson School, coached by Chris Chaney was chosen, and again Brewer would make the most out of challenging situation.

At Patterson, Brewer shared he averaged “15 points and eight assists”, while “carrying a 3.14 GPA. He has used the facilities there, which include a 24 hour accessible gym and “NBA weight equipment” to improve. On his development, Brewer would share “I’ve learned to play hard every possession. I just got better, I got in shape. If you don’t bring it everyday, you’ll get embarrassed”.

Chaney - who has known Ray since the young guy was in middle school at Newport Prep and he directed the varsity squad at that Kensington, MD school - is impressed with Ray on the hardwood at Patterson. “He’s a great player, our starting point guard”, Chaney said. “He is our leader. Guys looked up to him, and he made people around him better”.

In addition to helping lead Patterson to a 30-2 record and number one national ranking at the time of this writing, Brewer also has functioned as an academic role model on the team.

According to Ray, though he has missed family and friends, his post-graduate year has been to his benefit. “A lot of county (Prince Georges) kids like myself, we really need to get away. At many prep schools, it’s in the middle of nowhere. It’s just books and basketball”.

He feels the prep school experience “really prepares you to be a man and go to college”. Brewer’s family is happy he has embraced Patterson in the manner in which he has. “They feel it was good for me. They say I have kind of grown up”, he said.

Despite his knee injury, schools see what Brewer brings to a team, and many have continued their interest in offering him a scholarship. Chaney mentioned Manhattan, Northeastern, Tulsa, and Charlotte as colleges that are recruiting the young guy. Ray added Tulane, George Washington and Illinois as additional suitors, while St. Bonaventure, Loyola “have offered this year”, and George Mason did the same last season.

Roosevelt’s Farello labeled Ray “A pure point guard who will make others around him better” in college, just like he did for the Raiders, and has done at Patterson. Around the Roosevelt program they called him “Old School”, since he was “a throwback” type player.

Now that the knee surgery, which Brewer described as a “three and a half hour procedure" has been completed, he is anxious to start the rehab process. The day after the operation Ray experienced “a little pain”, but will be evaluated by his surgeon soon, at which time a new knee brace should be provided, thereby enabling him to gradually “start putting pressure” on it and initiate his road to recovery.

Brewer has come a long way, and will go even further. Always a humble young man, when asked if he wanted to give some shout outs, Ray simply responded “To my family, and God”. As Farello said, “He’s a special young man”. One that will always turn lemons - whatever the setback or challenge- into lemonade.