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Local friends, relatives pulling for Berrian, Bears
In addition to Bears fans across the country, there were a few folks in Blakely especially excited by the catch. The wide receiver making the catch of a slightly underthrown pass while tumbling backwards into the end zone, giving the Bears a 25-14 lead early in the fourth quarter, was Bernard Berrian. Bernard is the son of Joseph and Sally Lester Berrian of Atwater, Calif. He is the grandson of Effie B. Lester of Blakely. He also has a number of aunts and uncles, cousins and friends in Early County, including his uncle John Lester, a Washington High alum and ECHS graduate, who was a runningback with the Buffalo Bills during the O.J. Simpson era. Berrian helped lead his Atwater High football team to a 13-1 record his senior season. A three-year starter at Fresno State, where he majored in communications, he finished his career with 199 receptions for 2,849 yards and 25 TDs - second in school history in career catches, fifth in career yards and tied for first in TD catches. He also set several school records returning kickoffs and punts, fin- ishing with a schoolrecord 5,828 career allpurpose yards to rank fouth on the WAC's careerrecord list. He was drafted by Chicago in the third-round selection, 78th overall, in the 2004 NFLDraft. In both of his seasons in the NFL, 25 percent of his career receptions have been for at least 20 yards including six catches of 34 yards or longer. He has also seen time as both a kick and punt returner. Berrian has led the Bears in receiving in both of their post-season wins, catching five passes for 85 yards and one TD against the Saints after making five receptions for 105 yards including a 68-yard TD a week earlier in the divisional playoff victory over the Seattle Seahawks.
The Bears, along with his family and friends, will have their eyes on Bernard, No. 80, in Sunday's Super Bowl, as will the Indianapolis Colts' defense.
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