On Paper and on the Field, Taft’s Melo Writes His Ticket

WOODLAND HILLS — Football is a way of life for David Melo of Taft High. The paper he wrote for an English composition class said as much.

Before, I took the sport as a joke. Now . . . this isn’t just a game, but my future as well.

To understand his analogy is to know his story.

For the past year, Melo’s life has been one struggle after another. Tackle one problem, prepare for the next.

“It’s been hell,” said the 6-foot-3, 225-pound senior linebacker.

Three months ago, Melo’s dream of earning a college athletic scholarship started to fade. But with the help and support of his father, Melo rebounded.

“I love him for what he [did for me],” Melo said. “He puts family first before anything. What he did for me was incredible. I wouldn’t have gotten through this without my dad.”

Melo, 17, has dealt with more than his share of family trauma and personal problems.

In the last year, Melo’s grandmother died of complications from a heart attack. An uncle, depressed because of his mother’s death, died seven months later from starvation. His mother, still recovering from a fall at work that left her disabled, has been out of work for 18 months.

It only got worse in August when, in the midst of the family crisis, Melo’s football eligibility was questioned after he transferred from Van Nuys to Taft amid allegations of illegal contact.

While Melo’s father, Enrique Jr., fought to protect his son’s eligibility--filing the necessary papers for the transfer and attending multiple hearings on the matter--he was fired from his job with a property management group.

“I went through hell to take my kid out of one school and put him in another,” Enrique Melo said. “I lost my job because of it.”

Enrique Melo said he’d do it again.

“As long as my kid is happy, I’ll go to the end of the world for my kid,” he said.

Every Saturday I woke up with my dad watching college football, never missing the USC games, of course. . . . I made a promise to myself that I would be one of those starters on the field in front of that huge crowd, just pounding someone to the floor.

David, who was 9 years old when he started playing in youth leagues, told his father in May he wanted to transfer to Taft. The Medical Magnet curriculum he was taking at Van Nuys was too tough. He was not enjoying spring football and wanted to play his last high school season with his friends at Taft.

After much discussion, Enrique obliged.

“I wanted him to have a little more relaxation in his senior year,” Enrique said.

Trouble began, David said, when he informed Van Nuys Coach Mark Pomerantz he was transferring through open enrollment--a state-mandated law allowing a student one transfer to any school within a district.

The Melos say Van Nuys coaches and administrators tried everything possible to block the transfer to keep the All-City 3-A Division linebacker at Van Nuys.

“It was harassment, straight harassment, and it started with Pomerantz,” David said. “From the day that I said I was leaving, it’s been straight harassment. It was horrible. It was the worst time of my life.”

Pomerantz, who denies harassing the Melos, said he was told that Melo had been in contact with Taft coaches, a violation of CIF rules. He notified the City Section Rules Committee, which could have stripped Melo’s eligibility.

It was a month rife with sleepless nights for Melo, not knowing whether he would be allowed to play his senior year. No football, Melo thought, meant no athletic scholarship.

He would wake up in the middle of the night and wonder, “Is this really happening to me?”

“It seemed like a dream because so many things were happening at once,” David said.

More like a nightmare, Enrique said.

“I was threatened by [Pomerantz],” Enrique said. “He stuck his finger in my face and said, ‘If you take your kid out of here, I will make sure your kid never plays again.’

“No parent should have to go through this.”

Pomerantz denied the allegation.

Once Melo was cleared to play in mid-September, pressure was lifted and the bruising linebacker was on his way to another outstanding season.

His play has attracted serious interest from several Division I schools and he is set to take recruiting trips to Iowa and San Diego State.

Right now, by getting those offers, I’m working even harder, pushing myself to the limits until I reach my goal.

Playing for one of the region’s best teams helped Melo gain the attention, said teammate Sedric Hurns, who helped talk Melo into transferring to Taft.

“Me and my boy have been getting a lot of recruiters to come out and look at us,” said Hurns, Melo’s friend since seventh grade. “The calls, the letters. . . . The recruiting is better here.”

Melo is certainly surrounded by more talent at Taft. With Tyler Brennan, Dionte Hall and Marquis Brignac, Taft’s linebacker corps is among the region’s finest.

“It’s great to play with Tyler Brennan,” Melo said. “He’s a person I count on. When I mess up, he’s there and when he messes up, I’m there.”

Melo’s presence, Brennan said, has helped Taft remain a 4-A contender.

“I’m just a little guy,” said Brennan, a three-year starter. “Look at him. He’s a big guy. He makes all of us better.”

Melo, who punts and kicks off for the Toreadors, has accomplished his goal of having fun during his senior year.

The camaraderie at Taft, he said, is second to none.

“We’re like a family,” Melo said. “It’s just like being at home. We’re united. We love each other.”