GSL quarterback survived harrowing summer

Gaven Deyarmin feels fortunate to be alive.

The starting quarterback last year as a sophomore at Central Valley, Deyarmin was on a cruise in the Mexican Riviera when his appendix burst. He was quarantined to his room when a nurse on the cruise ship suspected he had the flu.

By the time the ship returned to Los Angeles, Deyarmin was in the most pain he’s felt in his life. The 3½-hour flight to Seattle and short connection to Spokane was almost intolerable.

After arriving home, his father, CV vice principal Brandon Deyarmin, called a nurse, who asked a key question – is Gaven yellow? In fact, he was showing signs of jaundice.

Gaven’s father rushed him to the hospital. He was tested for hepatitis when it was determined his appendix had ruptured. He was scheduled immediately for surgery.

“They told me if it had been another 24 hours I could have died,” Deyarmin said.

Two surgeries had to be performed. The first one dealt with the rupture and the second was needed to make sure all the toxins and poisons were cleaned out.

Deyarmin was in street clothes at practice Wednesday, the first day Greater Spokane League teams could begin workouts. He could miss as many as four games. But his timetable for return is much speedier than what his coach envisions.

He lost 32 pounds, going from 187 to 155. He has gained 7 pounds back in recent days.

“He’s lucky to be alive,” CV coach Rick Giampietri said.

The better he responds to therapy that includes biking and swimming, the sooner he could return.

In his stead, junior Eli Wiecking will start. He was Deyarmin’s backup last year.

What will make it easier on Wiecking is he has a sizeable line that returns intact.

“That’s huge,” Giampietri said. “That’s the strength of our team.”

Deyarmin had a summer full of improvement.

“I had a lot of fun at summer camp,” he said. “I felt like was doing well, like I improved a lot from last season.”

He has faith in Wiecking.

“He’s been pushing me as much as I’ve been pushing him,” Deyarmin said. “He will be a good fit.”

Who’s going to block?

The biggest challenge facing Gonzaga Prep is replacing an offensive line.

All of the starters graduated from a year ago, including four of five backups. Two seniors, including Stanford-bound defensive end Charlie Hopkins, will mix with three juniors.

G-Prep coach Dave McKenna is confident a new offensive line will emerge.

“We’ve made huge strides,” he said. “We’ve got great kids there. They’ll get it together.”

McKenna thought it was a so-so first day.

“It was sluggish,” McKenna said. “It was good to see everybody out here, so that’s the good thing.”

Life after Halliday

Ferris must replace record-setting quarterback Connor Halliday.

Halliday’s replacement – junior Ben Goodwin – will be 8 inches shorter.

Ferris coach Jim Sharkey is confident Goodwin will fill the bill.

“I had a kid like Ben when I first went to this offense at Battle Ground (Wash.),” Sharkey said. “He did fine. Ben will do fine.”

Sharkey looked over the practice field as his players were doing warmup drills and was happy with what he saw.

“Everybody who should be here is here, so that’s always good for the first day,” Sharkey said.

The Saxons peaked at the right time last year, riding their end-of-season momentum to the state championship game.