Friesz Passes A Message Seahawk Quarterback Attends Graduation Ceremony For Dare Class
Coeur d’Alene Police Officer Mark Knapp had a 6-foot-4-inch All-American surprise Friday for his 70 DARE students’ graduation.
Little fifth-grader eyes bulged and busy mouths dropped when Knapp revealed that his guest speaker was John Friesz, quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks and Coeur d’Alene’s most recognized athlete.
A high school classmate of Knapp’s, Friesz energized the Drug Abuse Resistance Education ceremony at Bryan Elementary with a say no to drugs message, autographs and a few passes to lucky DARE graduate Gabe Lopez.
“It was exciting,” Lopez said, though he added he wasn’t the biggest football fan around. “The Seahawks are all right, I guess.”
Friesz’s journey through the National Football League has taken him from San Diego to Washington, D.C., and now back to where he always wanted to be, the Northwest.
“I think most people know me around here by my Idaho days,” Friesz said, sporting a goatee. “They’re plenty of people with ties to the U of I around, so that’s how a lot of people remember me.”
There was much to remember. Friesz chucked the football for more than 10,000 yards - about six miles - quarterbacking the Vandals, shattering all Idaho and Big Sky passing records before him. All-American honors followed.
After last season in the nation’s capital, he signed a deal to back up Seattle’s Rick Mirer. More importantly, he came home.
“This has always been a place for me to get away from the pressure,” he said.
In the off season, Friesz splits time between the Seattle suburbs and a home in Hayden. “Now I’ve got a little more time to get over here from Seattle.”
Friesz would prefer to keep a lower profile around town. “I’d rather not have people coming up to me and my wife at restaurants if I could help it.”
His own celebrity is no big deal to Friesz. But reminders of his prowess remain around the Lake City. His No. 17 jersey hangs in a glass case at Coeur d’Alene High School, where a $1,000 scholarship in his name goes to a standout athlete headed to UI.
At Franklin’s Hoagies on Fourth Street, an autographed photo of Friesz quarterbacking in San Diego assures proprietor Larry Anderson that he can wash Friesz’s dishes anytime. Friesz scrubbed pots and pans there for a year after high school, Anderson said.
“We don’t see him as much anymore,” Anderson said Friday, whipping up a cheese steak on the grill. “I think we yelled at him too much when he worked here.”
Friesz happily signed autographs for the mini-mob of youngsters that clung to him after the DARE graduation. He continued signing even as he and wife, Julie, got into their modest sedan outside the school.
He’ll try to do more events like the DARE graduation in Coeur d’Alene now that he’ll be just a few hours away. The city’s changed since he’s left for the pros.
“The one thing I’ve noticed around here since I’ve been back is that there’s a lot more trash,” he said. “I’m thinking about organizing a Clean up Coeur d’Alene Day or something like it.”
Look for Friesz as the grand marshal of the Fred Murphy Days Parade today starting at 11 a.m. along Sherman Avenue.
“Being a local boy, we’ve always wanted to have him,” said Stephen Gregory, organizer of the parade. “And he certainly is a celebrity for us here.”