Bradys are family affair Relatives cheer Pats QB in Raider land
January 18, 2002 SFGate
Ron Kroichick



As they have done all season, people will pour into the Brady home in San Mateo tomorrow night. They will fill the family room -- some lying on the floor, others standing against the wall, all with a keen interest in the game on the big-screen television. They, like so many other football fans, will watch the Raiders play the New England Patriots. But nobody will wear a silver-and-black jersey in this house. Nobody will even consider exhorting Oakland's defensive players to nail the quarterback. That's because one pocket of the Bay Area is Brady territory -- as in Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, pride of Serra High School, baby in a family of accomplished athletes, unlikely leader of the team that will meet the Raiders in the AFC playoffs. "In some sort of weird way," said Nancy Brady, one of Tom's three sisters, "we feel like we can send good messages to him through the TV." This time, Nancy and Julie Brady joined Tom's parents, Tom Sr. and Galynn, in heading east for the game. The oldest sister, Maureen, will stay home in the Bay Area with her 7-month-old daughter, Maya. For three-plus hours, though, Maya must share her mom's attention with football. It was quite a scene throughout the season, as the extended Brady clan -- relatives, friends, neighbors -- watched "Tommy" burst onto the NFL landscape. His parents bought a satellite dish a few years back, when Tom Brady eschewed Cal's recruiting pitch and went to Michigan instead. The dish was particularly vital this year, as Drew Bledsoe's injury gave Brady a chance to become New England's starter. So the dish served as a magnet of sorts on Sundays, attracting the faithful to San Mateo. Tom Sr. and Galynn were never there (they travel to all of their son's games), but their daughters opened the house anyway. The crowd often exceeded 25 to 30 people; some brought bleacher-type seats, others stood outside and watched through the window. "Someone said they've never heard so many people yell so loudly in such a confined space," said Terri Brady, Tom's aunt. "There's a lot of energy. When Tommy throws a touchdown pass, it's just deafening."

Maureen Brady gladly hears the noise from upstairs. She gets so nervous watching her brother, she cannot bear to join those in the family room. She usually retreats to her parents' bedroom to watch the game. That way, when Tom Brady absorbs an especially fearsome hit -- like the one Dec. 16 against Buffalo that sent his helmet flying -- Maureen can agonize in relative privacy. She crouched over after that hit, in tears. "I never got this nervous when I was playing softball, because I had control over things, especially as a pitcher," Maureen said. There is one thing you should know about this Brady Bunch: Tom might be the most famous athlete, but he was not the first. Maureen, now 28, was an All- America pitcher at Fresno State, compiling an 80-31 record and 0.98 ERA in her college career. Julie, 27, started 72 games on the St. Mary's soccer team and earned second- team all-West Coast Conference honors as a senior. Nancy, 25, went to Cal to play softball, though she subsequently quit to pursue her studies. Or put another way: Tom Brady, now 24, was once known as "the Brady sisters' little brother." Maureen, Julie and Nancy thus find it amusing when they visit Boston and are widely known as "Tom Brady's sisters." "I have to remind people who paved the way," Maureen said. The year Maureen was a senior at Hillsdale High School, the four kids collectively had more than 300 sporting events. A huge calendar posted in the kitchen listed all of them; at least one of the parents made it to virtually every game.

Even so, young Tom Brady did not play organized football until his freshman year at Serra. His parents heard former 49ers guard Randy Cross give a speech discouraging young kids from exposing themselves to injury in Pop Warner football. So Tom and Galynn kept their son on the sideline. The first hint of his football future came on a family vacation to Ixtapa, Mexico, when Tommy was 12 or 13. He bet his dad he could throw a football through a tire about 20 yards away. Tommy did it once, then again and again and again. "I just paused and said, 'My God, where did that ever come from?' " Brady Sr. said. "I had never seen him throw a football, other than in the street." Before long, the father was putting together a video resume for recruiters that showed the son flinging the football. And then he and Galynn were traveling to Ann Arbor to watch Tommy play for the Wolverines. And then they were jetting all over the country to see him lead the Patriots into the playoffs. This loyalty sometimes requires public comment. So when Tom Sr. heard radio talk-show host Pete Franklin denigrating Tom Jr. before the NFL Draft two years ago, Dad used a pseudonym and called to offer his opinion. And when some boisterous fans in Foxboro ripped Tom during one game this season, Julie Brady quickly came to her brother's defense. "They knew who we were and said something malicious," she said. "We've been good at trying to refrain (from responding), but a few words were exchanged that time. Your adrenaline is going during the games." The adrenaline even sweeps up Tom's grandmother, 91-year-old Peggy Brady. She lives in an assisted-care facility in Millbrae, where friends give her newspaper clippings touting the feats of her grandson. On game days, Peggy sits in her room and prays for Tom's health. Terri Brady calls from San Mateo headquarters with regular updates on the score and the physical condition of their quarterback. Safe to say, a New England victory tomorrow night would go over well in Brady territory.