Warren De La Salle state champion QB Brady Drogosh cements future with Cincinnati
WARREN, Mich. (BVM) – Brady Drogosh is not fazed by adversity. That showed in his sophomore season, a year which was up and down throughout. Splitting time as the varsity quarterback at De La Salle Collegiate High School, Drogosh had to adapt to the quicker pace of the game.
“The speed of the game between JV and middle school and then varsity and middle school was really big at first,” Drogosh said. “I think my first pass I ever threw on varsity was an interception. The kid caught up to our receiver like it was nothing.”
Making his first varsity season even more difficult was having to deal with the starting and stopping of high school football in Michigan in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One silver lining, however, was every team in the state made the postseason, including a 2-4 De La Salle squad.
The Pilots took full advantage of the opportunity, making a surprise run all the way to the state finals as Drogosh continued to develop through the postseason.
Unfortunately, they suffered a tough 25-19 loss to Muskegon Mona Shores, as Drogosh had a game to forget.
“We ended up losing in the state championship game and I had a little bit of a rough game there,” Drogosh mentioned. “Once we got to that game, we had a couple of sophomores starting other than me, and I know we came on to the big field, the bright lights, and we were all pretty nervous … Seeing those senior teammates that I had crying in their last game, not being able to bring home a state championship, it really hurt me.”
The pain of the loss turned into motivation for Drogosh and the rest of his teammates, and they worked hard to ensure a loss in the state finals would not happen again.
“Coming off the state championship loss, I knew our team was hungry,” Drogosh said. “Our motto was ‘leave no doubt.’ We were all in there getting better, working out at 5 a.m. in the offseason, morning workouts before school. I knew we were all hungry to get better and win a state championship.”
The hard work certainly paid off for Drogosh personally, as he threw for nearly 1,500 yards and 15 touchdowns while rushing for nearly 1,800 yards and another 24 scores. His play led to incredible team success, as the Pilots went a perfect 13-0 and this time took home a state title in convincing fashion with a 41-14 win over Notre Dame commit Josh Burnham and Traverse City Central.
“I knew I had a really great year, I had a really great playoffs, we were all successful,” Drogosh said. “When I walked onto the field, I wasn’t nervous at all. I knew what I was supposed to do and I knew I had to get the job done.
“When we put our seniors in and our second string, the kids we brought up for the playoffs, it was a really great feeling that we were able to see those kids, every single player on our team, be able to play on Ford Field and in a state championship. It was really a special moment for the whole program.”
As good as Drogosh was throughout the season and in the state title game – where he had 142 yards and three touchdowns through the air and another 174 yards and a touchdown on the ground – he credits the team’s balance with an offense that averaged around 40 points per game and a strong defense led by Princeton commit Will Beesley for helping the Pilots to their ultimate goal.
The state title also gave Drogosh a chance to reflect on what has been a tremendous football journey thus far. Starting by playing flag football when he was 6, Drogosh was always attracted to the sport from a young age.
“Just watching it on TV, watching college football and the pros, it always gave me a good feeling,” Drogosh said. “The college atmosphere, watching those games was always fun and then going to college games was always fun.”
Considering he was named after arguably the greatest quarterback of all time in Tom Brady – who has become his idol throughout the last several years – Drogosh had no choice but to grow a love for football.
“I was named after Tom Brady so he’s been my idol ever since I was little,” Drogosh said. “He went to Michigan and I’m from Michigan. Our games aren’t really that similar, but he’s always been my idol.”
Drogosh joined a youth league in Sterling Heights where he actually started out as a lineman, eventually transitioning to running back and wide receiver as he got into middle school.
By seventh grade, Drogosh finally tried out the quarterback position. The results were impressive with his middle school team going undefeated in back-to-back seasons as Drogosh also contributed on defense at safety, outside linebacker and defensive end.
After starting on JV as a freshman at De La Salle, Drogosh endured a heartbreaking finish to his sophomore season and turned it into success a year later – and it didn’t stop on the football field.
Throughout his life, the 6-foot-5 quarterback has also been a baseball and basketball player. While he gave up baseball after last season, Drogosh competed in his final season of basketball this past winter.
After winning league titles on the freshman and JV teams in his first two seasons, this year, just months after winning a state crown in football, he helped the Pilots’ varsity boys basketball team also bring home a state title.
“Winning the semi finals at Breslin, coming back the next day, winning the state championship, there was no feeling like it,” Drogosh said.
Although the De La Salle junior will conclude his basketball career as he plans to enroll in college early next year, he will still have one last go around on the gridiron in Warren, hoping to repeat his team’s success from 2021.
“I want to continue to develop as a passer,” Drogosh said. “I think that will really help me in my senior year and going into my college career. I definitely think we have what it takes to win another state championship. I think the leadership that we’re carrying on from this past senior class is going to help us tremendously. I’m confident in me and my teammates to bring home another one.”
Once he is done with his senior season, Drogosh will look towards his college football career. A tremendous athlete who can throw the ball but is also a dual threat with his legs, the quarterback was highly sought after over the last year or so.
Some of that interest came from the Big Ten, as Drogosh considered offers from Minnesota and Indiana, and was also being pursued by Michigan and Wisconsin. But when it came down to it, Drogosh did not want to miss a chance to play for an up-and-coming program that is coming off an appearance in the College Football Playoff: the Cincinnati Bearcats.
“I was really just blown away by the facilities, the coaches, the players, the campus,” Drogosh said. “I knew once I got the Cincinnati offer, I waited a couple of days and I talked with my family, but I think five days after I got that offer, I called my dad and I told him I was ready to commit.”
Part of Drogosh’s attraction to Cincinnati also came through the relationships he built with the coaching staff including recently promoted offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli, as well as head coach Luke Fickell.
“I was really able to build a strong, close relationship with Coach Guidugli,” Drogosh said. “My family loved him. That was really important to me that my family was going to like the person that I was going to be spending most of my time with.
“After I committed, I went on another unofficial visit to Cincy, and was able to spend about an hour, hour-and-a-half with Coach Fickell, getting to know him with me and my family. That was really good, I thought that was really important for us as well.”
Once he gets to Cincinnati, Drogosh believes he can bring a lot to the table. One of the Bearcats’ top quarterbacks ever in Desmond Ridder just came through the program, and Drogosh believes he can have a similar impact.
“I think my athleticism and my ability to be able to make plays,” Drogosh said about what he can bring to Cincinnati. “I’ve been compared to Desmond Ridder. When Coach Gino came and saw me, he thought I looked exactly like Desmond Ridder. Being able to make plays and everything like that will be really good for the team. I’m hoping to keep bringing home championships and making the College Football Playoff … All we want to do is win.”
Last month, Ridder was selected 74th overall in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. On one of his visits, Drogosh also had the chance to meet Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, the fourth overall pick of this year’s draft by the New York Jets. Cincinnati continues to produce pro talent, and Drogosh believes they can get him to his ultimate goal as well.
“Being able to meet Sauce, that was really cool,” Drogosh said. “When Ridder got drafted, I was actually on the phone with Coach Fickell about five minutes beforehand and he was all happy when I committed and he told me it was going to bring good luck to Desmond. Five minutes later, the Falcons took him.
“Seeing that Cincinnati is able to develop NFL talent, it’s really cool. Knowing that they will be able to help me to play at the next level, I think I have what it takes and I know that Coach Guidugli is going to do everything to help me succeed in college and so on after that. Playing in the league would be really special.”
