The Twists And Turns Of Turner Baty

"No matter how bad it gets, if you stay in it and don't give up, you're better off than if you quit." — Tweet from Turner Baty, posted on Sept 29.

Turner Baty wears a red and black uniform, plays for the Rams, and quarterbacks the top-ranked team in the state. His football life seems eerily similar to the brief one he had in New Canaan, but Baty is far away from this town and the . If he was any further away, he'd fall into the Pacific Ocean. Baty plays at City College of San Francisco, a school that's not even an afterthought in the area and one that is part of a junior college football world that few people even know about.

"It's been pretty wild and crazy," Baty told Patch. "I didn't get the offers I thought I would after my senior year and I didn't want to go to the Ivy League. I was set to go to Georgia as a walk-on, but they backed out at the last minute."

His path to San Francisco seems almost as curious, if not as controversial, as the one that led him to New Canaan two years ago. In many ways, Baty has come full circle. In 2009, Baty moved from the Bay area to Florida to be with his father Greg, a former NFL player. In September of that year, Turner moved to New Canaanto be with his mother, who had taken a job with ESPN. Then, shortly after , Baty stunned everyone when he announced he was moving back with his father in Fort Lauderdale.

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"I know it seemed sketchy and some people were bitter," Baty said. "I don't think it was as bad as a lot of people made it out to be. I know that the coaches and some of my teammates understand why I did it."

In the summer of 2010, Baty left Florida to be near his mother, who had moved back to the Bay area from New Canaan. Without many options, Baty sought the advice of Tom Martinez, a highly respected coach who has worked extensively with New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Martinez recommended that Baty go to CCSF to further his career and, hopefully, attract the eyes of Division I college recruiters.

Baty enrolled as a part-time student at CCSF for the start of the 2010 school year, but he'd have to "gray shirt", which meant he could be on the scout team, attend film sessions and take part in weightlifting programs. However, when game days came around, Baty couldn't suit up for the Rams.

"That really helped me out a great deal," he said. "I got bigger and stronger, getting my weight up to 220 pounds. I also learned a lot from watching film. I didn't lose a year of eligility, either. After this year, I will have four years to play three seasons."

"Can't fear failure just gotta prepare so well that success is the only outcome." — Tweet from Turner Baty, posted on Oct. 5.

Baty took over as the starting quarterback in the Rams fourth game of the season. He is currently the top-rated passer among QB's that play for California Junior Colleges. Baty has 11 touchdown passes against just one interception, completing 68 percent of his passes.

Baty, who threw four touchdown passes and ran for another in last Saturday's game against De Anza College, said he is "happy the way things have gone. I'm playing against real good competition. A lot of the players are Division I caliber."

After his first and only season at New Canaan, major colleges expressed interest in Baty and there always on the Internet and in college football chat rooms as to where he'd wind up. Baty figured he'd be playing somewhere against the likes of Florida, Alabama, and other big-time programs. Instead, he's taking on schools like Menchino, Delta College, and the College of San Mateo. After a college recruiting process that left him sour and without a scholarship offer after his high school career, Baty is reluctant to say which programs are recruiting him now.

"My goal and dream is to play at a Division I, FBS school," Baty said. "I'm working as hard as I can. I've had my ups and downs, probably a lot more downs than ups. But I've learned a lot from my experiences and that's made me a better player and person. Right now, I'm just trying to help lead this team to a national championship."

"It never ceases to amaze me how lucky I am to have the family that I do." — Tweet by Turner Baty, posted September 27.

With his drive and what appears to be an obsession with getting a Division I scholarship, coupled with another cross-country move to find a school he could play at, Baty may seem like a football mercenary to some. Now that he's back near his mother, who left New Canaan after a five-month stay, his critics will say, "I knew it, he was recruited by New Canaan to be a hired gun." Marinelli has always firmly denied the allegations and Baty is adamant that nothing sinister ever took place.

"Lou Marinelli did not recruit me at all, not one ounce," Baty said emphatically. "He got a bad rap for that. It's totally unfair and ridiculous for anyone to say that he recruited me. My mom worked at ESPN and we knew people in New Canaan, so we lived there. And I worked hard and won the starting job."

Baty knows he can't re-write history and there are people who will never believe his story or forgive him for not graduating with his class in New Canaan. At the time he thought that going back to be with his father was the right thing to do. Although his time was short in New Canaan, Baty says there is nobody who can rob him of the great times and the memories he had playing for the New Canaan Rams.

"I wouldn't take away that experience I had in New Canaan for anything. It was an unbelievable place and I had a great time there."