PROGRESS FROM PAIN; N.P.'S QB IS LEADING BY EXAMPLE.

Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer

Football success at Newbury Park High has always rested on the quarterback's shoulders - even if one of the shoulders is dislocated, which was the case with Cameron Merrill.

Newbury Park always has celebrated the forward pass - from Keith Smith to the Czernek brothers to Chris Lombardo until he was hurt early this season - and Merrill is the latest to emerge.

Shaking off his own painful injury, Merrill has led the Panthers (8-4) into their Southern Section Division IV semifinal game against San Luis Obispo (11-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Newbury Park.

He's thrown for 1,861 yards and 25 touchdowns - with just six interceptions - even though he spent most of the season ``in so much pain, he could barely comb his hair,'' according to coach George Hurley.

Back in the summer, when heralded Lombardo transferred in and Merrill watched passing-league games from the sidelines because his arm was in a sling, the latter never dreamed he'd be in this position.

By Week 1 he was far from healthy, but his athleticism won him a job as a starting wide receiver. He caught three passes for 85 yards and a touchdown before Lombardo broke his leg against Paso Robles in the second game.

Merrill reluctantly took over, and by the time the dust settled, Newbury Park was an uncharacteristic 3-3.

However, Merrill's shoulder improved and so did the Panthers. They've won five of six and Merrill has passed for 10 touchdowns over the past three games. Suddenly, Newbury Park doesn't look like such a long shot against top-seeded San Luis Obispo.

As far as the easygoing Merrill is concerned, no one is going to mistake him for someone worried about losing.

``I know all of what we do comes down to me, and everybody is depending on me,'' he said at practice Monday. ``But my approach is, I'm just out here trying to have as much fun as possible.''

Teammate Will Svitek, who has 43 receptions, said the team has rallied behind Merrill and taken on the quarterback's personality; he's low key and so are the Panthers. They aren't blowing away teams as they've done in years past - they've scored more than 35 points just once all season - but here they are, primed to make their first title appearance since 1993.

``Cameron's improvement has been amazing,'' Svitek said. ``He was hurt all summer, but every week he just keeps getting better and better. He's really matured and he's handling the pressure so well. He's doing fabulous.''

A factor in Newbury Park's favor is more balance than ever before. Merrill's emergence means teams can't key on running back Marcus Crawford, who is having an All-Southern Section season with 1,670 yards and 16 touchdowns.

``Marcus Crawford has given this team a lot of help,'' Merrill said. ``For the first month, after Chris got hurt, we really had to rely on him.''

L. Ray Hawkins is another key. He has 53 receptions - an average of 16.3 per catch - and 11 touchdowns.

However, as far as Hurley is concerned, Merrill is the one who must come through if Newbury Park is to prevail.

``Cameron's not a real rah-rah guy. He leads by example,'' Hurley said. ``There are a lot of demands and pressure on him. When we weren't doing too well in the beginning of the year, no one felt worse than him, even though he was hurt. He worked hard, he accepted his role and he got better. By now he's proved himself as one of the best passers we've ever had.''

CAMERON CAN

Quarterback Cameron Merrill has overcome a dislocated shoulder to lead Newbury Park High into the Southern Section Division IV semifinal Friday against top-seeded San Luis Obispo. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. at Newbury Park. Merrill's statistics:

ATT COMP PCT YDS  TD INT RATING

276 138 50 1,861 25 6 141.16

CAPTION(S):

photo, box

PHOTO Newbury Park's Cameron Merrill was a receiver early in the season but progressed rapidly when he had to take over as quarterback. He did this despite having an injured shoulder.

Evan Yee/Staff Photographer

BOX: Cameron can (see text)