That's what ended up happening for former Cerritos College baseball player Kenny Gajewski (pronounced 'GUY-eh-ski'), who spent 1990 as a red-shirt and has since gone on to own several turf businesses and be a national champion player and coach.

Gajewski, who was a pitcher, was attached at the hip to Falcons coach Dave Serrano that 1990 season, as he learned how to call a game, while at the same time, was hired to be one of two players to work on the field on a daily basis.

"I learned so much in that one season and it changed the trajectory of my life," said Gajewski (pictured, left), who just completed his sixth season as the head softball coach at Oklahoma State University. "Coming out of (Los Alamitos) high school, I was headed to Cypress College, which was by my house, to play for Scott Pickler. I didn't really know anything about Birdland. To me, Cerritos was so close, but also so far away."

It was Gajewski's best friend, Greg Bergeron, who convinced him to play for the Falcons. The two, who met when they were five years old playing on the Greased Lightning soccer team that was coached by Bergeron's father Tom, became fast friends.

"We went undefeated that year and also started what would become a lifelong friendship," stated Bergeron, who is as assistant softball coach at Cal State Northridge. "We were great friends all the way through elementary, junior high and high school. I was supposed to go to Los Alamitos HS with him, but I went to Gahr to play for my dad."

They each had their own introduction to what would eventually be named Kincaid Field after legendary coach Wally Kincaid. Bergeron knew of the history of the program from his father, who was a local coach and shared information about the team's successes. Gajewski first laid eyes on the field when he played in a Mickey Mantle game for the Norwalk Cardinals.

"Neither of us were being recruited heavily by any big schools at the end of our senior year," stated Bergeron. "I remember going to watch a Birds game during their playoff run in 1989 and after a game that they had just won, I saw three or four guys set up a pitching machine after the game was over which they had won. At that moment I knew I wanted to be a Bird. Once I decided to go to Cerritos I let Kenny know. We kind of talked about how cool it would be to play together, so when I decided to go to Cerritos College, I told Kenny this would be our chance to play together. We actually were playing against each other in a game at Birdland and kind of remember telling Mo (asst. coach Bill Mosiello) and Dave about Kenny. I believed they talked after that game. Once we both decided on Cerritos, we were both excited to be playing together again."

"That game gave me a chance to get in front of (head coach) George Horton and Dave Serrano," said Gajewski (right, with Bergeron in 1991). "Bergy and I talked and then decided we would get a chance to play together again when we decided to go to Cerritos. I really had no idea what I was getting myself into when I started at Cerritos. Bergy had told me a little, but it wasn't like what he described. It was so much more. The tradition, attention to detail, and just the day-to-day practices that were planned out to the minute. It's probably good that I didn't know what I was getting myself into. I might have chickened out."

It's a good thing he didn't. In fact, it wasn't his 1991 season where Gajewski was a 2nd Team All-South Coast Conference selection after going 5-1 on the mound with two saves and a 2.06 ERA that made the difference. It was in 1990, where Gajewski was a red-shirt after Horton told him he would be sitting out the season.

"We had so many arms that season, and Kenny needed to work on a few things, so he was red-shirted," said Horton, who led the Falcons to three state championships in his five seasons as head coach. "He was very committed as an athlete and worked on everything we asked him to. It's really no surprise that Kenny has excelled in every endeavor. He took advantage of creating careers from every single opportunity reminds me of how committed he was as an athlete."

"Our red-shirt year was one of the best years practice-wise for us," Bergeron said. "We pushed each other every day. We really worked hard. There were days he would hit fungos to me and I was like 'hey man, take it easy' and he would say something like 'oh are you going to ask the hitter to not hit the ball so hard'. We had our battles, but we pushed each other to get better and better. I feel we both had a strong work ethic before we got there due to our upbringing and our parents' expectations of us. But I think Cerritos is where we really learned how to work and the importance of showing up each day and grinding, no matter how tired you may have been. I still feel we both possess a just 'put our heads down and work' mentality."

And it paid off for Bergeron and Gajewski, who earned All-South Coast Conference honors in 1991. Bergeron batted .281 with 29 RBI, six doubles and three stolen bases. He struck out only 12 times in 135 at-bats.

"He was a complete hitter," former Cerritos head coach Ken Gaylord, who was an assistant in 1991 said. "He also did a good job at third. At the start, we didn't know if he had the arm to play third because he played second in high school. But we were very pleased."

Gajewski's strong pitching also helped the Falcons win the conference title and advance to the Southern California Regional playoffs that year.

"He was outstanding for us," Serrano said. "He had great command of all pitches, but I think the slider was his best. He had various roles on this team. He pitched lots of games for us."

"If I was having a terrible game, Kenny will come up to me and pump me up," Bergeron said. "The same with me for him. When we were playing for Dominguez Hills against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, the fans were on me and I wasn't doing very well. Ken said, 'Hold your head up. Don't let them get to you.' It really helped."

Gajewski said Bergeron has served as a motivator since the two were kids.

"He was always there to help me out if I was struggling," Gajewski said. "He's the guy I always went to for encouragement. We weren't afraid to get in each other's face."

Former head coach Gaylord (1992-2018), who was an assistant coach in 1991, agrees with both Horton and Serrano about the decision to red-shirt Gajewski in 1990.

"He wasn't the most talented guy, but his stuff was effective," stated Gaylord. "I knew they were leaving after 1991 and I would have liked to have had the chance to coach both Bergy and Kenny for one season. I'm not surprised by the amazing things Kenny's done. I have a lot of respect for him and all of his accomplishments. He's the kind of guy to get things done."

Serrano, who was the pitching coach in 1990 before serving as the head coach in 1991, was also in charge of maintaining the field. He was allowed to hire two people to work on the field and selected Gajewski as one of those players.

"We were allowed to hire two people to make some extra money, but I always looked for guys who would take pride in the field and their work," said Serrano, who is now the head baseball coach at Cal State Northridge. "Kenny did an unbelievable job and gave the field a first-class look. He took great pride in what he did and it eventually translated into a career."

"Working on the field was just one of great traditions of the program," remembered Gajewski. "Everything there was perfection. In fact, I remember going into the Field House for the first time and met (equipment manager) Poonie (Estrada). He was the first guy I met and he immediately greeted me with a smile, asked me my name. He took care of us like we were a big league club and treated all of us so well. We even had a shoe shiner in the clubhouse and I had to ask what it was. Bergy said that we wore black shoes and we polished them every day. He said we needed to know that if a ball fouls off your shoe, there would be some polish on it so the umpire knew. I never thought about that. But they did at Cerritos."

Being selected to work on the field gave Gajewski the opportunity to earn some money. But it also came with some stress.

"He didn't come around that often, but if Coach Kincaid stopped by and the field wasn't ready to go, you were gone (removed from the maintenance crew)," stated Gajewski. "The grind we put in on that field was such a great learning experience. My red-shirt year was the best of my life. Not only did I get stronger and better on the mound, I learned how to build a detailed practice schedule, how to call a game and work on a field the right way."

After the 1991 season, best friends Gajewski and Bergeron were coaching a youth baseball team which included the son of Cal State Dominguez Hills baseball coach George Wing. The duo talked with Wing several times and decided to take a trip to the campus. Wanting to continue their playing career, Gajewski made the decision to sign and asked Bergeron to join him for his signing. On the drive to the Dominguez Hills campus, Gajewski asked if he would be interested in signing, too. They decided to leave the decision to chance.

"I grabbed a quarter from the ash tray of his car and said something along the lines of 'if it's meant to be, heads I'll sign with you and tails I'll wait'", said Bergeron. "Well, heads it was and we were going to continue our childhood dream of playing together.."

Bergeron was a two-time All-CCAA Honorable Mention selection at third base for the Toros, while Gajewski rotated between starting and relief pitching. 

With one year of eligibility remaining, the two were discussing transferring to a Division I program, which was something they had always wanted to do. Former Falcon assistant coach Jody Robinson, who was the head coach at Loyola Marymount University at the time, wanted to bring them in to play for the Lions. The two verbally committed, but Bergeron was the only one to sign.

"I was playing in a Jayhawk League game at that time and had just finished tossing a complete game," remembers Gajewski. "Our centerfielder, Chip Glass, was playing at Oklahoma and he wanted to introduce me to their pitching coach, Vern Ruhle. Turns out, I played for Vern in the California Scout League with the Astros. He and (head coach) Larry Cochell called me later and convinced me to come to Oklahoma."

The hard part was having to call Robinson, who he told he would join him - and Bergeron - at Loyola Marymount.

"It was a tough phone call for me, because I had made the decision to sign with Oklahoma," stated Gajewski. "I consider that call to Jody my 'growing up' phone call. The opportunity was too good to turn down."

When he arrived in Norman, he was greeted by a familiar face, Falcon teammate Tim Walton, who was a red-shirt in 1991 with Cerritos and signed with the Sooners after the 1993 season.

"I didn't even know Tim was there until after I committed to Oklahoma," said Gajewski.

The 1994 season would end up being the first of three National Championships that Gajewski and Walton would share together. The Sooners defeated Georgia Tech in the National Championship game that season, with Walton earning the win in that game. Gajewski (above, celebrating with Walton after winning the National Championship) posted a 6-2 record with one save and a 3.62 ERA that year.

With his playing career behind him, Gajewski stayed on at Oklahoma in 1995 as a graduate assistant, which included him working on their field. He then moved on to Kansas State University, where he served as a volunteer assistant, along with field maintenance work.

"I was working on a golf course in Kansas during the morning and then going to campus to coach after that," said Gajewski of his time at Kansas State. "Our last series of the year at Oklahoma, Cochell grabbed me and said we need you to come home and take over our fields. He said he really liked what I had been doing there and wanted that for their field."

Gajewski accepted and from 1997-07, Gajewski served as the Turf and Maintenance Director for all of the University of Oklahoma's fields. In 2001, the field at OU's L. Dale Mitchell Park was named the Beam Clay Baseball Diamond of the Year. That same season, the OU Softball Complex was presented the Field Maintenance Award by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and TURFACE sports field products. It also led to Gajewski owning and operating three Oklahoma-based turf businesses - Champions Athletic Turf (athletic field renovation), Sooner Curb and Border (decorative concrete) and Ameriturf MidSouth (synthetic turf) from 2007-11.

"My 10 years running the Oklahoma field taught me how to lead and manage different people," stated Gajewski. "As much as I loved working on the fields and running the businesses, I missed being on the field as a coach."

Well, that changed in 2012 when Serrano was named the head coach at the University of Tennessee. Not only did he bring his best friend, Mosiello and former Falcon Bergeron to be on his staff, Serrano also negotiated Gajewski coming on as his Director of Operations.

"I had seen everything he'd done and it's all been first-class," stated Serrano. "I knew I needed Kenny on my staff at Tennessee. I also knew it would be a big move and big risk for him to move to Tennessee, especially because he was running three companies in Oklahoma. In such a short period of time, he took a program that was in need of changing and turned the facility into a first-class facility. There's no doubt he made my job easier and it was no surprise that he was able to do all what he did."

Gajewski tried to continue running his companies from Tennessee at night, but decided after six months to turn them over to his partner. Not being able to give 100% was something Gajewski couldn't accept and being pulled from two side just wasn't going to work for him.

But the time in Knoxville worked out well for the two best friends who were reunited after their time with the Falcons and at Dominguez Hills.

"Having the opportunity to be on a staff with Dave, Mo and Kenny was a dream come true at the time," said Bergeron. "Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think we would all be on one staff together. I'd been working on Dave's coaching staffs at UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton for seven years leading up to us going to Tennessee. The chance to coach with Mo, who has pretty much been my mentor throughout my coaching career, was so exciting and then to be able to do this with my best friend Kenny on staff was a dream. Our time at Cerritos was talked about quite a bit. We all had so many stories about each other that some of us all remembered and at other times some of us couldn't believe that story was true."

Serrano, who was hired to run the program, agreed. "It was great having guys there with prior relationships. It came with its obstacles, as well because we still needed to focus on the team. But there's no doubt it was a great bond we all shared and a great experience."

Gajewski also credits Mosiello as a mentor. Now the associate head coach at Texas Christian University, Mosiello and Gajewski continue to talk on a daily basis. 

Just as Serrano was watching Gajewski's success to bring him into Tennessee, there was someone else that was also keeping a close eye on him - former teammate at Cerritos and Oklahoma, Tim Walton. Walton, who was now the head softball coach at the University of Florida, reached out to Gajewski to see about his interest in coaching softball.

"Over the course of about five days of phone calls with Tim, he finally offered me the job," said Gajewski. "I know that Tim is a well-thought-out guy and I think those phone calls were essentially a job interview. I eventually received a call from the administration and after about an hour, I got the call from Tim that I got the job."

Switching from baseball to softball was not as easy of a transition as one might think. A lifelong baseball player, Gajewski (pictured, right) was caught off-guard by the speed of the game.

"I remember struggling at first because of the pace," said Gajewski. "There was a lot more time between pitches in baseball than in softball. Plus, we play so many more games, so it took me about a third of the season to catch up to everyone else. It was probably six months in before I really started to feel like I was on the same page as the other coaches on our staff, as far as the softball aspect. I remember in a game, one of the coaches looked over at me, smiled and said 'welcome'. I was finally getting the hang of things and wasn't a pitch behind everyone else. In the end, though, it's still coaching, it's still managing people so that part wasn't as difficult as getting the speed of the game down."

Twenty years after celebrating a baseball national championship with Walton at Oklahoma, the two were celebrating, not one, but two NCAA National Championships with the Gators in 2014 and 2015. It was the first national championship for the Florida softball program after reaching the finals in 2009 and 2011, but coming up short.

After their second title in 2015, Oklahoma State came calling and were looking for a replacement for Rick Wieligman, who took the University of Kansas position. Athletic Director Mike Holder, who was also the program's golf coach, reached out to Gajewski and asked him to come to Oklahoma for an interview.

"I remember Mike picked me up at the airport in Oklahoma City and he said he heard that I stuttered," stated Gajewski. "I was nervous enough about the interview, but I've always been up front about my stuttering. I told him that I did and he said it didn't bother him at all. Just that alone, allowed me to relax and talk and not worry about it being a topic of conversation."

And the issue was immediately off the table. Gajewski could focus on what he was saying, rather than worry about how he was saying it.

"It put me in a spot of relief and comfort," Gajewski told The Oklahoman. "Anybody that has any type of speech impediment or disability, however that is classified or perceived, the one thing you're always worried about is what they think instead of just being able to have a conversation."

"You're concerned with how you sound or how you look or how you feel and it's probably not even real, but it's what you put on yourself. When he told me to just be myself, and that he just wants to hire the best person for this job, it put me at a point of relief and comfort. I was able to sit back in the seat and go, 'I'm gonna nail this,' because he gave me the ability to be free, and that was a huge deal."

The toughest part of the whole process was the wait. It took five days for everything to process and the entire time, Gajewski was left wondering when (or if) he was going to be offered the job. With Holder driving Gajewski back to the airport, he felt it was a now-or-never chance to be offered the job.

"I figured that if I was going to be offered the job, it would be on the drive back to the airport," stated Gajewski. "Mike received a call in his car on the way to the airport, and the caller ID said (Oklahoma State alum and oilman) 'Boone Pickens'. Mike was telling him that he wanted to hire the guy, but had to do his due diligence. I assumed he was talking about me and letting me know his intentions without officially telling me anything. Now, to me, I'm seeing Boone Pickens calling the guy who has the power to hire me and I wondering if it's going to happen."

"Before I left, Mike said that he had one concern about me which was that I'm a Sooner," Gajewski stated. "I told him that, even though I was a Sooner, I would be the best Cowboy he ever had."

With the phone call from Holder confirming his hiring behind him, now came the next step. He needed to call Walton, the teammate and friend who got him into coaching softball and let him know he was leaving after they had just won their second straight national championship.

"I was in Chattanooga on a recruiting trip in a Florida shirt when I called Tim," Gajewski said. "I let him know that I was offered the job and he told me that I had to accept it because it was a great opportunity and that I earned it. I ended up driving to Alabama and checked into a hotel. I realized that I didn't have anything with Oklahoma State on it, so I went to the store and bought a black Nike shirt. I got the roster and called everyone on the Oklahoma State team and introduced myself. I told them that I understood they didn't choose me, but I chose them. I told them that if they wanted to leave the program that I would understand. But none of them left."

Since Gajewski (left, with Walton) has taken over the program at Oklahoma State, he has produced a 221-107 record, which includes a pair of trips to the Women's College World Series and they have earned NCAA Tournament bids each season (aside from the 2020 Covid-shortened year). He has increased his team's win total each full season, including a school-record 48 wins in 2021 and WCWS appearance.

"I think all of my previous experiences, especially my time at Cerritos, has helped me prepare to run my own team," commented Gajewski. "I carry a lot of what I learned at Birdland with me today. At Cerritos, when we had runners on first and second with no outs, we always wanted to hit the ball behind the runner, which is something we try to do here. It's a bit of an adjustment from our small ball, but there are a lot of similarities. One thing that's in my roots is getting strike one right away and not walking anyone with two outs. It was the same at Cerritos"

"At Cerritos they gave out the Dallas Moon Award, which went to the person with the best work ethic," said Gajewski. "I really wanted to win that award. Bergy won it in 1991 and I was so happy for him. I would love to create and award like that here at Oklahoma State. It's a great way to honor someone who works hard everyday and commits to the program in every way. We had someone on the team this year who would have been perfect to give the award to. I think it's great that Cerritos does something like that."

"Cerritos College and the Bird tradition is something I feel all of us ex-Birds talk about and cherish," said Bergeron. "That place is just different. It was the gold standard of college baseball during our time. Being a Bird is something so special and I honestly feel that NOBODY who wore that uniform ever takes that honor for granted."

"I am who I am because of my two years at Cerritos," stated Gajewski. "Everything from our classic "C" hat to walking through the gate to the field to staying after to hit to the time we spent working on the field. We were all treated like we were the ace of the staff or a starter. I loved my time at Cerritos!"

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When two best friends spend all of their time together, there's bound to be some unforgettable moments. Gajewski and Bergeron recall a few...

"Kenny is my go-to guy, he has always been there for me and my family," said Bergeron (pictured, right at Gajewski's wedding). "We have been through a lot together some tough times but mostly great times. He was my best man in my wedding as I was in his. My kids call him Uncle Kenny and his call me Bergy or Uncle Bergy. I would say we are brothers, that's how tight I feel our bond is. I'm so proud of what he has accomplished, not just at OSU, either. He's grinned everywhere he's been and now it's awesome watching all his hard work payoff. Our basic fundamentals of coaching go back to the Bird way and standards set in place there. I was lucky to be able to play for my dad in high school at Gahr and who was an assistant at Cerritos under coach Kincaid. He was actually on the staff of the team that went undefeated (1966). Birdball was engrained in my head from the time a could remember and now it is being engrained in the players both Kenny and I coach. The style of the game may be changing with each new generation, but the basic Bird fundamentals will never change."



"Each year, the baseball team would work security at the football games," recalls Gajewski. "So some of us were working parking lot security to make sure nothing happens to anyone's car. While we're walking around, we look and see that my truck is getting stolen and they're driving away with it. Here we are, working parking lot security and now we're chasing down the guys who stole my truck!"



"Bergy and I also worked at Tony Roma's as delivery guys," says Gajewski. "We were always delivering to Dave and Mo at Dave's house and they always gave us a hard time."

"Mo was a horrible tipper, too," chipped in Bergeron.

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Interesting Fact #1 - Four members of the 1991 Cerritos College baseball team are currently college softball coaches: Kenny Gajewski (Oklahoma State University), Tim Walton (University of Florida), Greg Bergeron (Cal State Northridge assistant coach) and Marc Benjamin (Panhandle (OK) State University).

Interesting Fact #2 - At least six members of the 1991 Cerritos College baseball team are currently baseball coaches: Eric Martins (Oakland A's assistant hitting coach), Dan Ricabal (Cal State Fullerton assistant coach), Keith Tripp (Bellflower High head coach), Mike Hubel (Cimarron-Memorial (NV) High head coach), Adam Millan (San Marino High head coach), Eddie Davis (MLB NOLA Youth Academy)

Interesting Fact #3 - Bryce Christensen is the Athletic Director at Bellflower High. And Jeff Horn is a Physician's Anesthesiologist. Make that, Dr. Jeff Horn!