The education of a quarterback is never-ending for Punahou School senior Brett Kan. Whether at Alexander Field or at home, advice is readily available for the state's passing yards leader from a season ago.

Kan's father is Dr. Darryl Kan, orthopedic surgeon by day, Buffanblu offensive coordinator by night, specifically Fridays or Saturdays.

"It's always good to have a coach always there," Brett said. "You can make quick adjustments. You don't have to wait for the next practice. You can do it at home, if you want. He's been my mentor since I was a kid."

Except Dad isn't just an ordinary mentor. He was a quarterback at Dartmouth with tryouts with the San Francisco 49ers under Bill Walsh and the San Diego Chargers under offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese. Who else could provide better advice?

"This is a blessing for me," Dr. Kan said. "I kind of gave up a lot to do it, but I just love coaching. To coach your son is really a gift. I really feel blessed. We've had some good times, but we've also had some hard times. But our journey has just been amazing. It's been nothing but positive and something we'll always remember for all of our lives."

Dr. Kan is still listed as a medical consultant to the University of Hawai'i athletic department, but said he has been able to back away slowly from the position over the last five years because associate Dr. Jay Marumoto has been doing the job.

"I've just been there to help when he needed it," Dr. Kan said. "To be honest, (coaching) plus my regular job takes up so much energy, there's not much more energy for Saturday night (when UH plays football).

"All my friends tease me that I'm a football coach who also practices orthopedic surgery. I guess that's the impression I give. But I love orthopedics."

Still, Dr. Kan admits coaching is his passion. He tries to avoid talking shop with his son at home, but it's hard. Dr. Kan said he will be watching tapes of Punahou's games, when Brett would walk in and start asking questions.

"There's never a time where we say, 'Let's sit down and go over something together,' " Dr. Kan said. "I'll be looking at something on the video player. He'll come by and watch it and we'll talk about it. That's what it's been like over the last three years. Maybe for only 15 minutes at a time and then he'll walk away. He's picked up a lot."

LEARNING ABROAD

Brett's willingness to learn is never-ending. He attended football camps at Boston College, Stanford, Oregon State, California and Princeton over the summer. Princeton has offered him to play, he said. (Ivy League schools do not offer athletic scholarships, per se.) His academic standing warrants admission with his 3.9 grade-point average and a 2160 (of out 2400) SAT score. He is taking Advanced Placement courses in chemistry, physics, environmental science and calculus.

"I definitely want to play in college and it's my goal to play in the NFL, too," said Brett, who had 25 TD passes and led the state with 2,782 passing yards last season. "I'm going to take it as far as I can go."

He is hoping a Division I school makes an offer. His mother, Linda, is banking on Princeton. His father is staying impartial.

"She likes it because it's a unique chance to go to a place where it's one of the top academic institutions in the country and to play football," Dr. Kan said of his wife's choice of Princeton.

PLAY OF DESTINY

Playing quarterback means taking the good with the bad. Brett knows it all too well. His interception in the waning seconds stopped Punahou's comeback in a 28-21 loss to Kahuku in the Division I state championship last year.

"We thought it was the play of destiny because it was the same play that Joe Montana had thrown to Dwight Clark when (the 49ers) won that game against the Dallas Cowboys (for the 1982 NFC Championship)," Dr. Kan said.

But the pass was under-thrown. Brett said had he seen receiver River Kim open earlier, he would have thrown to him in the corner of the end zone. Dr. Kan said Brett's right hip dipped a bit, taking some velocity off the pass that should have been higher and either caught by Miah Ostrowski or sailed over everyone incomplete with second down coming up.

"I just remember walking up to him, seeing him in tears," Dr. Kan recalled. "It brought me to tears. We hugged each other. I told him 'I don't care what happened just now. To me, you're still a champion and I'm so proud of what you've done.' He didn't look at that tape for about a month. ... He's had to hold that and live with that for a whole year and I think it's going to make him a better person in the end."

Brett concurs.

"In a way, it was probably a little good for me because I probably didn't work as hard as I did before," Brett said. "This year, I really worked hard to get my arm strength better. Every quarterback will have something go wrong throughout his career. (The interception) didn't make me happy, but it made me a better player."

In a rematch with Kahuku three weekends ago, Kan was intercepted four times, one more than in the state title game. And as if it was part of a movie script, there was Punahou with the ball in the closing seconds, trailing 18-14. This time, Kan had some zip on a high pass that either his receiver was going to catch or no one else. Kyle Whitford climbed an imaginary ladder to pull down the game-winning TD with no time left on the clock for the 20-18 win.

It was a non-league game with both teams having objectives in mind. Punahou still had its starters in, while Kahuku had subbed with its reserves. Restoring confidence was just as valuable as giving backups playing time.

"It was important for us, not just Brett, but as a team to face that adversity, come back and be successful," Punahou coach Kale Ane said.

For Brett Kan, it was just part of the never-ending education of a quarterback.

Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at skaneshiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.