Guts vs Glory (3 page)

As the weeks progressed, we eventually
noticed that our Monday and Tuesday practices were days dedicated to working in
our small groups, allowing us to work on drills and correct mistakes from the
previous week’s game.  Wednesdays were dedicated to big group days, so we could
work on our plays as a team, while preparing to defend against our opponent’s
plays.  Thursday was a light day dedicated to special teams.  On those days, we
didn’t wear pads or make serious contact because the coaches didn’t want anyone
getting injured the day before the game.   Obviously, Friday was the big game
day.

My big moment finally came when we
got into our big group on Wednesday during our first week of practice.  After
our first water break, we were told by the coach that we would be put into game
situations.  Our starting offense would run their normal plays, while our
second-string defense would run the plays used by our opponent’s defense.  Our
second-string offense would then run the plays of our opponent’s offense, while
our first-string defense tried to defend against those new plays.  The best
part was that we were allowed to go full contact.  That meant I would get my
first chance to hit someone.  Even though I would be pretending to be a
defender from the other team, the tackle would not be a pretend hit.

When one of the defensive linemen
on the second-string team was asked to come out, I was told to go in and take
his place.  I was positioned at the end of the defensive line, known as a
defensive end.  Our defensive captain told us that we would be defending a
running play.  My job was to stand across from the offensive tackle.  As soon
as the ball was snapped, and not a moment before, I would have to get around
the tackle and hit the guy holding the ball.  I must not have been taken very
seriously because they decided to execute the play on my side of the line.  The
running back must not have taken me very seriously either, because after I
crashed through the offensive lineman, he looked very surprised to see me.

There was no one between the two of
us.  Even though the entire moment took seconds, it felt like minutes.  I can
still remember every detail.  I was well trained in waiting for the ball to
snap.  Once the ball was exchanged between the center and the quarterback, I
wasted no time in introducing myself to the tackle across from me.  I was so
excited to hit someone that I put both arms out in front of me and pushed with
all my body weight.  The force was strong enough to knock him to the ground. 
But I knew I didn’t have time to celebrate; that offensive tackle wasn’t the
end goal but rather a road bump, both physically and metaphorically.  I was on
the road to hitting the running back.  After clearing the tackle, the running
back was next.  I suddenly had tunnel vision and locked my focus on the ball
carrier. 

He looked straight at me as if I
was a speeding train and he was the damsel tied to the train tracks.  Within
seconds, my body engulfed his as I put my arms around him and kept driving.  It
was like an out of body experience.  I had never been that fast, or that
strong, in my life.  I had no idea where it came from, but I liked it.  All of
a sudden the runner was in the air.  I felt like a kid holding onto a stuffed
animal.  Then, in one big move, we both hit the ground.  All three of us hit
hard; me, him, and the ball.  I wasn’t sure if they were cheering for my hit,
or the touchdown that was ran in by my defense after the ball was knocked free,
but I couldn’t wait to do it again.

My first game day would be another
day never I would never forget.  We took the day off from lifting because the
coach didn’t want us to risk injuries.  As part of the team, we were able to
wear our game jerseys to school so that we could show them off during class. 
We wore those aqua jerseys with pride.  We were in an elite group that would
soon be on display for the entire community to watch. 

After school, we had some free
time.  We all went off as a team to eat before the game.  A couple of hours
before game time, we met in the locker room to get dressed for the game.  The
locker room was full of excitement as the team prepared for the first game of
the season.  Finally, the coach was ready to show us off.

We huddled up around the exit of
the locker room.  It felt like we were in a movie theatre during a fire alarm
and the theatre only had one door.  As we were getting ready to burst out of
the locker room, Mike and I took one final look at each other and smiled.  We
joined the crowd of football players as we all made our way onto the field. 
The stadium wasn’t as full as it could’ve been, but the atmosphere was
definitely exciting.  I could hear the program vendor trying to sell his
merchandise, I could smell the fresh popped popcorn, and I could see the
stadium lights being used for the first time that season.

After going through some quick
drills, we went back into the locker room.  The coach gave us a locker room
speech similar to those seen in inspirational sports movies.  After the speech,
my game day nerves were replaced by chills of excitement.  Again, we were
escorted out of the locker room.  That time, however, we stopped just short of
the field.  Once stopped, I was able to soak in the atmosphere.  Suddenly, the
stadium seemed packed.  We felt like gladiators walking into an arena, prepared
for battle.

The crowd was quiet and the sun was
shining bright behind the press box.  In front of us, two rows of cheerleaders
made a human tunnel for us.  At the end of the tunnel was a large banner facing
the home crowd, held up by more cheerleaders.  After we heard “And now your
EAST WHITAKER HORNETS” broadcasted over the loud speaker system, we ran towards
the home crowd, through the cheerleader tunnel, and crashed through the
banner.  The crowd erupted.

Once everything calmed down, it was
time for kickoff.  That was the first time the two of us had ever watched a
live football game in person; we were used to watching the games from our
homes.  Now, suddenly, we were watching a live game from the sidelines of the
field.  For 55 minutes we were part of the home crowd; for the last five
minutes, we were part of the team.

We were up by 35 points.  Because we
had the game in hand, our coach was going to allow Mike and I to play.  Mike
went out there first.  His job was to catch the ball after their punter kicked
it.  After catching the ball perfectly, he was gone.  No one could touch him. 
Our guys couldn’t even keep up to block for him.  The entire crowd stood and
cheered as he crossed the goal line.  The band played the fight song.  The
coach was so excited that he threw his hat on the ground.  When Mike came back
to the sideline, the coach told him to be ready for the following week.

Once the other team got the ball
back, it was my turn.  I don’t remember what the play was, but I remember my
job was to tackle the ball carrier.  It happened just like it happened in
practice: I went through the offensive tackle like a freight train, I got
tunnel vision, and I ran to the guy with the ball.  Believe it or not, I hit
their quarterback harder than I hit my teammate in practice.  In fact, I hit
him so hard that it took him a few minutes to get back up and the starting
quarterback had to come back into the game to play for him.

I heard the crowd cheering for me. 
I felt the high fives from my proud teammates.  I didn’t know what to do next. 
In practice, after my hit, my team got the ball back.  That time, however, the
other team still had the ball and we were still on defense.  I heard our
defensive leader yell for me to join the huddle.  We were preparing for a
running play.  I went back to the line and again exploded once the ball was
snapped.  That time, the running back ran away from me and I was unable to
catch up to him before he was tackled by one of my teammates.  I liked it
better when I got to tackle someone; I wanted more plays like that.

We finally had a chance to enjoy a
weekend.  Of course, there had always been weekends before, but we never had a
chance to truly appreciate them for what they were.  After four days of
practices, three days of working out, and one game, we had two days off to
ourselves where we could relax - and relax we did.  We slept until noon and
didn’t do much after that.  Our days of partying all weekend seemed to be on hold
during the season.

After the restful weekend, it was
back to the weekly routine.  In our small group sessions, we were able to talk
about specifics of the previous game.  The line coach spent his entire weekend
reviewing game footage and analyzed what we could do to get better.  We spent
the whole day working on not moving until the ball was snapped.  Although that
seemed like my biggest problem during practice the previous week, it apparently
was a common problem for the rest of the guys too, especially during the
previous week’s game.

At the end of practice, the line
coach got us together and told us who would be starting in the second game of
the season.  The starting line changed a little bit, but the biggest change for
me was the pecking order of backup players.  My name was at the top of the
list, which meant that as soon as one of the starters needed a break, I would
get a chance to play.  With three players playing both offense and defense, I
knew I wouldn’t be on the sideline for long.  With that information, I was
motivated to push myself even harder that week.  I was going to prove to the
coaches that they had made the right decision.

Mike was just as motivated as I
was.  His group got together during practice as well to discuss their
starters.  After his impressive punt return last week, he was chosen as the
starting punt and kick returner.  He was also selected as the number one
backup.  Just like with me, if the starting running back needed a break, or
wasn’t doing well, he would be the first one out to relieve him.  With four
other guys competing against him, he too was happy with the news.

As second teamers, we were given
the opportunity to play an entire scrimmage against the first teamers on
Wednesday.  The previous week, we were only allowed a few plays.  This week, we
were able to play a majority of the time, and got to show off our progress.  We
knew that even though the coaches would be paying attention to the starters,
they would know if one of us stood out, good or bad.

At the end of Thursday’s practice,
the head coach reminded the team that the following day would be an away game. 
He explained the procedure for us so that there wouldn’t be any confusion on
game day.  The two of us were going to travel with the team, eat with the team,
and again watch the game from the sidelines with the team.

Once everyone was dismissed, the
coach asked us to stay and talk with him a bit longer.  He began by telling us
how impressed he was with our performance over the last few days.  It was clear
to him that we were dedicated, motivated, and using our time wisely in the
gym.  He was also impressed with our performance during the game.  He didn’t
know what to expect from two kids who had never played football; especially
after only a week of practice.  He definitely wasn’t expecting a quarterback
sack
and
a punt return for a touchdown. 

His last point, he emphasized, was
more important than our improvement in play or our improvement in the gym. 
What he was the most impressed with was the improvement in our grades. 
Although they hadn’t gone up too much in that short period of time, it was
clear that we were making the most of our study time, and for once, we went
almost the first two weeks of the school year without missing a single class. 
He told us that no matter how good we were on the football field, we were only
as good as our grades.

Just like in the first week, we
skipped working out on game day.  And, just like that week, we were able to
parade around school in our game jerseys.  We were definitely excited for our
second game and a chance to get more playing time, but we were just as excited
to go on a road trip with the rest of the varsity football team.  It was going
to be our chance to feel like real professional football players.

After school that day the team met
in the locker room.  Most of the guys were goofing around and having a good
time.  It was clear that Mike & I weren’t the only excited ones.  Once we
were all dressed and had our gear ready, the coach came into the locker room. 
He told us how important that game, like every game that season, was.  He
reminded us that we were men representing our school.  We would be going to a
new city and showing that city what an East Whitaker Hornet really was. 
Because of that responsibility, we were held to a higher standard.  At that
point, the locker room got really serious and all of the smiles were gone.  We
realized that fun time was over.  We had a job to do.

Once everyone was on the bus, we
were all quiet.  Most of the players had headphones on, while others simply
stared out the window, but all of us were thinking about what we had to do
individually, and as a team, to come home victorious.  The only noise heard on
that bus was the sound of the guys eating their pre-game meals and the coaches
discussing game plan.

After the short 20 minute bus ride,
the busses stopped outside of the stadium.  We were escorted to the visiting
team locker room, which was painted pink.  We quickly got dressed and we went
onto the field to do some last minute drills and stretching.  The stadium
wasn’t very full, but I knew that would change once it got closer to game
time.   As excited as Mike & I were, it still felt different compared to
the previous week.  That week, we were two kids who had made the football team
and would only play if the score got out of hand.  This week, we were part of
the team and could make a difference in the game.

The coach gave his usual pre-game
speech in the locker room, and then we went back out to the field.  I suddenly
had an eerie feeling.  It felt like we didn’t belong there.  Instead of cheers
upon our arrival into the packed stadium, we heard intermittent boos.  There
wasn’t a cheerleader tunnel or a large banner to run through.  We went directly
to the sideline.  It was almost as if we were wasting the fans’ time by being
there.  This wasn’t fun.  Once the other team came out of the locker room, they
made it very clear that they were the home team and we would have to steal a
victory from them.