The National Anthem is playing in the background as thoughts race through my head. It’s the first game of the season and my nerves are acting up. My coach yells, “Claudio, captains are up and I jog over to the fifty yard line. I take a few breaths and walk onto the field to meet the opposing team, Wilson’s captains. We win the coin toss and we decide to kick so I watch as the ball floats in the air and a player from Wilson catches it and makes a 23 yard return. I watch as our defense forces a three and out and now the offense is on. It’s my time. Our quarterback runs to the huddle.
“South Ozzy, South Ozzy, on one, on one, ready?” The huddle chants “break” in unison and we set up on the line of scrimmage. The quarterback hikes the ball and hands it to me as I run an outside zone play to the right. Right away Wilson’s defensive linemen break through our line but I’m already running past them. I get 5 yards up field and make an outside linebacker miss and then out of nowhere, bam! I fall to the ground. Hard. The middle linebacker had hit me while my head was turned the other way.
As I get up he exclaims, “there’s more where that came from, pussy,” but I keep my mouth shut and head back to the huddle to get ready for another play. Those kind of players annoy me the most but they do fuel me at the same time and fill me with a desire to play as hard as I possibly can. The next play is a pass so I block a defensive end who’s crashing B gap. We get a first down and keep the ball moving. I run the ball straight up the middle and the middle linebacker, number 52, is waiting for me. This time I’m ready and I make a move to the right of him and lay a blow on his helmet with my free hand as I go by to keep him from tackling me, and this time he falls to the ground. I make one safety miss and almost break the run for a touchdown but I just barely get caught from behind by a speedy corner. We drive the ball all the way down field and our quarterback throws a beautiful ball to Ryan, who’s wide open in the end zone. I hear the crowd go wild and I can’t help feeling jealous, wishing it was me who scored the first touchdown of the season. I run up and enthusiastically bump shoulders with Ryan.
“Great catch Ry! Let’s keep this up all night!” The game keeps going with 52 and I talking shit to each other the whole time. We go into halftime with a comfortable fourteen to zero lead. Our defense is playing lights out. Our Coach walks in the room we are gathered in and starts to talk to us.
“I’m seeing some really good things out there from both the offense and the defense. Defensive guys, keep playing as hard as you are and get some more turnovers. Offensive guys, you’re doing okay but I know what this offense is capable of and I need you guys to step it up so we can build a more comfortable lead. O-line I need you to focus on your blocking technique because it’s getting kind of sloppy and Claudio keeps meeting contact in the backfield. He’s only managed to break some good runs because he’s essentially being his own blocker. Let’s step it up and get this win! Win on three! One, two, three…”
The whole team shouts “win!” We head back onto the field, energized and ready to play hard the second half. We field the kickoff and Ryan catches it and brings the ball to the 35 yard line. We call an option play to the left and I can see the linemen are making perfect blocks and I can tell this is gonna be a good play. I run to the left of the quarterback and as he goes to toss the ball to me, the middle linebacker, 52, reads the play and grabs the ball in midair. Since there’s no one behind us he has a clear shot and runs all the way to the end zone, scoring a defensive touchdown. The crowd groans as this play could be a total momentum shifter.
On our next offensive drive I break a massive sixty yard run up the sideline but our next couple plays amount to nothing and we are forced to punt. Wilson’s offense drives the ball down field and they score on a fullback dive. Our offense stalls and on their next drives they score again, and again, making the score twenty-eight to fourteen. On our ensuing offensive possession the quarterback hits one of our outside receivers on a go route for a 53 yard completion. We run hurry up and it’s an outside run to the right. I run to the outside as fast as I can. There’s a corner and a linebacker converging on me at the same time. I make a jump cut to avoid the corner and then I stop as quickly so that the linebacker over pursues and misses the tackle. I quickly accelerate and run up the sideline towards the end zone. 52 is at the goal line but he’s just standing there, waiting. I take advantage of this and lower my shoulder into him, knocking him off balance as I stay on my feet and glide into the end zone. I stare 52 right in the eyes, daring him to say something, daring him to do something. He turns and as he walks away I say, “test me again, see what happens.”
The crowd erupts and I celebrate with my teammates before returning to the sideline. The defense holds and now I’m back on the field. I run the ball up the middle and am immediately met by 52 and three other players. I feel them all on top of me, their weight pressing down and I smell the stench of sweat and body odor. In the confusion of the pile I feel someone stomp on my left ankle extremely hard. The pain is intense and the trainer and two teammates have to help me off the field. As I leave I see 52 smiling and I immediately know who stepped on me. I have to sit out for this possession and my team manages to score on a run from our backup running back. I’m excited because we came back and now the game is tied but I’m not sure if I can go back in.
This part of the game is crucial. There’s only two minutes left and Wilson has the ball. They drive almost all the way down the field but our defense miraculously forces a fumble and we recover. Now there’s forty-seven seconds left and we need to score. I grit my teeth and walk to the sideline to get back in the game. The trainer says, “that’s not a good idea. You could injure it more.”
“I’m fine, I’m going in.” I strap up my helmet and run into the huddle. It’s a passing play and the quarterback completes a 20 yard pass to Ryan to get us on Wilson’s forty-six yard line but he doesn’t get out of bounds and the clock is ticking.
The coaches are desperately trying to call a play from the sideline. They call a passing play, Sticky Roll. We get set and the clock is ticking. There’s 7 seconds left. The coaches are screaming, “hike the ball!” “Run the play!” The quarterback snaps the ball and I take off out of the back field on a wheel route to the left side of the field, running down the sideline and then the ball is in the air, coming towards me. It’s a high arcing pass, giving me time to run far downfield. There’s an outside linebacker on me and I can outrun him and stay open but my ankle is hindering me. As the ball is coming down I realize I need to jump because it was slightly overthrown. I leap forward and catch the ball. As I am coming down I stick an arm out on the turf to steady myself and I keep my balance but I’m still five yards from the goal line. There’s two defenders coming from my right and and I take two huge steps and take off in a dive toward the end zone as they try to stop me from crossing. I just barely touch the ball to the pylon. Touchdown. I can’t believe what just happened. I know the crowd is going insane but it feels like a ringing in my head is drowning them out. My teammates flood the field and erupt in joy. I can imagine no better ending to a game.