CHAPTER 14

We opened the second half with the ball and on the second play our running back broke two tackles at the line of scrimmage and ran sixty two yards for a score. As improbable as it was, we were leading 17-0 early in the third quarter. Late in the third quarter our other end had wrapped up the quarterback and he was going down. Devon arrived a second later and put his helmet right on the ball, which popped up right in front of me. I quickly pulled the ball in and ran twenty seven yards to the end zone scoring my first ever touchdown in high school. I was buried under a sea of bodies, a mass celebration in the end zone.

We now had a 24-0 lead with just a little over one quarter to play. Suddenly the dream seemed very real, we were very close. They scored on their next two possessions closing the lead to 24-14, a two possession game, we were suddenly brought back to reality.

On the ensuing kickoff, our return man fumbled the ball on our own twenty five, which they recovered. It was our first serious mistake of the night. With just over seven minutes left, they could cut the gap to three points. The defense took the field again, we needed a stop bad. They tried a quick trap on first down which Devon sniffed out and stopped for a one yard game. On second down, I was able to sack their quarterback for a nine yard loss, giving them a long third down.

They completed a short pass on third down, leaving them fourth and eight to go for a first down. With 5:13 left on the clock, they had no choice but to go for it, they may only get the ball back once more, if they don't. As soon as they lined up Devon recognized the play, he immediately hit an audible.

"Kill, Kill, Kill ...… Power left, Cross, Fire Left.", he screamed.

He had recognized a pass play and immediately put us in a blitz call. The linebacker over my shoulder was going to go on a blitz, I would drop back into coverage in his spot. I was worried about this call, running full speed was hard, I could barely breathe, the tape compressing my ribs. The tackle completely missed our linebacker, barely getting a piece of him. I back peddled immediately getting in the left middle passing lane looking for a receiver. The quarterback saw the blitz coming, there was not a lot he could do. There was a receiver maybe seven yards behind me, he threw the ball high trying to fit it in. I jumped as high as I could, my fingers tipping the ball on its point, sending it tumbling end over end down the field. I turned just in time to see our free safety pluck the ball out of the air and run down the sidelines. He was knocked out of bounds at midfield, the crowd was roaring.

Our offense was not able to get a first down however, we were going to have to punt the ball back to them with about three and a half minutes left. As I was standing on the sidelines waiting to go back in, Coach Mike walked up to me.

"Brian, we have this in hand, you don't have to go back out there. Just so you know though, you're one tackle away from a state record for most tackles in one year. You're tied up right now, it's up to you.", he said, smiling.

I didn't even respond, I simply buckled my chin strap and ran back onto the field. With fifty six seconds left in the game, I got the tackle I had been looking for. The stadium announcer's voice boomed through the public address system informing the crowd what had just happened. At the same time, my replacement trotted onto the field slapping my helmet. Coach Mike was stepping back, giving me the moment. I slowly trotted off the field, the crowd yelling its approval. Coach Mike met me halfway, grabbing me in a bear hug.

"Your Dad is smiling Brian. We did it, you did it. We are State Champs.", he yelled.

I watched the last two plays from the sidelines, trying to catch my breath, the pain finally registering in my brain. The game ended, the teams met at mid-field and paid their respects. I was grabbed by the trainer and hustled off to the medical tent again. As soon as I walked inside of it, people began to pull gear off of me. Within minutes I was back on the table, another set of pictures being taken. By now my entire side was beginning to turn purple, the pain was coming back. I sat back up and waited for the doctor to read the X Ray's again. A few minutes later our trainer came back, a smile on his face.

"Everything's ok Brian. Nothing changed, it's gonna hurt like hell for a week or so but you will be fine. Come on, take a shower and I am gonna tape you up for the night.", he said.

I quickly showered as the team whooped it up in the locker room. I climbed up on the table and he re-taped me, just not as tight as the last time. He handed me a bottle of extra strength pain reliever telling me to take two every six hours. He told me if I continued to have trouble breathing, go to the doctor at once. I thanked him and rejoined the team in the locker room. Everyone was finished dressing and ready to board the bus for the trip back to town. Coach Mike informed us there were some reporters waiting outside to interview people as well as a few recruiters who were looking to get a leg up on their competition.

The team began filtering out of the dressing room, I finished packing my bag, emptying my locker. I was one of the last players out, I was walking with the trainer who had worked on me during the game. As soon as we exited the hall into the main lobby several people rushed towards us. A lady with a microphone was the first to arrive jamming the device into my face.

"Brian, you played an incredible game. You went out early but came back. Can you tell me the extent of your injuries ?", she asked quickly.

I had already been told by the coaches to downplay any questions about my injury and the treatment I received. Technically I knew that I should not have been allowed to go back in the game with cracked ribs, much less be given pain killers.

"It was no big deal, I had the wind knocked out of me. I was having some trouble breathing for a few minutes but it passed.", I answered.

"It appeared to me that you were favoring your ribs after you returned to the game. In addition it appeared you were wearing extra padding after you came back in. Did you injure your ribs ?", another man asked with a smirk on his face.

"I had the wind knocked out of me. My side was a bit sore for the rest of the game but it was nothing serious.", I answered, "Thank you so much for the time but I really have to catch the bus back home."

I began to move away from the reporters when a tall man in a very nice business suit approached me. He introduced himself as a recruiter for a college in Alabama and wanted to talk for a while. I thanked him but explained I had to catch a bus and move on. The media followed us to the bus still screaming out questions, unrelenting in their desire for information. We were the last on the bus, the doors closed and we pulled out of the parking lot. My ribs were extremely sore, every breath I took was painful, every jolt the bus would hit, I felt.