Haunting Presence

"Lamar, did you really dream about Lance?"

"Hahaha, ha…"

It was clearly a joke—a lighthearted tease meant to ease the tension in the air. After all, Jackson had just woken up suddenly and stormed out, frightening everyone studying in the library. To lighten the mood, someone had cracked a joke.

The guy who made the comment had a self-satisfied grin on his face, clearly proud of his quick wit. His expression practically screamed: Come on, someone praise me for being clever.

But when he looked up, what he saw was Lamar Jackson glaring at him, his eyes filled with fury, practically burning with rage.

The laughter immediately died.

In what felt like an instant, Jackson was no longer several yards away but standing right in front of him, glaring face-to-face, their noses almost touching.

Hic.

The guy was so terrified he didn't even have time for his knees to shake—he just hiccupped and stood there, frozen in place.

Jackson, like a lion fixating on its prey, stared him down.

"No one is allowed to mention that name. No one!"

Jackson's words came out through gritted teeth, one deliberate word after another.

Then, in a flash, Jackson spun around and stormed out of the library like a tornado.

Outside, a roar of frustration echoed through the air.

"Ahhhh! Ahhhhh!"

The whole space seemed to shake with his outburst. Everyone in sight pulled their shoulders up, exchanging nervous glances, but no one dared say a word.

Even without Jackson explicitly saying it, the pressure in Louisville's campus was palpable—

Louisville wasn't a traditional football powerhouse, but it wasn't a weak team either. They had won eight conference championships in their history, but they'd never captured a league championship or advanced to the national championship game. Nor had they ever produced a Heisman Trophy winner.

A classic case of being strong within the conference but faltering on the national stage.

This year, however, everything seemed to be different. Led by sophomore quarterback Lamar Jackson, the Louisville Cardinals were enjoying unprecedented attention.

Not only were they dominating their season and breaking NCAA records, but Jackson was also leading the race for the Heisman Trophy, with a strong chance of becoming the school's first-ever winner of the prestigious award.

Though they had suffered a tough loss to Clemson Tigers earlier in the season, the team quickly rebounded and got back on track.

Just two weeks ago, after easily defeating Wake Forest, the Louisville Cardinals climbed back to third place in the NCAA rankings.

Currently, the NCAA team rankings stood as follows:

Alabama Crimson Tide.Clemson Tigers.Louisville Cardinals.

Conveniently, the top three contenders for the Heisman Trophy—Jackson, Lance, and Watson—were from these three teams, making the competition even fiercer.

From all appearances, this was Louisville's best chance to make history, both in terms of winning the national championship and producing a Heisman winner.

However…

Three days ago, Alabama Crimson Tide faced a tough test but managed to defeat the LSU Tigers, keeping their undefeated season alive.

Clemson Tigers, not to be outdone, also secured a resounding victory to stay on Alabama's heels in their pursuit of a perfect season.

Meanwhile, Louisville Cardinals suffered a shocking upset, losing to an unranked Houston Cougars team.

Losing was bad enough, but to make matters worse, Jackson had a terrible game, practically invisible on the field.

The final score: 36–10.

It was a familiar scoreline for Louisville this season—except this time, they were on the wrong end. Their point total was the lowest of the season, and Jackson's stats were abysmal, with almost no impact in the first half.

It wasn't until the second half, late in the game, that Jackson started to show signs of life, but by then, it was too little, too late.

This performance reignited a long-standing criticism of dual-threat quarterbacks, particularly Jackson:

With such a physically taxing style of play, how long could Jackson sustain his performance?

How long could he maintain his high level of play during a single game? Over the course of a season? What about the playoffs? And what about his entire career?

After the game, Jackson became the media's favorite punching bag, as reporters gleefully dissected his poor performance.

To make matters worse, comparisons with Lance were inevitable. In Alabama's game against LSU, Lance had also struggled in the first half, but he came alive in the second half, leading his team to victory with two touchdowns and boosting their morale.

Without comparisons, there would be no sting—

In contrast, Jackson seemed to be following a season-long pattern: strong in the first half, but fading in the second.

So, how did Jackson respond to all this?

At first, he tried to deflect the questions, but somehow, the conversation always circled back to Lance. Finally, Jackson lost his temper.

"I'm going to beat him."

Jackson made his declaration.

Like sharks smelling blood in the water, the reporters pounced. "Do you mean in the national championship game, or the Heisman Trophy race?"

In the regular season, Alabama and Louisville wouldn't face each other, and they likely wouldn't meet in a bowl game either. The only way the two teams could clash would be in the national championship game, where Alabama, Louisville, and Clemson were the top contenders.

"Both."

The reporters were thrilled. "Excuse me, what?"

Jackson practically shouted, "National championship and Heisman Trophy, we're going to be the ones smiling at the end. Believe me, we are the real champions."

After dropping these bombshells, Jackson finally made his exit.

Of course, the mischievous reporters relayed Jackson's comments to Lance, eagerly awaiting his response.

"Oh."

The reporters couldn't believe their ears, but they hadn't misheard. Lance simply nodded, acknowledging that he had heard them.

When they pressed for more, Lance clarified, "Right now, we're not focused on the national championship or any bowl games. We're preparing for our next opponent, Mississippi State."

"As for the national championship, we'll think about it when the time comes, once the opponent is set and the game is upon us. For now, we need to stay grounded and prepare for each game. There are still three weeks left in the regular season, and anything can happen. The entire landscape could change. No team can afford to relax and bask in the sun."

It was a display of traditional Eastern humility.

But in truth, the real reason behind Lance's comments was a team meeting that Coach Saban had held to warn them—

The NCAA is full of strong teams, and one loss can change everything, shaking up the rankings, bowl game matchups, and national championship berths.

Even with a 9–0 record, the Crimson Tide couldn't afford to get cocky. After all, last year's Clemson Tigers had been a prime example of this.

However, when Lance's words were relayed to Jackson, they took on a completely different meaning.

"Lance doesn't even consider Lamar Jackson a threat. He'll think about facing Louisville only when they make it to the national championship."

No further words were necessary—Jackson was already on the verge of exploding:

Ahhhhhhhh!

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Powerstones?

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