Chapter 52
Petros would get the ball to start the second half. The teams met with their coaches one last time then took the field and lined up for the kickoff.
After getting the go-ahead, the kicker approached the ball and slipped, just as Jeremy had earlier. The kick was rather ugly, bouncing along the ground until Derwin fell on the ball at the 26.
Petros’ offense took the field and lined up, again choosing to bypass the huddle.
Cole decided to go with Tatum’s selection and called an option on first down. Lucky ran the play, saw a big gap and placed the ball in D.J.’s belly.
D.J. was not expecting to get the ball, though, and never had control. The football popped free, bounced on the ground once and landed right in front of one of the linebackers. He fell on the ball before any of the Panthers arrived, giving his team the ball and great field position.
The Panthers were stunned. The offensive players slowly made their way to the sidelines while several players came out on the field for defense.
Honobia started pounding away at the Panthers again, hitting them right up the gut. The Lions picked up two first downs and moved inside Petros’ 10.
Happy was sent back in for Tim, trying to strengthen the middle of the defense.
The defense huddled up. Derwin was the last player in the huddle and was not happy.
“That’s enough of this crud!” he hollered, looking around at his teammates. “No more! We stop them right here. I don’t care what it takes. We will not be pushed back one more inch or I will whip every one of you.”
The Panthers’ knew he was not kidding and it inspired them to pick it up a level.
A run over the left tackle was stuffed as the Panthers gave up no ground. The tailback tried to pop outside but Gary knifed in and dropped him for a loss of a yard.
The next play went to the other side. Happy squirted through a small opening, dove under the fullback’s block and hit the tailback right below the knees, taking his legs out for a loss of two yards.
Honobia tried to pass on third down. The Panthers had everybody covered and the quarterback had to throw the ball away as Happy was coming hard and looked like he wanted to remove his opponent’s head.
The Lions’ field-goal team came out on the field to try a 29-yard field goal.
Cole had a feeling something was up as he knew Honobia’s kicker did not have a good leg. He could not recall seeing Honobia try a field goal in any of the films, probably because they don’t have to try field goals. But the kicker’s leg was not that strong and Cole doubted he could make it.
He hollered at Harry and finally got his player’s attention.
“Watch out for the fake!” Cole hollered.
Ichabod kept the defense in the nickel, expecting a fake. Petros would come hard with the line and linebackers while the secondary guarded against a possible trick play.
The snap was perfect from the center. The holder was the starting quarterback. He fielded the snap easily and put the ball down on the black kicking tee. Just as the kicker started to boot the ball, the holder pulled the ball back, stood up and rolled to his right.
Everybody on Petros’ side was hollering “fake”, but it was a waste of energy. The defense was ready for the play and already figured out what was happening.
Harry fought through a block by one of the tackles and started his chase. Honobia only had two players out for the pass and as the quarterback rolled out, he realized nobody was open.
He had no choice but to tuck the ball and run. The quarterback never saw what was coming. Harry caught him from the side, going full speed, and hit him so hard the quarterback was flattened before even realizing he was hit.
Harry rose quickly and stuck out his hand to offer to help the quarterback up. The quarterback was too shaken to get up. Seeing this, Harry turned around just in time to get mobbed by his teammates.
Petros took over on its own 14. D.J. was getting a little winded and Kenneth was not a hundred percent so Seth got the call, looking like a grade-school kid competing against men.
Seth got the call on first down, had to search for a hole and after finding nothing open, took off toward the end.
One of Honobia’s players was in pursuit. Seth stopped, cut back past his pursuer, and burst into the secondary.
Honobia eventually caught him at the 36 and brought him down. The run got Petros out of a hole and gave the Panthers better field position.
Skip picked up six more yards on a dive. The Panthers went with an option again. Lucky faked the handoff to Seth and kept around the corner. He saw the cornerback was more worried about Skip so Lucky turned up the field and took off.
One of the safeties tried an arm tackle but Lucky easily sidestepped him. He broke free and crossed midfield before getting taken down.
Cole called an option the other way. Lucky went with his first option, handing off to Skip, who found a big hole as the Lions were now more concerned with the Panthers getting outside.
Skip nearly broke it. Only a diving effort by the safety kept him from going the distance.
Honobia had given up worrying about the pass and was moving all the players close to the line. Lucky saw this as he approached the line and changed the play.
He made sure all the players heard him then started with the signals. Lucky took the snap, faked a handoff to Seth going to his left, rolled out and found what he hoped to see. Harry was running a crossing route and had a slight lead on the cornerback.
Lucky’s pass was slightly behind him but Harry turned around and caught the ball. He avoided the defensive back and took off down the field. The Petros fans started celebrating in the stands, hoping to see a touchdown.
Harry had just gotten to the 5 when the free safety dove at him. The safety missed the tackle but his hand came down on Harry’s right arm at an angle that knocked the football free.
The ball came down, bounced once and was covered by the safety. Harry never broke stride and crossed into the end zone. All the Petros side started celebrating, never seeing the ball was stripped.
Harry threw on the brakes and quickly turned around, looking for the ball. He saw the ball was recovered by the safety and fell to his knees.
It was a crushing blow to the Panthers as they realized what happened. Nobody felt worse about it than Harry, who always took care of the ball and never fumbled.
He came slowly to the sidelines, on the verge of breaking down. This was a player who was as tough as anybody on the field, even with his small stature. The coaches and his teammates tried to console him, but it did little good.
Harry was convinced he had just lost the game for his team.
Honobia took advantage in the change in momentum and started one of its patented drives, practically shoving the ball down the throats of the Panthers on every play.
The drive ate up yardage and the clock. Ichabod sent Happy in again, but this time it did not help.
The buzzer sounded, ending the third quarter as the Lions neared midfield. The change of directions did nothing to slow the onslaught as the huge line pounded away at the Panthers with the large backs coming right behind them.
Petros’ defense was getting worn out, both from the pounding and the time on the field. Ichabod started rotating players to try and keep them fresh but it did not help.
For a football purist, the drive was a thing of beauty. For Cole and the Panthers, however, the drive was more painful than an abscessed tooth.
Petros still had some fight left but it did not seem to be enough. The Panthers stopped two running plays inside the 5 but the third run produced another touchdown.
The Panthers were on the verge of giving up. Cole felt the same way but knew he couldn’t show that emotion to his players. It was hard not to blame them. Most of the players only went through the motions on the extra point.
Only one player went hard and it was Harry. He cut inside the outside blocker and looked like a blur as he angled toward the holder. He dove at the last second, his right hand catching the ball flush, knocking it to the ground.
Honobia’s kicker retreated back and grabbed the ball but Harry got up quickly and tackled him.
The play received some applause from the Petros side, but most people doubted it would make any difference. Honobia now led 20-0 with less than eight minutes left.
Kenneth and Seth went back to return the kick. It was the best kick of the night for the Honobia kicker, a long high one that came down in Seth’s arms at the 7.
He caught the ball cleanly and took off, trying to find an opening. The Lions converged on him at the 28. Just before he went down, Seth saw Kenneth some five yards away and behind him.
Seth didn’t give it a second though. He tossed the ball back in Kenneth’s direction. It caught Kenneth off guard but he recovered quickly. He grabbed the pitch with both hands while standing still. Kenneth saw most of the kicking team had surrounded Seth and didn’t know the ball was pitched back to him.
Kenneth took off and was soon moving at full speed. The Lions had figured out what happened and were chasing him. Two Honobia players were in front of him, determined to keep him from getting by.
He saw the players and cut sharply to his left to get away from one of the defenders. The other player was the kicker and tried to slow Kenneth long enough for help to arrive.
Kenneth faked to his left then cut back to his right. The kicker lunged in the wrong direction, grabbing nothing but air until falling to the ground.
Honobia had several players bearing down on him. The only question was whether they could catch him.
They had the angle and finally caught him at the Honobia 23. But just as Kenneth was brought to the ground, he looked around and saw Gary trailing the play. Kenneth pitched the ball back just before hitting the ground, leading Gary perfectly.
Gary had also not expected to receive a pitch but caught the ball and never broke stride. He blew past two defenders and sped toward the end zone. The final Honobia player dove at Gary, who dodged the tackle easily.
The Honobia player was rewarded with mud and water getting splashed in his face as he watched Gary sprint into the end zone.
The play brought the Panthers’ side back to life, cheering one of the wildest plays they had seen.
Cole was as stunned as everybody. All the players and coaches were jumping up and down, knowing they had seen something special. This time, there were no flags on the field.
Jeremy’s kick was good and the score was cut to 20-7.
Cole gathered the kicking team around him to relay his instructions.
“Line up like usual,” Cole ordered. “But Jeremy is going to kick the ball like it’s an onside kick straight ahead. You inside guys are going to have to get there quick and take out any Honobia players.”
All the players nodded and went out on the field to line up. Honobia’s players waited to see how Petros lined up. Seeing it was not an onside kick formation, the Lions lined up in their regular formation.
Cole saw Honobia had two linemen in the middle of the field, right where Jeremy’s kick would go.
“Gotcha,” Cole muttered, not loud enough for anybody else to hear.
His players followed his directions perfectly. Jeremy approached the ball like it was a normal kick, only slowing at the last second and barely kicking the top of the ball, causing it to go bouncing end-over-end.
Derwin and Happy were the two players nearest Jeremy. They had the assignment to rush ahead and take out any players trying to field the kick.
They moved like sprinters, getting to the two linemen before the Honobia players could get to the ball. It was two huge collisions that left the Honobia players reeling backwards.
Jeremy was trailing behind the ball closely, waiting for it to go ten yards. Finally, it crossed midfield and he fell on it.
The play further encouraged the Petros side and the fans started getting back into the game. Everybody knew it would be difficult, but the Panthers had pulled off some miracle comebacks in the past and knew it could happen again.
Cole sent the offense out in the spread formation with Seth joining Lucky in the backfield. The Lions were not expecting this and Lucky took advantage, hitting Andy near the far sidelines for a gain of 11.
Andy quickly got out of bounds to stop the clock and the offense lined up without huddling.
The Panthers were going for it on this play, but if it did not work, it should set up the next play.
As the ball was snapped, the Panthers’ wideouts took off sprinting toward the end zone. Lucky retreated back a little farther than normal, knowing he needed a little extra time on this play.
The Honobia rush was coming hard with four linemen and one linebacker trying to get to Lucky before he got rid of the ball. Lucky waited, hoping somebody would get open. Nobody broke free so Lucky let the rush get on top of him, then lobbed a pass to Seth out on the right flank.
Seth was all alone. He caught the pass and had nothing but green grass in front of him for over twenty yards. Seth almost scored but was finally brought down.
Petros came to the line and Lucky called the play. Three Panthers were wide to the right. Andy was the only receiver to the left. Lucky saw Honobia’s best defensive back was now covering Andy, but doubted that made any difference.
Andy still had a good six inches on his defender. As the ball was snapped, the defensive back tried to jam Andy at the line but the Petros receiver broke free, just as the coaches instructed him.
He had no advantage as far as speed and the coverage was excellent. While sprinting down the field, Andy faked like it was a post route and broke toward the corner of the end zone.
It gave him a step. Andy knew the pass was in the air before turning around. He looked into the sky and saw the ball gliding through the air. Lucky had let go of the pass long before Andy made his cut. It was the same route they had run so many times before, one that worked more times than it didn’t.
The defensive back knew the ball was coming and closed quickly. He struck his arm up, hoping to somehow deflect the ball. Unlike Andy, the defensive back did not find the ball.
Lucky knew the pass was a little high, just hoped it wasn’t too high. It was also obvious Andy was having trouble with the defensive back all over him.
At the last second, Andy fought loose and jumped, his long arms stretched to their maximum length. He didn’t think there was a chance to even touch the ball but while continuing to elevate, Andy’s hands got high enough to reach the ball.
His legs were coming out from under him and the defensive back was wrestling with him, trying to knock the ball loose. But Andy’s hands were like a vice and he was determined not to let go, much like a snapping turtle once it got hold of something.
Andy landed hard on his back with the defensive back falling on top of him. It hurt badly, but Andy would not let go. He wrestled away from the Honobia player and held the ball up, making sure the officials knew the ball was in his hands and was never dropped.
Even before the officials gave the signal for the touchdown, the Petros side started celebrating, the belief growing that this game was far from over.
The Panthers stopped celebrating long enough to get the kicking team lined up. The snap and hold were good, along with the kick.
There were now just over five minutes left. Petros had cut the lead to 20-14 and nobody dared to sit.
Cole knew there was plenty of time left. But he had to decide whether to go with another onside kick or kick it deep and hope his defense stopped the Lions once more.
If the onside kick failed, Honobia would get the ball around midfield and the game might as well be over. He knew it would almost be impossible to recover another onside kick. But at the same time, Cole was worried about his battered defense.
He gathered the coaches and Lloyd around to get their advice. Nobody could decide whether this was a wise choice.
“Heck, let’s ask the boys,” Lloyd suggested. “They’re the ones trying to stop them anyway.”
Cole decided it was the best idea he had heard. He called the defense together around him.
“Okay, guys, you know the situation,” Cole stated. “We’ll probably need to kick deep since they’ll expect another onside kick. That means for us to win the game, we’ll have to stop them one more time. I know you guys are tired and beat up, but I gotta know if we can stop them and get the ball back for our offense.”
Cole looked around at each of his players. He saw the determination back in their eyes. They were just waiting for somebody to speak up.
“Can we stop them?” Cole asked again.
Derwin stepped forward, putting on his muddy white helmet.
“Count on it,” he promised.
The other defenders started nodding their heads in agreement.
“Good,” Cole countered. “I know you guys can do it. I don’t care what Coach Stub says.”
“Huh?” Stub asked, hearing his name and wondering why the defensive team was giving him the evil eye.
Petros’ kickoff team sprinted out on the field and the roar began again. As they waited for the officials, the players started waving their arms and jumping up and down. The fans continued to grow louder, honoring their players.
Stub slid up next to Lucky on the sidelines.
“Isn’t this great?” he asked.
Lucky chuckled.
“You haven’t seen anything yet,” he said, never taking his eyes off the kicking team.
Stub nodded, remembering the old song of the same title. As he walked away, Stub started whistling the song.
Jeremy was told to proceed by the official. He looked down the field and saw the Lions expected another onside kick.
Only one player was back deep. Jeremy approached the ball slowly and threw his foot into the ball, kicking it away from all the players lined up in front of him.
The kick was long and high, coming down just inside the 10. The Panthers on the right side of the field flew down the field, not having to worry about any blockers as most of the Lions were lined up on the other side of the field.
The kick returner was alone, like he was on an island with half a dozen players bearing down on him. He could have and probably should have gone out of bounds. But he chose to return the kick and made it out to the 23 before the Panthers caught him and simply crushed him.
It was a vicious hit, almost hard enough to dislodge the ball. The Honobia player was a little slow getting up, his legs not willing to cooperate.
Both teams knew this drive would go a long way toward determining which team won the game. If the Lions got a couple of first downs, the clock would run out and the Panthers would never get another chance to score.
Everybody knew what was coming. Nobody knew if the Panthers had enough to stop it, however. Honobia was going to come after the Panthers, right up the middle and hard, just like they had all game.
The call was a blast up the middle. The running back came hard, running behind his huge line. Petros’ defense refused to budge this time. Happy fought off the block of the fullback and filled the hole. The tailback bounced outside, finding a little room.
He cut back inside and picked up six yards, more than Petros could afford to give up.
As the defense huddled, Derwin was not happy.
“We can’t give up that much!” he hollered, stepping to the middle of the huddle. “You’ve gotta get strong and tough!”
The defensive players refused to look into Derwin’s eyes, afraid they would be melted to the ground like the wicked witch on “The Wizard of Oz”.
Honobia came back with the same play to the opposite side. Petros’ line stayed strong, only giving a little room from the push of the line.
Derwin came forward to fill the hole, meeting the 230-pound fullback. It was a collision that had been repeated all night. They had pounded away at each other with everything they had. Both knew they would feel this the next day but could care less.
Neither player gave up any ground. The players on both sides heard the collision and wondered how either player could get up after the hit. The tailback hurdled over the two prone players, picking up an additional three yards before Happy and Gary grabbed him and pulled him back.
The officials marked the ball and called in the chains for a measurement.
Derwin slowly rose to his feet, shaking his head to clear it. He had never hit anybody so hard or been hit so hard.
He slowly made his way back to the huddle, watching the Honobia fullback struggle to his feet, then collapse back to the ground. He looked like a drunk struggling to rise and failing badly.
Derwin smiled as the Honobia players looked at him with a mixture of awe and admiration. They knew their fullback was something special. Anybody who did what Derwin had done to him was a stud.
“You okay?” Skip asked.
“A lot better than he is,” Derwin answered.
The Honobia coaches came out on the field and helped the fullback to the sidelines as the officials checked to see if it was a first down.
The ball was just short of the marker, not more than three links of the chain.
It was third-and-short, the biggest play of the game and the season for both teams.
The Lions took their time, using as much of the clock as possible before breaking the huddle.
Cole sent in two more linemen, knowing what was coming. He knew if Honobia tried to pass, it would be an easy score but doubted that would happen.
The second-team fullback was no slouch but at 180 pounds, weighed fifty pounds less than his teammate.
As the Lions came to the line, Lucky edged closer, almost as close as the linebackers. Honobia was in the I-formation again. The quarterback barked the signals and finally took the snap, spun around and handed the ball to the tailback, coming right at Happy.
Petros’ line fired off low and hard, covering up every offensive lineman. Happy saw the play coming his way and reacted the only way he knew how.
He fired ahead and dove over the line, flying into the fullback and knocking him down. The collision carried back into the tailback and almost knocked him down. The tailback regained his balance and sidestepped the pile in front of him and cut back to the left.
Derwin sliced through a small gap after seeing the tailback change directions. He closed hard on the tailback, forcing him to go further outside.
He reached out, trying to get hold of anything but could not grab the tailback. The tailback was sprinting to the outside and appeared to have plenty of room to run. He expected to pick up the first down and a lot more.
But just as he got close to the line, there was a blur coming from the defense. It was Lucky. He had been on the other side, fought off a block, ran around a pile and finally saw his chance. His eyes never left the tailback.
Lucky knew where the tailback was going and was determined not to let him get there. He came scorching through the opening, taking an angle to intercept the running back. The tailback never saw Lucky until getting hit hard enough in the legs to send him flying through the air and land face first in the mud.
The ball was marked, two yards short of the line of scrimmage.
Petros’ defenders congratulated Lucky, pounding on him like he was a rag doll. They knew that play kept their hopes alive.
The tailback was slow to rise, tired from the long game and shaken from the hit. He looked around to see what hit him, but the Panthers were already lining up for the punt.
Cole was not sure Honobia would punt, even though the Lions were in their own territory and now needed three yards to get a first down.
The Lions used as much time as possible, letting the clock tick away. Honobia had huddled and broke it slowly, coming out in a punt formation. The punter watched the play clock, letting it go all the way down to two seconds before calling for the snap.
The snap was perfect and the punter got the kick off. It was a low line drive that sailed over Kenneth’s head and rolled all the way back to Petros’ 19.
Kenneth retreated back and picked up the ball and started making his way down the field. Despite the big kick, Honobia had good coverage on the punt and brought him down on the 31.
There were now less than three minutes to go. The Panthers were 69 yards away from a trip to the state championship.
The excitement was building. Students at East Central had heard the roars all afternoon from the football field and came to see what was happening. They were rewarded with a game that was now more thrilling than anything ECU had offered this past season.
For everybody but the players on the field, it was nerve wracking. And getting worse every second. There was a feeling on the Petros side that something good was going to happen.
Honobia had seldom been pressured in its 43-game winning streak, but was now. Their players, coaches and fans had forgotten what it was like to lose and didn’t want to find out.
Cole took his son aside to give some advice before the drive started.
“You’ve gotta keep your cool,” he stated. “I know you’re just a sophomore, but you’re the leader out there. This is it. This is what you’ve been waiting for your whole life.”
Lucky nodded and smiled at his father. Out on the field, the rest of the offense was huddled, waiting for their quarterback to join them. He sprinted out on the field and entered the huddle, as calm as he would be reading a book.
“Okay, this is our time,” he told them. “We’re going to take this all the way. You guys give me some time and let’s go get a touchdown.”
The Panthers came out in a spread with Lucky in the shotgun. He looked over the defense, took the snap and rolled to his right. He saw Andy break open on an out route and threw a bullet that was caught just before he stepped out-of-bounds to stop the clock. The play was good for seven yards. Andy might have been able to pick up more but didn’t want to risk getting tackled as the clock would keep going unless he picked up a first down.
Petros was at its own 38. The Panthers huddled and Lucky called two plays, just in case the defense lined up in a different way so he could change the play.
He hurried his team to the line, reading the defense and looking for any signs of a blitz. Lucky did not see anything out of the ordinary and called for the ball. The snap was low but he caught it and while raising up, saw a blitz coming from his right.
Lucky rolled away from the blitz and saw Skip break open across the middle. Lucky lobbed a pass to him, hitting him going full speed across the middle. Skip grabbed the pass and made it to the 46 before getting tackled.
It was good for a first down and Petros lined up, waiting for the officials to mark the ball. Lucky called an audible, going for a play he expected to catch the Lions off guard.
Lucky took the snap and sprinted to his right with Seth trailing behind. Cole nearly swallowed his tongue when he saw his team running an option. But he also knew it was not a play Honobia expected to see in this situation.
The defensive end was left trying to decide which player to go after, knowing he had little help. He chose to go after Lucky, hoping one of his teammates could get the pitch back.
Lucky waited until the last second and pitched the ball back to Seth. The pitch was a little behind him and Seth had to slow down just a little. When he looked ahead, Seth saw there was plenty of room to run and sped into the secondary before the Lions recovered and brought him down at Honobia’s 40.
The clock was stopped but would restart after the chains were in place. Lucky had his team on the line again and called another play. Honobia was now changing its defense, hoping to bottle up the Panthers.
This time, Lucky didn’t see the blitz coming and paid the price. The Lions overloaded one side and came hard. The linebacker on Lucky’s backside broke free and came roaring into the backfield. It was the kind of opportunity defensive players love, a quarterback dead ahead with no warning he is about to get demolished and no blocker anywhere nearby.
Lucky never saw or felt the hit coming. He was starting to throw the ball to Harry when it felt like somebody ran over him with a semi-truck.
It was the most pain he ever felt. His back and ribs felt like they were knocked out of whack and let the body’s owner know it.
The ball had floated free as he was hit but the officials called it an incomplete pass.
Lucky tried to get up but had a hard time. He looked up and saw the defense celebrating the hit. His teammates gathered around their fallen quarterback, all feeling bad about allowing him to get hit like that.
Lucky grabbed hold of Seth, trying to pull himself up but quickly figured out that would not work. There was something wrong and his body was not responding like it should.
Cole and Doc Hardy started out on the field. Cole could tell from the force of the hit that it was probably not good, hoping it was only a bruise and that his son had gotten the wind knocked out of him.
As they arrived, Lucky was still trying to get up. He didn’t care what was wrong, there was no way the rest of the game would go on without him.
“Just calm down,” Cole directed, realizing his son trying to get up reminded him of a pony trying to rise for the first time. “There’s no reason to hurry.”
“I gotta get up,” Lucky stated, gritting his teeth. “They’re not going to put me out of this game.”
Doc Hardy kneeled down beside Lucky and began examining him. Everywhere he touched on the back and ribs, Lucky winced.
“It doesn’t feel like anything is broken,” the doctor advised.
“I’m fine,” Lucky protested, knowing that wasn’t the truth. But he would be if his legs supported him enough to let him stand.
“Can you get up?” Cole asked.
“Yes sir,” Lucky answered.
Cole reached down and helped his son stand, not liking the way Lucky reacted. Cole had hurt his ribs before, even broke two, and knew hurt ribs and a bruised back were not easy to handle.
As they slowly walked to the sidelines, Lucky had one arm around his father, the other held tightly against his side. Lucky glanced at the clock, seeing there was less than two minutes left, his team still forty yards away from the winning score.
Gary would have to go in at quarterback, at least for one play. He was throwing some passes on the sideline after seeing Lucky go down. In between the throws, he looked out at Lucky, hoping his teammate would make some kind of miraculous recovery and get back on the field.
Cole took as much time as possible before the officials came over to speed him up. Lucky was trying to stretch and move, but was having trouble. Doc Hardy raised his shirt and was looking for damage.
Cole walked over to Gary and put his arm around him.
“You ready to go?” asked Cole.
“I hope,” Gary responded, then threw a duck to Harry.
“Don’t hope,” his coach replied. “You gotta know you can do it. We’re all behind you.”
Gary put on his helmet and fastened the straps. As a child he always wanted to rescue his team in a big game and now seemed to have the chance.
After the way he struggled earlier in the year, Gary was determined to show what he was made of. He was smart enough to realize Lucky was a better quarterback and able to do things he couldn’t. But Gary also knew he had some ability, even if nobody else knew.
As he jogged out on the field, the roar from the crowd was something Gary would never forget. Gary acted like he had not heard it and that it didn’t mean anything, but it did. His teammates were waiting for him in the huddle, patting him on the back.
“You can do it,” said Skip as other heads in the huddle nodded in agreement.
Gary was so choked up and excited he could barely call the play. He finally managed to get the play out. While walking to the line, Harry jogged by him and patted him on the shoulder.
“This is your time,” he mentioned. “Let’s go score and carry you off the field on our shoulders.”
Gary smiled and nodded, knowing there was a lot of work to do before they reached that point and Honobia would probably not agree with that plan.
Petros lined up in a spread formation with Gary under center. He had never gotten comfortable with the shotgun and preferred taking the snap before dropping back.
He surveyed the defense and called out the signals. As the ball was snapped, he dropped back. Everything seemed to be going in fast forward. He looked for Harry, but could not find him. None of the other receivers were open, either.
Gary rolled to his right, looking for somebody to get open. Nobody broke free. He saw an opening and tucked the ball away and took off.
It caught the Lions off guard and they had trouble responding. Gary got to the sidelines and ran to the Honobia 27 before stepping out of bounds to stop the clock.
His teammates rushed over to greet him and congratulate him. Gary looked to the sidelines to see if Lucky was coming in to replace him but could not see his teammate.
Gary jogged back to the huddle, a strange feeling coming over him, one that told him he could get his team in the end zone. He didn’t know how and it didn’t matter what Honobia threw at him. He would lead his team into the end zone.
He got the call and relayed it to his teammates. Gary had a different attitude and walk as he came to the line. Gone was the unsure look so many had seen in him, replaced by one that bordered on cockiness.
“What’s up with him?” Stub asked Ichabod.
“What’re you talking about?” Ichabod asked.
“Look at Gary,” he directed, pointing out on the field. “He’s acting different.”
Ichabod disregarded his fellow coach and turned his attention back to the field.
The linebacker to his right was edging closer to the line, trying to distract Gary.
“You got lucky that time,” the linebacker mouthed. “We’ll get you this time and hurt you worse than the other quarterback.”
Gary stood up and glared at the linebacker.
“You can’t hit what you can’t touch,” Gary replied.
He lost interest in the linebacker and started calling signals, trying to decide what the defense would do. He expected a blitz from the backside. He saw the linebacker on that side edging forward and Gary turned around to make sure Seth saw it.
Gary wished Happy or Derwin was in at running back just to help with the blocking, knowing neither were a threat with the ball like Seth.
He took the snap and rolled to his right and lobbed a pass toward the sideline, hitting Skip on an out route. It was an ugly pass, but an effective one. It led Skip perfectly. He caught the pass and cut upfield, reaching the 18 before getting knocked out of bounds.
The Panthers huddled again and Gary gave his instructions. Cole thought this play would catch the Lions off guard and was the main reason Seth was in at running back.
Petros hurried to the line. All the receivers were scattered wide, leaving Gary and Seth alone in the backfield. Gary got the snap and dropped back, watching all the receivers run go routes. Honobia was coming with another blitz, this time from the right.
It looked like a passing play until Gary slipped the ball to Seth while dropping back past him. It was a draw play and caught the Lions unprepared.
Seth stepped through the onrushing line and burst free. The other inside linebacker dove at him but Seth easily avoided the tackle and sprinted toward the end zone, both arms protecting the ball. He made it to the 5 before one of the safeties brought him down.
Cole had the offense call time and come to the sidelines. He looked at the clock, seeing there was still over a minute left. The Panthers still had two timeouts. Cole had doubts his offense could line up in a regular offense and run straight at the Lions with any success so he decided to stay in the spread, mainly to keep the defense stretched out all over the field. Cole relayed the call, stressing the importance of good blocking.
“It’s right there for us, guys,” Cole directed. “Go get it.”
The Panthers jogged back out on the field, forming a huddle as Honobia’s defense had not returned to the field.
Gary waited until the defense was back on the field and lined up before breaking the huddle. Honobia was not expecting this formation and the defense had to adjust quickly.
The Panthers lined up and got the play off quickly. Gary turned and handed back to Skip, who had traded places with Seth. Skip squirted through a small hole, picking up two yards. He nearly scored and would have except one of the Lions grabbed him by the shirt and would not let go.
Petros called its second timeout. This time Gary came to the sidelines by himself. He saw Lucky on the bench, obviously in a lot of pain. Gary knew Lucky was out now and would not come back. It was Gary’s team to lead to victory or defeat.
The Panthers only had one timeout left. He sent Happy in to take Seth’s place, hoping the Honobia coaches did not notice the change.
Cole wanted to surprise the Lions again and knew the best way to do that was to hit them in a way they did not expect. The Panthers were going to load up in the wishbone and hammer right at the defense. Gary smiled as his coach called the play and formation. If it surprised him, Honobia would certainly not expect it.
Petros broke the huddle and came to the line quickly, hoping to get the play off before the Lions adjusted. The Panthers had three running backs in the backfield with Gary and two tight ends lined up outside the tackles.
It did surprise Honobia. Gary got the ball snapped while the Lions were adjusting. Skip got the call, running behind D.J. and Happy.
There was only a small gap, even after his two fellow running backs blasted away. Skip lowered his helmet and plowed ahead. His momentum carried him down to the 1-yard line before the Lions shoved him back.
Cole called his final timeout. The Panthers faced third-and-goal from the 1 with 50 seconds remaining.
If the Panthers ran the ball again and did not score, they would have to hurry to get the pile cleaned up and run the play.
Cole didn’t really like to pass this deep in an opponent’s territory and felt confident the Panthers could get off another play, even if this one didn’t work so he decided to go with another running play.
Gary received the call and jogged back out on the field to relay the call to his teammates. Petros came to the line as fans on both sides stood, making a huge roar. The rain had lightened and was now only a light mist. Fog was starting to descend on the field, making it difficult to see from one side of the field to the other.
This old field had been the host of many great games over the year, high school and college. But the tension existing at this moment was as great as ever.
Gary came strolling to the line, refusing to let the nerves get to him. If he came through, it would be great and unexpected. But if his team came up short, very few people expected it anyway, especially after Lucky had to leave the game.
He barked the signals loudly, looking over the defense. He took the snap, faked a handoff to Happy, then spun around and handed the ball to D.J. He plowed forward into a wall of humanity, two lines facing each other and refusing to give up any ground.
This time, Honobia won, not giving up an inch. The Lions pushed back hard, forcing D.J. to angle away since there was no hole. All D.J. found was more Honobia defenders and he was tackled before getting back to the line.
The seconds were ticking away quickly. Petros’ players were trying to untangle from the piles of bodies, finding it difficult when the opponent would not move and actually held on to arms or legs to keep them down.
The official were trying to get the bodies free so another play could be run. Three Honobia players were on top of D.J., refusing to move.
The time was under fifteen seconds and a feeling of desperation was forming on the Petros side. As the clock continued to count down, the referee finally realized this was not right. He was tired of the stalling and blew his whistle and waved his arms to stop the clock.
Cole was going ballistic on the sideline before the officials finally made the correct decision.
Honobia’s sidelines was not thrilled with the call and protested, knowing it would do little good.
The bodies were finally freed and the Panthers lined up quickly, knowing the clock would start as soon as the ball was placed on the ground.
Gary called a play at the line, not having time to get one from the bench.
As soon as the umpire placed the ball on the ground and stepped back, the referee blew his whistle and waved his arm. The clock started right as the ball was snapped. It was fourth down, just over a yard to go and both teams’ season rested on this play. One team would advance to the state finals the following week, the other would hand in the equipment.
Gary got the snap cleanly and faked the dive to D.J. and went down the line, reading the defensive end. Seeing the end was going after Skip, Gary ran past the tackle, then cut back inside. He felt the arms reaching for him, while he saw a little gap toward the end zone, the white line calling for him.
One of the linebackers hit him from the side, pushing Gary farther to the side. He refused to be brought down, his legs still churning away. Gary lowered his head and put both arms around the ball, determined not to let the pigskin escape his grasp.
Another defender blasted into him from the opposite direction, forcing him to spin away. It was happening so quick, Gary did not think, letting everything happen naturally. Honobia’s safety was coming fast and flung himself toward the Petros quarterback.
Because Gary had spun, the safety only delivered a glancing blow. Somebody was trying to grab his leg but Gary wrestled free and dove for the line waiting before him.
He fully expected some defender to come out of nowhere and grab him, throwing his body back from where it came. As Gary waited for the hit, he finally realized it was not coming. The line was below him and then gone, and the reality hit.
He did not even have to look to the officials for confirmation. Gary knew he scored. His body finally came to earth well past the final mark. All he could do was lie on his back, the ball held to the heavens, a scream of joy filling the air.
While Gary did not need to look toward the officials to find out if he scored, everybody else did. When the line judge and umpire both raised their arms, it set off pandemonium on the Petros side, everybody jumping up and down, hugging anybody within reach.
Cole jumped up one time then caught himself. He knew the score was tied at 20 and this game was not won yet. The Panthers still had to convert the extra point and Cole knew Honobia would do everything possible to thwart Jeremy’s kick.
The players were all running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Cole and the other coaches tried to calm their players and get some order established. Cole knew how the players felt and would like to be running around also.
And he planned to do just that, but only after and if Jeremy’s kick was good.
The players who needed to be on the field gradually made it to the huddle while the other players came to the sidelines, getting mobbed by their teammates.
As Petros lined up for the kick, Honobia called time at the last second, trying to put extra pressure on Jeremy. Cole knew the Lions could call two more timeouts if they chose, but it would not bother his kicker.
Jeremy was back from the huddle, practicing his footsteps. He continued to loosen up, not even acknowledging the Honobia side, where the chant of “Block that kick!” was coming.
None of the other players bothered Jeremy, knowing he was totally focused. The timeout was over and the Honobia players came back on the field. Cole had left his guys out on the field, not needing to tell them anything else. They all knew what the situation was without his help.
It was really simple. Have a good snap and hold, don’t let any of the Lions through the line, then kick the ball between the uprights.
The Panthers jogged up to the line. Two of the Lions stood over Petros’ center, Danny Wall, letting him know that as soon as the ball was snapped, they planned to hit him with everything they could.
Danny was not worried. He was used to getting hit like that on every extra point. Repeated blows like this might shorten his height a bit, but was not going to make him mess up this snap.
Harry called the signals and ordered the snap. The snap was perfect. Harry caught the ball and set it down on the tee, turning it at the same time so the laces faced the other way.
Jeremy slowly approached the ball, looking at the spot where his foot would meet the ball. His drew back his foot and let it go, a smooth movement like he had done so many times before. This time he kept his footing.
The Lions were trying to get through the line and into the backfield to block the kick but none of the Panthers broke down.
Jeremy’s kick was hit perfectly. He knew that as soon as his foot blasted into the ball. Since there was not a second thud to indicate the ball made contact with another person, Jeremy raised his arms into the air, looked for and found the ball as it sailed straight and true.
Harry jumped up, grabbing Jeremy. The other Panthers on the field waited to see how the officials reacted since they had not picked up the flight of the ball. Their teammates on the sidelines did not have to wait since they saw the ball sail through the uprights.
Cole looked up at the clock and saw a bunch of zeros in the time section. He turned looking to find anybody to hug and celebrate with and saw everybody had already ran out on the field. The only person he saw was Lucky sitting on the bench, smiling despite the pain.
Lucky looked up to see his father, smiling like his dad had not in years.
“We did it,” Cole yelled. “We’re going to Stillwater!”
Lucky could only nod, wishing he felt good enough to join the celebration. Cole walked over and hugged his youngest son.
“We wouldn’t be here without you,” Cole told him.
“No, we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you,” Lucky countered, relishing the moment even though his ribs and back felt like they were about to rip apart.
Cole hugged his son one last time, making sure he did not get anywhere near the ribs, then turned and started walking toward the middle of the field.
Lucky sat back down, burying his head in his hands and prayed, thanking God for this moment and for all He had done.
A hand was on his back. He turned to see who it was and saw Gabby, tears running down her cheeks.
“We beat them!,” she shouted, then added, “I can’t believe we won.”
Lucky stood slowly and put his arms around her.
“This is what we’ve been working for,” he said.
She pulled back from him.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’ll be fine,” Lucky answered, braving a smile despite the pain.
They started walking toward the center of the field, joining what looked like everybody who lived in Petros. The feeling was hard to describe. At least for those few moments, all was right with the world. Even people who had not talked for years, wound up hugging each other.
Cole looked for the Honobia coaches, but they had left as soon as the game was over, actually sprinting for the dressing room. It wasn’t a very classy move, one Cole would never repeat. While he did not appreciate it, that certainly would not remove any of his joy.
There had been times like this before, but none were sweeter. On the other times, he expected it. Cole had no idea this team could get to this level. It just made it better, especially to see the joy for everybody from Petros.
The smiles, laughter and yells made Cole want to dance and shout. He looked into the sky and closed his eyes, blocking out the noise for a brief time.
“I owe you another one,” he stated. “Thanks for this.”
His players started coming by, hugging him and he congratulated them back. Many of his former players also filed by, also congratulating Cole and his players.
He saw old players who had been gone for years, enjoying seeing them almost as much as winning the game. Tatum came by to congratulate his old coach and Cole saw the tears in his eyes. He might be residing in Big Cedar now, but a part of him was still a Petros Panther.
Cole stood away from the celebration, just enjoying the moment. Other coaches he knew came by and congratulated him, some thanking him for showing Honobia what it felt like to lose.
He saw her walking slowly toward him, a black jacket that was too large seeming to swallow her body. She had a black baseball hat with a white “P” on the front pulled down a little too far, making it hard to see her eyes.
But the smile was plainly evident. Cole gave her a little wave and she returned the gesture. He started walking toward her and she quickened her pace.
“I can’t believe this,” she declared. “I’ve never been this excited.”
“It feels great, doesn’t it?” Cole asked, putting his arms around her and pulling her close.
“Aren’t you worried what people will say?”
He pulled back and looked her in the eyes, a smile still stretched across her face.
“I really don’t care,” he answered, then kissed her, shocking her. Cole was not the type to share kisses and everybody was staring at him.
“Whoa,” she responded, smiling and leaning toward him. “That’s a public display of affection there, Coach.”
“Yeah, it is, Doctor.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder, wishing this could last forever. Lucky and Gabby were standing off to the side of the celebration, arms linked together.
“How’s Lucky?” she asked.
“Sore and getting sorer,” Cole replied.
“Does Doctor Hardy think anything’s broke?”
“No, but I’d appreciate it if you could give a second opinion.”
“It’ll cost you,” she mentioned.
“How much?”
“A night out.”
“That’s a pretty costly examination,” Cole countered. “But I guess it’s worth it.”
Chapter 53
After getting the go-ahead, the kicker approached the ball and slipped, just as Jeremy had earlier. The kick was rather ugly, bouncing along the ground until Derwin fell on the ball at the 26.
Petros’ offense took the field and lined up, again choosing to bypass the huddle.
Cole decided to go with Tatum’s selection and called an option on first down. Lucky ran the play, saw a big gap and placed the ball in D.J.’s belly.
D.J. was not expecting to get the ball, though, and never had control. The football popped free, bounced on the ground once and landed right in front of one of the linebackers. He fell on the ball before any of the Panthers arrived, giving his team the ball and great field position.
The Panthers were stunned. The offensive players slowly made their way to the sidelines while several players came out on the field for defense.
Honobia started pounding away at the Panthers again, hitting them right up the gut. The Lions picked up two first downs and moved inside Petros’ 10.
Happy was sent back in for Tim, trying to strengthen the middle of the defense.
The defense huddled up. Derwin was the last player in the huddle and was not happy.
“That’s enough of this crud!” he hollered, looking around at his teammates. “No more! We stop them right here. I don’t care what it takes. We will not be pushed back one more inch or I will whip every one of you.”
The Panthers’ knew he was not kidding and it inspired them to pick it up a level.
A run over the left tackle was stuffed as the Panthers gave up no ground. The tailback tried to pop outside but Gary knifed in and dropped him for a loss of a yard.
The next play went to the other side. Happy squirted through a small opening, dove under the fullback’s block and hit the tailback right below the knees, taking his legs out for a loss of two yards.
Honobia tried to pass on third down. The Panthers had everybody covered and the quarterback had to throw the ball away as Happy was coming hard and looked like he wanted to remove his opponent’s head.
The Lions’ field-goal team came out on the field to try a 29-yard field goal.
Cole had a feeling something was up as he knew Honobia’s kicker did not have a good leg. He could not recall seeing Honobia try a field goal in any of the films, probably because they don’t have to try field goals. But the kicker’s leg was not that strong and Cole doubted he could make it.
He hollered at Harry and finally got his player’s attention.
“Watch out for the fake!” Cole hollered.
Ichabod kept the defense in the nickel, expecting a fake. Petros would come hard with the line and linebackers while the secondary guarded against a possible trick play.
The snap was perfect from the center. The holder was the starting quarterback. He fielded the snap easily and put the ball down on the black kicking tee. Just as the kicker started to boot the ball, the holder pulled the ball back, stood up and rolled to his right.
Everybody on Petros’ side was hollering “fake”, but it was a waste of energy. The defense was ready for the play and already figured out what was happening.
Harry fought through a block by one of the tackles and started his chase. Honobia only had two players out for the pass and as the quarterback rolled out, he realized nobody was open.
He had no choice but to tuck the ball and run. The quarterback never saw what was coming. Harry caught him from the side, going full speed, and hit him so hard the quarterback was flattened before even realizing he was hit.
Harry rose quickly and stuck out his hand to offer to help the quarterback up. The quarterback was too shaken to get up. Seeing this, Harry turned around just in time to get mobbed by his teammates.
Petros took over on its own 14. D.J. was getting a little winded and Kenneth was not a hundred percent so Seth got the call, looking like a grade-school kid competing against men.
Seth got the call on first down, had to search for a hole and after finding nothing open, took off toward the end.
One of Honobia’s players was in pursuit. Seth stopped, cut back past his pursuer, and burst into the secondary.
Honobia eventually caught him at the 36 and brought him down. The run got Petros out of a hole and gave the Panthers better field position.
Skip picked up six more yards on a dive. The Panthers went with an option again. Lucky faked the handoff to Seth and kept around the corner. He saw the cornerback was more worried about Skip so Lucky turned up the field and took off.
One of the safeties tried an arm tackle but Lucky easily sidestepped him. He broke free and crossed midfield before getting taken down.
Cole called an option the other way. Lucky went with his first option, handing off to Skip, who found a big hole as the Lions were now more concerned with the Panthers getting outside.
Skip nearly broke it. Only a diving effort by the safety kept him from going the distance.
Honobia had given up worrying about the pass and was moving all the players close to the line. Lucky saw this as he approached the line and changed the play.
He made sure all the players heard him then started with the signals. Lucky took the snap, faked a handoff to Seth going to his left, rolled out and found what he hoped to see. Harry was running a crossing route and had a slight lead on the cornerback.
Lucky’s pass was slightly behind him but Harry turned around and caught the ball. He avoided the defensive back and took off down the field. The Petros fans started celebrating in the stands, hoping to see a touchdown.
Harry had just gotten to the 5 when the free safety dove at him. The safety missed the tackle but his hand came down on Harry’s right arm at an angle that knocked the football free.
The ball came down, bounced once and was covered by the safety. Harry never broke stride and crossed into the end zone. All the Petros side started celebrating, never seeing the ball was stripped.
Harry threw on the brakes and quickly turned around, looking for the ball. He saw the ball was recovered by the safety and fell to his knees.
It was a crushing blow to the Panthers as they realized what happened. Nobody felt worse about it than Harry, who always took care of the ball and never fumbled.
He came slowly to the sidelines, on the verge of breaking down. This was a player who was as tough as anybody on the field, even with his small stature. The coaches and his teammates tried to console him, but it did little good.
Harry was convinced he had just lost the game for his team.
Honobia took advantage in the change in momentum and started one of its patented drives, practically shoving the ball down the throats of the Panthers on every play.
The drive ate up yardage and the clock. Ichabod sent Happy in again, but this time it did not help.
The buzzer sounded, ending the third quarter as the Lions neared midfield. The change of directions did nothing to slow the onslaught as the huge line pounded away at the Panthers with the large backs coming right behind them.
Petros’ defense was getting worn out, both from the pounding and the time on the field. Ichabod started rotating players to try and keep them fresh but it did not help.
For a football purist, the drive was a thing of beauty. For Cole and the Panthers, however, the drive was more painful than an abscessed tooth.
Petros still had some fight left but it did not seem to be enough. The Panthers stopped two running plays inside the 5 but the third run produced another touchdown.
The Panthers were on the verge of giving up. Cole felt the same way but knew he couldn’t show that emotion to his players. It was hard not to blame them. Most of the players only went through the motions on the extra point.
Only one player went hard and it was Harry. He cut inside the outside blocker and looked like a blur as he angled toward the holder. He dove at the last second, his right hand catching the ball flush, knocking it to the ground.
Honobia’s kicker retreated back and grabbed the ball but Harry got up quickly and tackled him.
The play received some applause from the Petros side, but most people doubted it would make any difference. Honobia now led 20-0 with less than eight minutes left.
Kenneth and Seth went back to return the kick. It was the best kick of the night for the Honobia kicker, a long high one that came down in Seth’s arms at the 7.
He caught the ball cleanly and took off, trying to find an opening. The Lions converged on him at the 28. Just before he went down, Seth saw Kenneth some five yards away and behind him.
Seth didn’t give it a second though. He tossed the ball back in Kenneth’s direction. It caught Kenneth off guard but he recovered quickly. He grabbed the pitch with both hands while standing still. Kenneth saw most of the kicking team had surrounded Seth and didn’t know the ball was pitched back to him.
Kenneth took off and was soon moving at full speed. The Lions had figured out what happened and were chasing him. Two Honobia players were in front of him, determined to keep him from getting by.
He saw the players and cut sharply to his left to get away from one of the defenders. The other player was the kicker and tried to slow Kenneth long enough for help to arrive.
Kenneth faked to his left then cut back to his right. The kicker lunged in the wrong direction, grabbing nothing but air until falling to the ground.
Honobia had several players bearing down on him. The only question was whether they could catch him.
They had the angle and finally caught him at the Honobia 23. But just as Kenneth was brought to the ground, he looked around and saw Gary trailing the play. Kenneth pitched the ball back just before hitting the ground, leading Gary perfectly.
Gary had also not expected to receive a pitch but caught the ball and never broke stride. He blew past two defenders and sped toward the end zone. The final Honobia player dove at Gary, who dodged the tackle easily.
The Honobia player was rewarded with mud and water getting splashed in his face as he watched Gary sprint into the end zone.
The play brought the Panthers’ side back to life, cheering one of the wildest plays they had seen.
Cole was as stunned as everybody. All the players and coaches were jumping up and down, knowing they had seen something special. This time, there were no flags on the field.
Jeremy’s kick was good and the score was cut to 20-7.
Cole gathered the kicking team around him to relay his instructions.
“Line up like usual,” Cole ordered. “But Jeremy is going to kick the ball like it’s an onside kick straight ahead. You inside guys are going to have to get there quick and take out any Honobia players.”
All the players nodded and went out on the field to line up. Honobia’s players waited to see how Petros lined up. Seeing it was not an onside kick formation, the Lions lined up in their regular formation.
Cole saw Honobia had two linemen in the middle of the field, right where Jeremy’s kick would go.
“Gotcha,” Cole muttered, not loud enough for anybody else to hear.
His players followed his directions perfectly. Jeremy approached the ball like it was a normal kick, only slowing at the last second and barely kicking the top of the ball, causing it to go bouncing end-over-end.
Derwin and Happy were the two players nearest Jeremy. They had the assignment to rush ahead and take out any players trying to field the kick.
They moved like sprinters, getting to the two linemen before the Honobia players could get to the ball. It was two huge collisions that left the Honobia players reeling backwards.
Jeremy was trailing behind the ball closely, waiting for it to go ten yards. Finally, it crossed midfield and he fell on it.
The play further encouraged the Petros side and the fans started getting back into the game. Everybody knew it would be difficult, but the Panthers had pulled off some miracle comebacks in the past and knew it could happen again.
Cole sent the offense out in the spread formation with Seth joining Lucky in the backfield. The Lions were not expecting this and Lucky took advantage, hitting Andy near the far sidelines for a gain of 11.
Andy quickly got out of bounds to stop the clock and the offense lined up without huddling.
The Panthers were going for it on this play, but if it did not work, it should set up the next play.
As the ball was snapped, the Panthers’ wideouts took off sprinting toward the end zone. Lucky retreated back a little farther than normal, knowing he needed a little extra time on this play.
The Honobia rush was coming hard with four linemen and one linebacker trying to get to Lucky before he got rid of the ball. Lucky waited, hoping somebody would get open. Nobody broke free so Lucky let the rush get on top of him, then lobbed a pass to Seth out on the right flank.
Seth was all alone. He caught the pass and had nothing but green grass in front of him for over twenty yards. Seth almost scored but was finally brought down.
Petros came to the line and Lucky called the play. Three Panthers were wide to the right. Andy was the only receiver to the left. Lucky saw Honobia’s best defensive back was now covering Andy, but doubted that made any difference.
Andy still had a good six inches on his defender. As the ball was snapped, the defensive back tried to jam Andy at the line but the Petros receiver broke free, just as the coaches instructed him.
He had no advantage as far as speed and the coverage was excellent. While sprinting down the field, Andy faked like it was a post route and broke toward the corner of the end zone.
It gave him a step. Andy knew the pass was in the air before turning around. He looked into the sky and saw the ball gliding through the air. Lucky had let go of the pass long before Andy made his cut. It was the same route they had run so many times before, one that worked more times than it didn’t.
The defensive back knew the ball was coming and closed quickly. He struck his arm up, hoping to somehow deflect the ball. Unlike Andy, the defensive back did not find the ball.
Lucky knew the pass was a little high, just hoped it wasn’t too high. It was also obvious Andy was having trouble with the defensive back all over him.
At the last second, Andy fought loose and jumped, his long arms stretched to their maximum length. He didn’t think there was a chance to even touch the ball but while continuing to elevate, Andy’s hands got high enough to reach the ball.
His legs were coming out from under him and the defensive back was wrestling with him, trying to knock the ball loose. But Andy’s hands were like a vice and he was determined not to let go, much like a snapping turtle once it got hold of something.
Andy landed hard on his back with the defensive back falling on top of him. It hurt badly, but Andy would not let go. He wrestled away from the Honobia player and held the ball up, making sure the officials knew the ball was in his hands and was never dropped.
Even before the officials gave the signal for the touchdown, the Petros side started celebrating, the belief growing that this game was far from over.
The Panthers stopped celebrating long enough to get the kicking team lined up. The snap and hold were good, along with the kick.
There were now just over five minutes left. Petros had cut the lead to 20-14 and nobody dared to sit.
Cole knew there was plenty of time left. But he had to decide whether to go with another onside kick or kick it deep and hope his defense stopped the Lions once more.
If the onside kick failed, Honobia would get the ball around midfield and the game might as well be over. He knew it would almost be impossible to recover another onside kick. But at the same time, Cole was worried about his battered defense.
He gathered the coaches and Lloyd around to get their advice. Nobody could decide whether this was a wise choice.
“Heck, let’s ask the boys,” Lloyd suggested. “They’re the ones trying to stop them anyway.”
Cole decided it was the best idea he had heard. He called the defense together around him.
“Okay, guys, you know the situation,” Cole stated. “We’ll probably need to kick deep since they’ll expect another onside kick. That means for us to win the game, we’ll have to stop them one more time. I know you guys are tired and beat up, but I gotta know if we can stop them and get the ball back for our offense.”
Cole looked around at each of his players. He saw the determination back in their eyes. They were just waiting for somebody to speak up.
“Can we stop them?” Cole asked again.
Derwin stepped forward, putting on his muddy white helmet.
“Count on it,” he promised.
The other defenders started nodding their heads in agreement.
“Good,” Cole countered. “I know you guys can do it. I don’t care what Coach Stub says.”
“Huh?” Stub asked, hearing his name and wondering why the defensive team was giving him the evil eye.
Petros’ kickoff team sprinted out on the field and the roar began again. As they waited for the officials, the players started waving their arms and jumping up and down. The fans continued to grow louder, honoring their players.
Stub slid up next to Lucky on the sidelines.
“Isn’t this great?” he asked.
Lucky chuckled.
“You haven’t seen anything yet,” he said, never taking his eyes off the kicking team.
Stub nodded, remembering the old song of the same title. As he walked away, Stub started whistling the song.
Jeremy was told to proceed by the official. He looked down the field and saw the Lions expected another onside kick.
Only one player was back deep. Jeremy approached the ball slowly and threw his foot into the ball, kicking it away from all the players lined up in front of him.
The kick was long and high, coming down just inside the 10. The Panthers on the right side of the field flew down the field, not having to worry about any blockers as most of the Lions were lined up on the other side of the field.
The kick returner was alone, like he was on an island with half a dozen players bearing down on him. He could have and probably should have gone out of bounds. But he chose to return the kick and made it out to the 23 before the Panthers caught him and simply crushed him.
It was a vicious hit, almost hard enough to dislodge the ball. The Honobia player was a little slow getting up, his legs not willing to cooperate.
Both teams knew this drive would go a long way toward determining which team won the game. If the Lions got a couple of first downs, the clock would run out and the Panthers would never get another chance to score.
Everybody knew what was coming. Nobody knew if the Panthers had enough to stop it, however. Honobia was going to come after the Panthers, right up the middle and hard, just like they had all game.
The call was a blast up the middle. The running back came hard, running behind his huge line. Petros’ defense refused to budge this time. Happy fought off the block of the fullback and filled the hole. The tailback bounced outside, finding a little room.
He cut back inside and picked up six yards, more than Petros could afford to give up.
As the defense huddled, Derwin was not happy.
“We can’t give up that much!” he hollered, stepping to the middle of the huddle. “You’ve gotta get strong and tough!”
The defensive players refused to look into Derwin’s eyes, afraid they would be melted to the ground like the wicked witch on “The Wizard of Oz”.
Honobia came back with the same play to the opposite side. Petros’ line stayed strong, only giving a little room from the push of the line.
Derwin came forward to fill the hole, meeting the 230-pound fullback. It was a collision that had been repeated all night. They had pounded away at each other with everything they had. Both knew they would feel this the next day but could care less.
Neither player gave up any ground. The players on both sides heard the collision and wondered how either player could get up after the hit. The tailback hurdled over the two prone players, picking up an additional three yards before Happy and Gary grabbed him and pulled him back.
The officials marked the ball and called in the chains for a measurement.
Derwin slowly rose to his feet, shaking his head to clear it. He had never hit anybody so hard or been hit so hard.
He slowly made his way back to the huddle, watching the Honobia fullback struggle to his feet, then collapse back to the ground. He looked like a drunk struggling to rise and failing badly.
Derwin smiled as the Honobia players looked at him with a mixture of awe and admiration. They knew their fullback was something special. Anybody who did what Derwin had done to him was a stud.
“You okay?” Skip asked.
“A lot better than he is,” Derwin answered.
The Honobia coaches came out on the field and helped the fullback to the sidelines as the officials checked to see if it was a first down.
The ball was just short of the marker, not more than three links of the chain.
It was third-and-short, the biggest play of the game and the season for both teams.
The Lions took their time, using as much of the clock as possible before breaking the huddle.
Cole sent in two more linemen, knowing what was coming. He knew if Honobia tried to pass, it would be an easy score but doubted that would happen.
The second-team fullback was no slouch but at 180 pounds, weighed fifty pounds less than his teammate.
As the Lions came to the line, Lucky edged closer, almost as close as the linebackers. Honobia was in the I-formation again. The quarterback barked the signals and finally took the snap, spun around and handed the ball to the tailback, coming right at Happy.
Petros’ line fired off low and hard, covering up every offensive lineman. Happy saw the play coming his way and reacted the only way he knew how.
He fired ahead and dove over the line, flying into the fullback and knocking him down. The collision carried back into the tailback and almost knocked him down. The tailback regained his balance and sidestepped the pile in front of him and cut back to the left.
Derwin sliced through a small gap after seeing the tailback change directions. He closed hard on the tailback, forcing him to go further outside.
He reached out, trying to get hold of anything but could not grab the tailback. The tailback was sprinting to the outside and appeared to have plenty of room to run. He expected to pick up the first down and a lot more.
But just as he got close to the line, there was a blur coming from the defense. It was Lucky. He had been on the other side, fought off a block, ran around a pile and finally saw his chance. His eyes never left the tailback.
Lucky knew where the tailback was going and was determined not to let him get there. He came scorching through the opening, taking an angle to intercept the running back. The tailback never saw Lucky until getting hit hard enough in the legs to send him flying through the air and land face first in the mud.
The ball was marked, two yards short of the line of scrimmage.
Petros’ defenders congratulated Lucky, pounding on him like he was a rag doll. They knew that play kept their hopes alive.
The tailback was slow to rise, tired from the long game and shaken from the hit. He looked around to see what hit him, but the Panthers were already lining up for the punt.
Cole was not sure Honobia would punt, even though the Lions were in their own territory and now needed three yards to get a first down.
The Lions used as much time as possible, letting the clock tick away. Honobia had huddled and broke it slowly, coming out in a punt formation. The punter watched the play clock, letting it go all the way down to two seconds before calling for the snap.
The snap was perfect and the punter got the kick off. It was a low line drive that sailed over Kenneth’s head and rolled all the way back to Petros’ 19.
Kenneth retreated back and picked up the ball and started making his way down the field. Despite the big kick, Honobia had good coverage on the punt and brought him down on the 31.
There were now less than three minutes to go. The Panthers were 69 yards away from a trip to the state championship.
The excitement was building. Students at East Central had heard the roars all afternoon from the football field and came to see what was happening. They were rewarded with a game that was now more thrilling than anything ECU had offered this past season.
For everybody but the players on the field, it was nerve wracking. And getting worse every second. There was a feeling on the Petros side that something good was going to happen.
Honobia had seldom been pressured in its 43-game winning streak, but was now. Their players, coaches and fans had forgotten what it was like to lose and didn’t want to find out.
Cole took his son aside to give some advice before the drive started.
“You’ve gotta keep your cool,” he stated. “I know you’re just a sophomore, but you’re the leader out there. This is it. This is what you’ve been waiting for your whole life.”
Lucky nodded and smiled at his father. Out on the field, the rest of the offense was huddled, waiting for their quarterback to join them. He sprinted out on the field and entered the huddle, as calm as he would be reading a book.
“Okay, this is our time,” he told them. “We’re going to take this all the way. You guys give me some time and let’s go get a touchdown.”
The Panthers came out in a spread with Lucky in the shotgun. He looked over the defense, took the snap and rolled to his right. He saw Andy break open on an out route and threw a bullet that was caught just before he stepped out-of-bounds to stop the clock. The play was good for seven yards. Andy might have been able to pick up more but didn’t want to risk getting tackled as the clock would keep going unless he picked up a first down.
Petros was at its own 38. The Panthers huddled and Lucky called two plays, just in case the defense lined up in a different way so he could change the play.
He hurried his team to the line, reading the defense and looking for any signs of a blitz. Lucky did not see anything out of the ordinary and called for the ball. The snap was low but he caught it and while raising up, saw a blitz coming from his right.
Lucky rolled away from the blitz and saw Skip break open across the middle. Lucky lobbed a pass to him, hitting him going full speed across the middle. Skip grabbed the pass and made it to the 46 before getting tackled.
It was good for a first down and Petros lined up, waiting for the officials to mark the ball. Lucky called an audible, going for a play he expected to catch the Lions off guard.
Lucky took the snap and sprinted to his right with Seth trailing behind. Cole nearly swallowed his tongue when he saw his team running an option. But he also knew it was not a play Honobia expected to see in this situation.
The defensive end was left trying to decide which player to go after, knowing he had little help. He chose to go after Lucky, hoping one of his teammates could get the pitch back.
Lucky waited until the last second and pitched the ball back to Seth. The pitch was a little behind him and Seth had to slow down just a little. When he looked ahead, Seth saw there was plenty of room to run and sped into the secondary before the Lions recovered and brought him down at Honobia’s 40.
The clock was stopped but would restart after the chains were in place. Lucky had his team on the line again and called another play. Honobia was now changing its defense, hoping to bottle up the Panthers.
This time, Lucky didn’t see the blitz coming and paid the price. The Lions overloaded one side and came hard. The linebacker on Lucky’s backside broke free and came roaring into the backfield. It was the kind of opportunity defensive players love, a quarterback dead ahead with no warning he is about to get demolished and no blocker anywhere nearby.
Lucky never saw or felt the hit coming. He was starting to throw the ball to Harry when it felt like somebody ran over him with a semi-truck.
It was the most pain he ever felt. His back and ribs felt like they were knocked out of whack and let the body’s owner know it.
The ball had floated free as he was hit but the officials called it an incomplete pass.
Lucky tried to get up but had a hard time. He looked up and saw the defense celebrating the hit. His teammates gathered around their fallen quarterback, all feeling bad about allowing him to get hit like that.
Lucky grabbed hold of Seth, trying to pull himself up but quickly figured out that would not work. There was something wrong and his body was not responding like it should.
Cole and Doc Hardy started out on the field. Cole could tell from the force of the hit that it was probably not good, hoping it was only a bruise and that his son had gotten the wind knocked out of him.
As they arrived, Lucky was still trying to get up. He didn’t care what was wrong, there was no way the rest of the game would go on without him.
“Just calm down,” Cole directed, realizing his son trying to get up reminded him of a pony trying to rise for the first time. “There’s no reason to hurry.”
“I gotta get up,” Lucky stated, gritting his teeth. “They’re not going to put me out of this game.”
Doc Hardy kneeled down beside Lucky and began examining him. Everywhere he touched on the back and ribs, Lucky winced.
“It doesn’t feel like anything is broken,” the doctor advised.
“I’m fine,” Lucky protested, knowing that wasn’t the truth. But he would be if his legs supported him enough to let him stand.
“Can you get up?” Cole asked.
“Yes sir,” Lucky answered.
Cole reached down and helped his son stand, not liking the way Lucky reacted. Cole had hurt his ribs before, even broke two, and knew hurt ribs and a bruised back were not easy to handle.
As they slowly walked to the sidelines, Lucky had one arm around his father, the other held tightly against his side. Lucky glanced at the clock, seeing there was less than two minutes left, his team still forty yards away from the winning score.
Gary would have to go in at quarterback, at least for one play. He was throwing some passes on the sideline after seeing Lucky go down. In between the throws, he looked out at Lucky, hoping his teammate would make some kind of miraculous recovery and get back on the field.
Cole took as much time as possible before the officials came over to speed him up. Lucky was trying to stretch and move, but was having trouble. Doc Hardy raised his shirt and was looking for damage.
Cole walked over to Gary and put his arm around him.
“You ready to go?” asked Cole.
“I hope,” Gary responded, then threw a duck to Harry.
“Don’t hope,” his coach replied. “You gotta know you can do it. We’re all behind you.”
Gary put on his helmet and fastened the straps. As a child he always wanted to rescue his team in a big game and now seemed to have the chance.
After the way he struggled earlier in the year, Gary was determined to show what he was made of. He was smart enough to realize Lucky was a better quarterback and able to do things he couldn’t. But Gary also knew he had some ability, even if nobody else knew.
As he jogged out on the field, the roar from the crowd was something Gary would never forget. Gary acted like he had not heard it and that it didn’t mean anything, but it did. His teammates were waiting for him in the huddle, patting him on the back.
“You can do it,” said Skip as other heads in the huddle nodded in agreement.
Gary was so choked up and excited he could barely call the play. He finally managed to get the play out. While walking to the line, Harry jogged by him and patted him on the shoulder.
“This is your time,” he mentioned. “Let’s go score and carry you off the field on our shoulders.”
Gary smiled and nodded, knowing there was a lot of work to do before they reached that point and Honobia would probably not agree with that plan.
Petros lined up in a spread formation with Gary under center. He had never gotten comfortable with the shotgun and preferred taking the snap before dropping back.
He surveyed the defense and called out the signals. As the ball was snapped, he dropped back. Everything seemed to be going in fast forward. He looked for Harry, but could not find him. None of the other receivers were open, either.
Gary rolled to his right, looking for somebody to get open. Nobody broke free. He saw an opening and tucked the ball away and took off.
It caught the Lions off guard and they had trouble responding. Gary got to the sidelines and ran to the Honobia 27 before stepping out of bounds to stop the clock.
His teammates rushed over to greet him and congratulate him. Gary looked to the sidelines to see if Lucky was coming in to replace him but could not see his teammate.
Gary jogged back to the huddle, a strange feeling coming over him, one that told him he could get his team in the end zone. He didn’t know how and it didn’t matter what Honobia threw at him. He would lead his team into the end zone.
He got the call and relayed it to his teammates. Gary had a different attitude and walk as he came to the line. Gone was the unsure look so many had seen in him, replaced by one that bordered on cockiness.
“What’s up with him?” Stub asked Ichabod.
“What’re you talking about?” Ichabod asked.
“Look at Gary,” he directed, pointing out on the field. “He’s acting different.”
Ichabod disregarded his fellow coach and turned his attention back to the field.
The linebacker to his right was edging closer to the line, trying to distract Gary.
“You got lucky that time,” the linebacker mouthed. “We’ll get you this time and hurt you worse than the other quarterback.”
Gary stood up and glared at the linebacker.
“You can’t hit what you can’t touch,” Gary replied.
He lost interest in the linebacker and started calling signals, trying to decide what the defense would do. He expected a blitz from the backside. He saw the linebacker on that side edging forward and Gary turned around to make sure Seth saw it.
Gary wished Happy or Derwin was in at running back just to help with the blocking, knowing neither were a threat with the ball like Seth.
He took the snap and rolled to his right and lobbed a pass toward the sideline, hitting Skip on an out route. It was an ugly pass, but an effective one. It led Skip perfectly. He caught the pass and cut upfield, reaching the 18 before getting knocked out of bounds.
The Panthers huddled again and Gary gave his instructions. Cole thought this play would catch the Lions off guard and was the main reason Seth was in at running back.
Petros hurried to the line. All the receivers were scattered wide, leaving Gary and Seth alone in the backfield. Gary got the snap and dropped back, watching all the receivers run go routes. Honobia was coming with another blitz, this time from the right.
It looked like a passing play until Gary slipped the ball to Seth while dropping back past him. It was a draw play and caught the Lions unprepared.
Seth stepped through the onrushing line and burst free. The other inside linebacker dove at him but Seth easily avoided the tackle and sprinted toward the end zone, both arms protecting the ball. He made it to the 5 before one of the safeties brought him down.
Cole had the offense call time and come to the sidelines. He looked at the clock, seeing there was still over a minute left. The Panthers still had two timeouts. Cole had doubts his offense could line up in a regular offense and run straight at the Lions with any success so he decided to stay in the spread, mainly to keep the defense stretched out all over the field. Cole relayed the call, stressing the importance of good blocking.
“It’s right there for us, guys,” Cole directed. “Go get it.”
The Panthers jogged back out on the field, forming a huddle as Honobia’s defense had not returned to the field.
Gary waited until the defense was back on the field and lined up before breaking the huddle. Honobia was not expecting this formation and the defense had to adjust quickly.
The Panthers lined up and got the play off quickly. Gary turned and handed back to Skip, who had traded places with Seth. Skip squirted through a small hole, picking up two yards. He nearly scored and would have except one of the Lions grabbed him by the shirt and would not let go.
Petros called its second timeout. This time Gary came to the sidelines by himself. He saw Lucky on the bench, obviously in a lot of pain. Gary knew Lucky was out now and would not come back. It was Gary’s team to lead to victory or defeat.
The Panthers only had one timeout left. He sent Happy in to take Seth’s place, hoping the Honobia coaches did not notice the change.
Cole wanted to surprise the Lions again and knew the best way to do that was to hit them in a way they did not expect. The Panthers were going to load up in the wishbone and hammer right at the defense. Gary smiled as his coach called the play and formation. If it surprised him, Honobia would certainly not expect it.
Petros broke the huddle and came to the line quickly, hoping to get the play off before the Lions adjusted. The Panthers had three running backs in the backfield with Gary and two tight ends lined up outside the tackles.
It did surprise Honobia. Gary got the ball snapped while the Lions were adjusting. Skip got the call, running behind D.J. and Happy.
There was only a small gap, even after his two fellow running backs blasted away. Skip lowered his helmet and plowed ahead. His momentum carried him down to the 1-yard line before the Lions shoved him back.
Cole called his final timeout. The Panthers faced third-and-goal from the 1 with 50 seconds remaining.
If the Panthers ran the ball again and did not score, they would have to hurry to get the pile cleaned up and run the play.
Cole didn’t really like to pass this deep in an opponent’s territory and felt confident the Panthers could get off another play, even if this one didn’t work so he decided to go with another running play.
Gary received the call and jogged back out on the field to relay the call to his teammates. Petros came to the line as fans on both sides stood, making a huge roar. The rain had lightened and was now only a light mist. Fog was starting to descend on the field, making it difficult to see from one side of the field to the other.
This old field had been the host of many great games over the year, high school and college. But the tension existing at this moment was as great as ever.
Gary came strolling to the line, refusing to let the nerves get to him. If he came through, it would be great and unexpected. But if his team came up short, very few people expected it anyway, especially after Lucky had to leave the game.
He barked the signals loudly, looking over the defense. He took the snap, faked a handoff to Happy, then spun around and handed the ball to D.J. He plowed forward into a wall of humanity, two lines facing each other and refusing to give up any ground.
This time, Honobia won, not giving up an inch. The Lions pushed back hard, forcing D.J. to angle away since there was no hole. All D.J. found was more Honobia defenders and he was tackled before getting back to the line.
The seconds were ticking away quickly. Petros’ players were trying to untangle from the piles of bodies, finding it difficult when the opponent would not move and actually held on to arms or legs to keep them down.
The official were trying to get the bodies free so another play could be run. Three Honobia players were on top of D.J., refusing to move.
The time was under fifteen seconds and a feeling of desperation was forming on the Petros side. As the clock continued to count down, the referee finally realized this was not right. He was tired of the stalling and blew his whistle and waved his arms to stop the clock.
Cole was going ballistic on the sideline before the officials finally made the correct decision.
Honobia’s sidelines was not thrilled with the call and protested, knowing it would do little good.
The bodies were finally freed and the Panthers lined up quickly, knowing the clock would start as soon as the ball was placed on the ground.
Gary called a play at the line, not having time to get one from the bench.
As soon as the umpire placed the ball on the ground and stepped back, the referee blew his whistle and waved his arm. The clock started right as the ball was snapped. It was fourth down, just over a yard to go and both teams’ season rested on this play. One team would advance to the state finals the following week, the other would hand in the equipment.
Gary got the snap cleanly and faked the dive to D.J. and went down the line, reading the defensive end. Seeing the end was going after Skip, Gary ran past the tackle, then cut back inside. He felt the arms reaching for him, while he saw a little gap toward the end zone, the white line calling for him.
One of the linebackers hit him from the side, pushing Gary farther to the side. He refused to be brought down, his legs still churning away. Gary lowered his head and put both arms around the ball, determined not to let the pigskin escape his grasp.
Another defender blasted into him from the opposite direction, forcing him to spin away. It was happening so quick, Gary did not think, letting everything happen naturally. Honobia’s safety was coming fast and flung himself toward the Petros quarterback.
Because Gary had spun, the safety only delivered a glancing blow. Somebody was trying to grab his leg but Gary wrestled free and dove for the line waiting before him.
He fully expected some defender to come out of nowhere and grab him, throwing his body back from where it came. As Gary waited for the hit, he finally realized it was not coming. The line was below him and then gone, and the reality hit.
He did not even have to look to the officials for confirmation. Gary knew he scored. His body finally came to earth well past the final mark. All he could do was lie on his back, the ball held to the heavens, a scream of joy filling the air.
While Gary did not need to look toward the officials to find out if he scored, everybody else did. When the line judge and umpire both raised their arms, it set off pandemonium on the Petros side, everybody jumping up and down, hugging anybody within reach.
Cole jumped up one time then caught himself. He knew the score was tied at 20 and this game was not won yet. The Panthers still had to convert the extra point and Cole knew Honobia would do everything possible to thwart Jeremy’s kick.
The players were all running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Cole and the other coaches tried to calm their players and get some order established. Cole knew how the players felt and would like to be running around also.
And he planned to do just that, but only after and if Jeremy’s kick was good.
The players who needed to be on the field gradually made it to the huddle while the other players came to the sidelines, getting mobbed by their teammates.
As Petros lined up for the kick, Honobia called time at the last second, trying to put extra pressure on Jeremy. Cole knew the Lions could call two more timeouts if they chose, but it would not bother his kicker.
Jeremy was back from the huddle, practicing his footsteps. He continued to loosen up, not even acknowledging the Honobia side, where the chant of “Block that kick!” was coming.
None of the other players bothered Jeremy, knowing he was totally focused. The timeout was over and the Honobia players came back on the field. Cole had left his guys out on the field, not needing to tell them anything else. They all knew what the situation was without his help.
It was really simple. Have a good snap and hold, don’t let any of the Lions through the line, then kick the ball between the uprights.
The Panthers jogged up to the line. Two of the Lions stood over Petros’ center, Danny Wall, letting him know that as soon as the ball was snapped, they planned to hit him with everything they could.
Danny was not worried. He was used to getting hit like that on every extra point. Repeated blows like this might shorten his height a bit, but was not going to make him mess up this snap.
Harry called the signals and ordered the snap. The snap was perfect. Harry caught the ball and set it down on the tee, turning it at the same time so the laces faced the other way.
Jeremy slowly approached the ball, looking at the spot where his foot would meet the ball. His drew back his foot and let it go, a smooth movement like he had done so many times before. This time he kept his footing.
The Lions were trying to get through the line and into the backfield to block the kick but none of the Panthers broke down.
Jeremy’s kick was hit perfectly. He knew that as soon as his foot blasted into the ball. Since there was not a second thud to indicate the ball made contact with another person, Jeremy raised his arms into the air, looked for and found the ball as it sailed straight and true.
Harry jumped up, grabbing Jeremy. The other Panthers on the field waited to see how the officials reacted since they had not picked up the flight of the ball. Their teammates on the sidelines did not have to wait since they saw the ball sail through the uprights.
Cole looked up at the clock and saw a bunch of zeros in the time section. He turned looking to find anybody to hug and celebrate with and saw everybody had already ran out on the field. The only person he saw was Lucky sitting on the bench, smiling despite the pain.
Lucky looked up to see his father, smiling like his dad had not in years.
“We did it,” Cole yelled. “We’re going to Stillwater!”
Lucky could only nod, wishing he felt good enough to join the celebration. Cole walked over and hugged his youngest son.
“We wouldn’t be here without you,” Cole told him.
“No, we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you,” Lucky countered, relishing the moment even though his ribs and back felt like they were about to rip apart.
Cole hugged his son one last time, making sure he did not get anywhere near the ribs, then turned and started walking toward the middle of the field.
Lucky sat back down, burying his head in his hands and prayed, thanking God for this moment and for all He had done.
A hand was on his back. He turned to see who it was and saw Gabby, tears running down her cheeks.
“We beat them!,” she shouted, then added, “I can’t believe we won.”
Lucky stood slowly and put his arms around her.
“This is what we’ve been working for,” he said.
She pulled back from him.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’ll be fine,” Lucky answered, braving a smile despite the pain.
They started walking toward the center of the field, joining what looked like everybody who lived in Petros. The feeling was hard to describe. At least for those few moments, all was right with the world. Even people who had not talked for years, wound up hugging each other.
Cole looked for the Honobia coaches, but they had left as soon as the game was over, actually sprinting for the dressing room. It wasn’t a very classy move, one Cole would never repeat. While he did not appreciate it, that certainly would not remove any of his joy.
There had been times like this before, but none were sweeter. On the other times, he expected it. Cole had no idea this team could get to this level. It just made it better, especially to see the joy for everybody from Petros.
The smiles, laughter and yells made Cole want to dance and shout. He looked into the sky and closed his eyes, blocking out the noise for a brief time.
“I owe you another one,” he stated. “Thanks for this.”
His players started coming by, hugging him and he congratulated them back. Many of his former players also filed by, also congratulating Cole and his players.
He saw old players who had been gone for years, enjoying seeing them almost as much as winning the game. Tatum came by to congratulate his old coach and Cole saw the tears in his eyes. He might be residing in Big Cedar now, but a part of him was still a Petros Panther.
Cole stood away from the celebration, just enjoying the moment. Other coaches he knew came by and congratulated him, some thanking him for showing Honobia what it felt like to lose.
He saw her walking slowly toward him, a black jacket that was too large seeming to swallow her body. She had a black baseball hat with a white “P” on the front pulled down a little too far, making it hard to see her eyes.
But the smile was plainly evident. Cole gave her a little wave and she returned the gesture. He started walking toward her and she quickened her pace.
“I can’t believe this,” she declared. “I’ve never been this excited.”
“It feels great, doesn’t it?” Cole asked, putting his arms around her and pulling her close.
“Aren’t you worried what people will say?”
He pulled back and looked her in the eyes, a smile still stretched across her face.
“I really don’t care,” he answered, then kissed her, shocking her. Cole was not the type to share kisses and everybody was staring at him.
“Whoa,” she responded, smiling and leaning toward him. “That’s a public display of affection there, Coach.”
“Yeah, it is, Doctor.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder, wishing this could last forever. Lucky and Gabby were standing off to the side of the celebration, arms linked together.
“How’s Lucky?” she asked.
“Sore and getting sorer,” Cole replied.
“Does Doctor Hardy think anything’s broke?”
“No, but I’d appreciate it if you could give a second opinion.”
“It’ll cost you,” she mentioned.
“How much?”
“A night out.”
“That’s a pretty costly examination,” Cole countered. “But I guess it’s worth it.”
posted by Craig Hall at 5:08 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home