One Heartbeat by Jacob Hawkins

One Heartbeat, by Jacob Hawkins

David Barron- 4:00 a.m.
I didn’t sleep a wink last night. Didn’t want to. I sat in bed thinking. I have had chills since Tuesday afternoon. At half past four I got up and got ready. Hooked up the trailer and headed to the Bay. Fishin’ calms me. I wouldn’t last without it. I’d be too excited. Ron was there waitin, just like I figured he’d be. We dropped the boat in the water and we fished.
Ron Mayer- 4:00 a.m.
I sat in my antique wooden rocking chair all night, softly tilting back and forth. I closely examined game film, rewinding it over and over again. I set each play to memory, keeping in mind the down and distance. I watched enough film that I knew what the defense was going to do before they actually did it. I finally turned myself away from the screen and arose from my old chair. After a quick morning stretch and a steaming cup of black coffee I was on my way out the door.

Once David had arrived, we launched his faithful sixteen foot jon boat, and began to fish. At first we sat in silence, but by the time the sun was balancing gracefully on the horizon we were reeling in fish and having a great time.
Chief- 4:00 a.m.
He is sleeping with his eyes open. Constantly moving. Stands up earlier than usual. Goes outside. I follow. We ride to the water. They go far. I stay. Two sticks moving back and forth over their heads. Back and forth. Back and forth.
Bryant Adams- 6:15 a.m.
I gently stepped out of my warm pillow filled bed onto the cold wood floor. Goosebumps incased my body. I wondered aimlessly to my window. As I tugged the forest green curtain away from the glass, a beam of white sunlight illuminated my rather dim bedroom. After five seconds of confusion, my eyes focused and I was able to see the beautiful sunrise reflecting off the dark water. Sure enough Coach Barron and Coach Mayer are out fishing again.
David Barron- 7:15 a.m.
We were done fishin. I rode down to the field house to get cleaned up. I saw the stadium. My neck hairs stood straight up. The cheerleaders are hangin up signs. The field house is clean. The boys keep their lockers straight. Or they deal with me after practice. Post-practice I call it. Hell on Earth. The warm shower water erased my chills. I looked in the mirror. “This is the night David. This is OUR night.”
Bryant Adams- 7:35 a.m.
On game days, I always allowed myself ample time to drive slow and ponder. I often visualized my assignment on every possible play. I believed that if I witnessed myself being perfect, then I could be perfect. Visualizing is one of my pre-game rituals. As I slowly rolled my silver Infinity over the oversized speed bumps, I couldn’t help but notice coach Barron’s dirty black truck parked parallel to the field house door. I smiled to myself. That guy loves the game of football.
Janitor- 8:00 a.m.
Fridays for most people are great, but not for me.
1. Before the game, I have to clean the stadium and surrounding areas immaculately.
2. During the game, I have to empty any trash cans that become full.
3. After the game, I have to pick up any trash left on the ground, and empty all the trash cans.
Ron Mayer- 8:00 a.m.
I patiently wait in my classroom for school to begin. As I wait I can’t help but think about football. I picture their 5-3 defense against our pounding offense. Anything they do, we have an answer for. If they blitz their linebackers then we throw a short screen right behind them. If they drop back into coverage, we run it right up the gut. If we are faced with the 3-3-5 stack, we will have a field day on the ground. All it takes is a couple gap blocks and a kick out and we’re off to the races. If they show man coverage in the secondary, then we fling it out wide to Hawkins. If they show zone, we will drag our tight end across the middle. No matter what they do, they cannot slow us down. But then again, all this perfection is in my head. Our boys have to execute the plays that I call.
David Barron- 10:00 a.m.
In football class I set the tone. A few weeks back I’d tolerated a little goofin off, but not today. We worked all season for this, an I wasn’t gonna let them throw it out. The only talkin that was tolerated was to a coach. If you weren’t talkin to a coach, you’d better not be talkin. We did an equipment check and I gave’em game pants. Not once did I have to tell’em to focus or to shut up. I was impressed.
Chief- 10:00 a.m.
Lots of people but no sound. Quiet.
Bryant Adams- 10:00 a.m.
The short stroll to second block is always exciting. Everyone, including myself, talks and messes around as much as they can before they reach the field house doors. Coach Barron hates goofing around on game days. The “quiet rule” was in effect as soon as we walked through the green and black doors. The quiet rule means absolutely no talking whatsoever. Coach wants us to focus and think about our assignments. I can tell that this week means a lot to all of our coaches. Emotions are through the roof. Everyone is anxious, though they may not show it. After I checked all of my equipment, I went and lied down in the weight room. Visualizing every snap. Visualizing a playoff victory.
Ron Mayer- 5:15 p.m.
It is time for our traditional offensive team meeting. I commanded that the offense follow me to the weight room. As everyone slowly filtered in, I cleaned off the ink stained white board. I asked if anyone had any questions about the plays we have been perfecting in practice. Of course Carlton “Seabass” Seilhan had a question. That boy always has questions. I sketched a quick diagram of each play that we are going to run. These meetings are not for learning anything new, they are for refreshment. “We’re gonna get after them tonight men.”
Bryant Adams- 5:15 p.m.
Coach Mayer stumbles into the locker room, and calls for all offensive starters. The eleven of us gather around him and his whiteboard. He draws up every play that we are going to run tonight, taking the time to pause after each one and make sure everyone understands. Coach is an offensive mastermind. Our offense has led the league in average points per game with 32.5. After the meeting concluded, we all returned to the locker room to finish getting dressed.
David Barron- 6:50 p.m.
“This is it men, have you got what it takes? We need forty-eight minutes of smash mouth football. Forty-eight minutes! Hit’em in the mouth on the first play. You want respect? The only way to get respect is to look them in the eye and say here I am. You strap up and get in their face and say here I am! Let me see you show some disrespect now that my face is to ya! We talk about respect. Respect around the community. Respect in the classrooms. There is one thing that we want more than anything else and that’s respect! To get something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done. Are you willing to sacrifice? Are you willing to bleed? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to win? I wanna see every one of you fighting and clawing until the last whistle blows. Seniors, this could be your last shot. The last time you ever strap on the pads. How will you go out? With pride and honor? Or as a coward? It’s all about respect. Go out there and get after’em.”
Bryant Adams- 6:58 p.m.
This must be a record breaking crowd. I have never seen this many people attend a high school football game. Many people watch from the track, because there are no empty seats. As we stand behind the banner we get crazy. Everyone is jumping around and screaming. We busted through the thin paper banner and the stadium erupted. It was game time!
Timmy- 7:00 p.m.
Medieval knights take their places in battle. They charge each other and fight as hard as they can for 10 seconds, then retreat and regroup. Then after a short rest, they go back to battle. Thousands of cheering fans are here to see a massacre. It is a back and forth battle. One side will seem to have the upper hand and drive their opponent to the edge of the mountain, and when they can’t go any further, they fight back to the center. Swards clashing and men screaming. This is war.
Ron Mayer- 8:30 p.m.
So much crowd noise that I can’t hear myself talk. The game is going exactly as I expected. The defense is giving us the same looks that we have practiced against all week long, the 5-3 and the 3-3-5 stack. They started in a 5-3 front with a cover 3 over the top. After we burned them through the air a few times, they reverted to a 3-3-5 stack with a cover 4 secondary. This alignment opened the running game for us. We pounded them and pounded them until they were forced to stack the line. When they did that, we burned them once again by way of the passing attack. It seemed as if it were a cycle of domination. As long as we continue to follow our assignments, they won’t be able to stop us. “Keep fighting, men, and you’ll chalk up a win.”
David Barron- 8:50 p.m.
“Twenty-four seconds remaining. What do you have left? Do you have what it takes? You’ve gotta do something you’ve never done! Block to dominate, run to score, and hit to hurt. We have come all this way, now it’s time to finish what we started. We’ve got’em on the ropes. They are down and they cannot stop our offense. Let’s finish this thing!”
Chief- 9:15 p.m.
Happy. Smiles. Hugs.
Bryant Adams- 9:30 p.m.
The teammates, the comradery, and the passion set the foundation for lifelong memories. Nobody believed we could do it. They all laughed in our faces when we told them we were going to be in the playoffs. Now we have respect. We took their respect from them and they can never get it back. I will remember this for the rest of my life. From the friendships and the brotherhood to the gruesome practices and the last second touchdowns; I will remember it all.

Assignment

Project One—The Personal Narrative (6-8 pages)

In writing the personal narrative, you should illustrate one significant moment in your life. This moment should be important to you and clearly reflected as such in your writing. Furthermore, this moment must be one in which you feel comfortable sharing with your peers, as they will workshop your paper. Because this is a personal narrative, you should write in the first person, and three of the most important areas of focus should be dialogue, character development, and detail. Your finished product should run around 6-8 pages.

When you begin brainstorming for this essay, you might think that you don’t have any significant moments—this is a lie. However, you might find difficulty at the other end of the spectrum in deciding exactly which moment you want write about—this might be the case for most of you. Therefore, in writing your first draft, don’t hesitate to experiment—that is what rough, exploratory first drafts are intended for. Thus, if you are struggling and cannot limit yourself to one particular moment, then play with a couple of different ones, and in your workshop, ask your peers which moment they like the most or believe possess the most potential—you can, of course, ask me as well.

If you are still perplexed as to what you wish to write, here are a couple of potential ideas:

A trip
The most difficult thing you ever had to do
How a (insert person, place, or thing) changed your life
The most embarrassing moment in your life
An event that caused your family to pick sides

This essay, being that it is personal, should contain your voice; in other words, I don’t want you to strain yourself trying to emulate what is considered a “professional tone,” and I don’t want you to write a five paragraph essay. Ignore what you did in high school: don’t be afraid to write in first person, conversationally, for this assignment. This essay is about you, and as readers, we should be able to discern that it is written by you. Tell this story as only you could tell it: how is this your story and not your best friend’s, your neighbor’s, or even the person’s sitting next to you? Include any language usages peculiar to your circumstances, whether Spanish, suburban, ghetto, etc. Furthermore, I want you to be creative and use different writing techniques, such as including dialogue. Another important aspect of this essay, and in the others to follow, is to be specific—this is why you will only write about one moment. This moment is significant, and you should treat it as such and do it justice. Put your reader in the moment and allow him/her to empathize. Remember: it is better to be specific than vague!

There are many successful ways to write this paper. For one, start in the present, go back to the past, tell what happened and how it changed you, and explain how it got to where you are today. Or, you can start with a way you used to feel about something/one, what happened, and finished with how you feel now. Yet another way would be to start in media res: in the middle. These are only a couple of approaches; however, no matter how you intend to write your essay, make sure it demonstrates the following:

Your personal emotions, reactions, and thoughts
Details, details, details: use your five senses
A logical structure that is easy for your reader to follow
Something personal, something unique
Reflection: Your peers and I should be able to tell that this moment is significant and has impacted who you are today

Each draft should have your name, course identity, my name, and due date in the top left corner. The next line should have your title, centered, and the line after that should begin the text of your writing.

In terms of format, keep it simple: standard margins everywhere, double space everywhere, and same font everywhere (no wacky fonts, please: your personality should be expressed by your writing).

Audience, Identity, and the Culturally Constructed Self
Itinerary 2—ENC1101—Fall 2009

…

Project 2 will be a rewrite of Project 1, from the points-of-view of the characters in your essay. You may choose to rewrite the essay in one character’s voice, or create a collage of voices that weaves the narrative into focus. Feel free to add characters/voices.

Creativity is critical to this assignment, as well as recognition of what in writing constitutes voice—syntax, diction, what else?—and how voice changes to suit audience.

Untitled - Draft 1

One Heartbeat

It was a cool and crisp November night as we took the field. The bright stadium lights shimmered off of my darkly tinted visor. We already had more fans than we have had all year, and the game doesn’t start for another hour. You can sense the importance of this game. The echo of our S-E-A-H-A-W-K-S warm-up encased the stadium. Hot steamy sweat poured from my forehead onto my face, and caused my visor to fog. The black painted lines paired perfectly with the newly painted Seahawk at midfield. More and more people casually filed into the stadium. My stomach fluttered. I have been waiting for this night my whole life. I always dreamed to play in a playoff game my senior year, and here I was. The excitement was unexplainable. We had beaten all odds, overcome so many obstacles, and fought harder than anyone else to be here. We earned every bit of it.

My high school, the South Walton Seahawks, was never known for their athletic ability. From the day the door opened, in August of 2003, up to the 2008-09 school year we did not have any success at all on the gridiron (football field). The Seahawks had a combined record of 11-39 until the 2008-09 season. This record seems horrible, but for a newly opened school it is inevitable. The reason behind the horrific win to loss ratio is player selection. The thing is, in Walton County Florida instead of breeding athletes, they breed artists and musicians. I am not saying that anything is wrong with the artistic group; they just don’t want to strap on the pads and hurt someone. You cannot win football games unless you have that attitude. Until I transferred to South Walton my junior year (2007), there were not many “athletes” walking the halls, and there definitely were not any, “Ghost in the stands” (Alumni) as head coach David Barron would say. The problem was not coaching by any means. I am convinced that we had the best coaches east of the Mississippi. From my perspective Head Coach David Barron, Offensive Coordinator Ron Mayer, and Defensive coordinator Phil Tisa were the three best coaches I could ask for.

The thing about “us Seahawks” is that we were not blessed with speed. We were not “turtle crawling” slow, but not “rabbit hopping” fast either, we were very average. We had a couple of kids with jets, but only a couple. So for what we lacked in speed we made up for in toughness. We worked harder than any team anywhere! Every day we hit the weights, and every day we conditioned. The weight room and the locker room both smelled like hard work. Personally, I love the smell. The combination of sweat, blood, and tears brings back so many great moments in my life. We had to condition extra long because many of us never came off the field. Because we only had a few players to choose from, most of us played on both sides of the ball. Running sprints for at least fifteen minutes, on a light day, in the one hundred degree sticky breezeless heat was not easy. Especially after a two and a half hour gruesome practice. Honestly, I think the only way we all made it through it was because we had “one heartbeat,” as conditioning coach Ferg would stress. When a friend of mine missed practice, which only happened once, we had to run fifty-six extra fifty yard sprints in full gear because his number was 56. That was “one heartbeat.” Many times when I would see someone kneeling over in pain, I would encourage him to fight the urge to quit, and finish strong. All it takes to reach that unknown level is the encouragement and positive words of a teammate. We must have produced over ten thousand gallons of sweat that summer. One thing was for sure, we left it all on the field. Weather it was in practice or if it was the real deal on Friday nights, we never slacked off between the lines.

“This is the year Jake, I can feel it,” Coach Barron would tell me, as his incredibly loyal dog chief trotted along in his shadow. Chief was an older black dog with a grey beard. He was in love with Coach. He was too old and stubborn to listen to any of the player’s, but whatever “his daddy” said was what he did. If Coach Barron was ever gone, he would sit on the tailgate of his truck, and if anyone came near him, and/or tried to pet him he would growl and snap at your fingers. But around Coach Barron, he was the best dog around. Like every great coach, Coach Barron believed that this was our year. He wasn’t just flapping his jaw either; he believed it with all of his blood pumping heart. The weird thing was that we, the players, especially the fourteen seniors, knew that he was right. We had more seniors on our team then the previous three years combined. We knew that we were the real deal; there was no doubt in any of our minds that we wouldn’t go “unconquered” throughout the whole season.

Week one of our eleven week season was underway. Our opponent was Franklin County. An extremely weak team, but nonetheless “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog,” another one of Barron’s famous sayings. We squeezed past them with a 14-6 victory. This would be our lowest offensive night of the season. And to our defense it was the first game using our newly learned offensive playbook. Football is all about chemistry and timing, and to learn a completely new system and perfect it by the beginning of the season is nearly impossible. The next week we traveled to Wewahitchka to face the Gators. We got off to a great start, pulling ahead 34-7 at the half. We became a little too conservative and didn’t execute the plays we needed to, and before I knew it, I was in the middle of the field calling “heads” for the coin toss to start overtime. We were on offense first and took it straight to them with a quick score. They responded with a quick six of their own, but despite their guts to go for it, their two point conversion failed. We were 2-0! Back to the bus, week three was in Bozeman. The Bucks were the dirtiest, cheapest, foulest, trash talking country boys around. Any chance they got they would do something to make your blood boil. From punching under the pile or a nasty late hit when the hometown referee “wasn’t looking,” they did it all. To tell you the truth, I think they are coached to play like that. But, the way to beat a team like Bozeman is to keep your cool and beat up on them legally. By legally I mean no late hits or cheap shots. Everything else is fair game. That’s just football. If you don’t like it, don’t play. We left Bozeman with a 28-27 win. During our home game against Baker, we drove the ball into the red zone several times, but the cards just weren’t dealt in our favor that night. Even though we had a great offensive showing, we lost 33-35. The next week we rolled through Cottondale beating them by a crushing 28 points. Entering week 6 with a 4-1 record, we traveled to district rival Vernon. We defeated the Yellow Jackets 14-13. But seven of their thirteen points came by way of a lucky botched punt snap that the punter picked up and ran eighty yards. We lost to 6A powerhouse Choctaw the following week, but you cant hold that against us. They have more students in their senior class then we had our whole school. After an off week, we came back strong and continued our record breaking season by defeating Bonifay, 37-34. The next week we hopped on a bus and traveled two and a half hours, to the middle of nowhere, to play Northview (Bratt, FL). Despite the extremely long, boring journey we easily took care of the Chief’s, 31-0.

With our blowout victory versus Northview, we were now in a three way conference tie. Us, Baker, and Vernon each were 3-1 in district play. By the rules, if there is a three way tie after district play is finished the teams must play in a “Monday night shootout.” Because we had the best overall record, we were the first seed. Baker defeated Vernon in the first quarter of play. We came out with so much energy that Baker didn’t know what to do. We scored early and, with a touchdown saving tackle, we stopped their game tying drive and went on to win. With this win we brought home South Walton’s first ever District 2B football championship. But this was only the beginning. Now we had finally convinced town that we were the real deal. We finished the regular season with a stormy, dark rain delayed, 35-31, victory against Sneads.

The playoff’s had begun! We hosted the trash talking Bozeman Bucks for the first round. Yeah I know, Bozeman was the perfect team to beat twice in one season! They came in as angry as ever. And we came in with confidence and poise. After one of the most exciting games of my fourteen year football career, we walked away with a 34-27 victory, which was the first playoff game that South Walton had ever won. Next on our list was Florida State University High School from Tallahassee, FL. Consisting of 1600 “hand picked” students, FSU high was a powerhouse. After a tough fought game, they defeated us to move on in the playoffs. And it was over just like that.

But it’s not over. The legend of our nearly perfect season lives on. At the beginning of the season, it would be a miracle if half of the stadium was filled up. By the end of our season, our bleachers were always filled and the track looked like the airport on Labor Day weekend. It took a lot of hard work but we finally convinced not only our student body, but the community and other communities around ours that we were not a joke. When we started our journey together, we didn’t have the support of our students or the support of our community, but what we did have was each other. By the end of the year we had earned the support of everyone in a one hundred mile radius. We finished the season a whopping 9-3 and a district title under our belt. We were the best team that has ever or probably will ever walk through the green and white halls of South Walton High School.

That football season was very influential to me. I came to realize that it doesn’t matter if your talent, player for player, exceeds that of your opponent’s. As long as you have comradery, friendship, and heart, you can go a long way. “To get something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done,” Coach Barron would stress to us. If we had one thing, it was heart. No team ever played harder or tougher than us. No team ever practiced harder or left it all on the field more than we did. We wanted it more than any other school. Our team wasn’t like any other team, in that, we didn’t have cliques or groups. At least once a week we would all go out to eat as a team. No coaches, just the team. After practice, the coaches would always have to drag us out the door. We would have stayed and hung out together all night if they would have let us. “They’re just a close knit group,” Barron replied, “I have a hard time making them leave every night.” We were a family. That is what separated us from every other team. We had “one heartbeat.”

Untitled - Draft 2

David Barron- 4:00 a.m.

I didn’t sleep a wink last night. Didn’t want to. I sat in bed thinking. I have had chill’s since Tuesday afternoon. At half past four I got up and got ready. Hooked up the trailer and headed to the Bay. Fishin’ calms me. I wouldn’t last without it. I’d be too excited. Ron was there waitin, just like I figured he’d be. We dropped the boat in the water and we fished.

Ron Mayer- 4:00 a.m.

I sat in my antique wooden rocking chair all night, softly tilting back and forth. I closely examined game film, rewinding it over and over again. I set each play to memory, keeping in mind the down and distance. I watched enough film that I knew what the defense was going to do before they actually did it. I finally turned myself away from the screen and arose from my old chair. After a quick morning stretch and a steaming cup of black coffee I was on my way out the door.

Chief- 4:00 a.m.

He is sleeping with his eyes open. Constantly moving. Stands up earlier than usual. Goes outside. I follow. We ride to the water. They go far. I stay. Two sticks moving back and forth over their heads. Back and forth. Back and forth.

Bryant Adams- 6:15 a.m.

I gently stepped out of my warm pillow filled bed onto the cold wood floor. Goosebumps incased my body. I wondered aimlessly to my window. As I tugged the forest green curtain away from the glass, a beam white sunlight illuminated my rather dim bedroom. After five seconds of confusion, my eyes focused and I was able to see the beautiful sunrise reflecting off the dark water. Sure enough Coach Barron and Coach Mayer were out fishing again.

David Barron 7:15 a.m.

When we were done fishin I rode down to the field house to clean up. When I saw the stadium, the hairs on my neck stood straight up. The cheerleaders are out hangin up sign’s. The field house was clean. The boy’s keep their lockers straight so they don’t have to deal with me after practice. Post-practice I call it. Hell on Earth. The warm shower water erased my chill’s. I looked in the mirror, “This is the night David, this is our night.”

Bryant Adams- 7:35 a.m.

On game day’s, I always allowed myself ample time to drive slow and ponder. I often visualized my assignment on every possible play. I believed that if I witnessed myself being perfect, then I could be perfect. Visualizing is one of my pre-game rituals. As I slowly rolled my silver Infinity over the oversized speed bumps, I couldn’t help but notice coach Barron’s dirty black truck parked parallel to the field house door. I smiled to myself. That guy loves the game of football.

Janitor- 8:00 a.m.

Friday’s for most people are great, but not for me.
1. Before the game, I have to clean the stadium and surrounding area’s immaculately.
2. During the game, I have to empty any trash can’s that become full.
3. After the game, I have to pick up any trash left on the ground, and empty all the trash can’s.

Ron Mayer- 8:00 a.m.

I patiently waited in my classroom for school to begin. As I waited I couldn’t help but think about football. I pictured they’re 5-3 defense against our pounding offense. Anything they did, we had an answer for. If they blitzed their linebacker’s then we would throw a short screen right behind them. If they dropped back into coverage, we would run it right up the gut. But then again, all this perfection is in my head. Our boy’s have to execute the play’s that I call.

David Barron- 10:00 a.m.

In second block, I set the tone. A few weeks back I’d tolerated a little goofin off, but not today. We worked all season for this, an I wasn’t gonna let them throw it out. The only talkin that was tolerated involved a coach. If you weren’t talkin to a coach, you’d better not be talkin. We did an equipment check and I gave’em game pants. Not once did I have to tell’em to focus or to shut up. I was impressed.

hief- 10:00 a.m.

Lots of people but no sound. Quiet.

Bryant Adams- 10:00 a.m.

The short stroll to second block is always exciting. Everyone, including myself, talks and messes around as much as they can before they reach the field house doors. Coach Barron hates goofing around on game day’s. The “quiet rule” was in effect as soon as we walked through the green and black doors. The quiet rule means absolutely no talking whatsoever. Coach wants us to focus and think about our assignments. I can tell that this week means a lot to all of our coaches. Emotions are through the roof. Everyone is anxious, though they may not show it. After I checked all of my equipment, I went and laid down in the weight room. Visualizing every snap. Visualizing a playoff victory.

Ron Mayer- 5:15 p.m.

It is time for our traditional offensive team meeting. I commanded that the offense follow me to the weight room. As everyone slowly filtered in, I cleaned off the ink stained white board. I asked if anyone had any questions about the plays we have been perfecting in practice. Of course Carlton “Seabass” Seilhan had a question. That boy always has questions. I sketched a quick diagram of each play that we are going to run. These meetings are not for learning anything new, but they are for refreshment. “ We’re gonna get after them tonight men.”

Bryant Adams- 5:15 p.m.

Coach Mayer stumbles into the locker room, and calls for all offensive starters. The eleven of us gather around him and his whiteboard. He draws up every play that we are going to run tonight, taking the time to pause after each one and make sure everyone understands. Coach is an offensive mastermind. Our offense has led the league in avererage points per game with 32.5. After the meeting concluded, we all returned to the locker room to finish getting dressed.

David Barron- 6:50 p.m.

“This is it men, have you got what it takes? We need forty-eight minutes of smashmouth football. Forty-eight minutes! Hit’em in the mouth on the first play. You want respect? The only way to get respect is to look them in they eye and say here I am. You strap up and get in their face and say here I am! Let me see you show some disrespect now that my face is to ya! We talk about respect. Respect around the community. Respect in the classrooms. There is one thing that we want more than anything else and that’s respect! To get something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done. Are you willing to sacrifice? Are you willing to bleed? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to win? I wanna see every one of you fighting and clawing until the last wistle blows. Seniors, this could be your last shot. The last time you ever strap on the pads. How will you go out? With pride and honor? Or as a coward? It’s all about respect. Go out there and get after’em.”

Bryant Adams- 6:58 p.m.

This must be a record breaking crowd. I have never in seen this many people attend a high school football game. Many people watch from the track, because there are no empty seats. As we stand behind the banner we get crazy. Everyone jumping around and screaming. We busted through the thin paper banner and the stadium erupted. It was gametime!

Timmy- 7:00 p.m.

Mid-evil knights take their places in battle. They charge each other and fight as hard as they can for 10 seconds, then retreat and regroup. Then after a short rest, they go back to battle. Thousands of cheering fan’s are here to see a massacre. It is a back and forth battle. One side will seem to have the upper hand, and drive their opponent to the edge of the mountain, and when they cant go any further, they fight back to the center. Swards clashing and men screaming. This is war.

Ron Mayer- 7:30 p.m.

So much crowd noise, that I can’t hear myself talk. The game is going exactly as I expected. The defense is giving us the same looks that we have practiced against all week long. We have exicuted perfectly, and that’s why we are ahead. As long as we continue to follow our assignments, they wont be able to stop us. Keep fighting men, and you’ll chalk up a win.

David Barron- 7:50 p.m.

Twenty-four minutes remaining. What do you have left? Do you have what it takes? You’ve gotta do something you’ve never done! Block to dominate, run to score, and hit to hurt. We have come all this way, now it’s time to finish what we started. We’ve got’em on the ropes. They are down and they cannot stop our offense. Let’s finish this thing!

Chief - 9:15 p.m.

Happy. Smiles. Hugs.

Bryant Adams- 9:30 p.m.

We have done it. We won. Not one outsider believed we could do it. They would have laughed in my face if I would have told them we were gonna win in the playoffs. Now we have respect. We took their respect from them and they can never get it back. We will forever be respected by the community. I will remember tonight for the rest of my life. These are the memories that are not forgotten.