Hometown Victory by Keanon Lowe

Author:Keanon Lowe
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Flatiron Books

7

COMMITMENT DAY

JUST DIAL THE NUMBER

“Scoot back! Scoot back!” I yelled and pleaded from the sideline. We had made it, the first play in the first game of my head coaching career.

“You’re offsides! Get back!” I begged.

Unfortunately, my voice fell on deaf ears. Moments earlier, I sent the play in as the Parkrose offense was huddled up, ready to start the new season off right. Tre, in his first ever game at QB, called the play and they broke the huddle. This was our first time playing on a real football field with turf, hash marks, and lines. As we broke the huddle and ran to our formation, my wide receiver, Tony, ran to the first white stripe he saw. The only problem was that the ball, or line of scrimmage, was two yards behind the white line where Tony planted his feet.

Every coach on the sideline yelled and waved their arms frantically but little Tony was locked in and in the zone. Tre took his place under center.

“Ready … set … go!”

The second we snapped the ball, yellow penalty flags flew in the air, and the high-pitched referee whistle blew the play dead. Offsides, Parkrose. Our first play of the season was a dud.

During the week I played out every possible situation in my head, but a penalty before the first play was something that hadn’t crossed my mind. It wasn’t Tony’s fault.

If proper planning prepares you for success, then I really screwed things up far before that first yellow penalty flag. Our first game was in Vancouver, Washington, against Prairie High School. Although we played ball in Oregon, and Prairie played in Washington, our schools were only a twenty-five-minute drive from each other, Portland being in northern Oregon and Vancouver being in southern Washington. Both cities were right at the state border. It was a quick drive over the Columbia River, which split the two states.

We were scheduled to kick off at 7 P.M., and I clearly didn’t plan ahead well enough. Coaching and teaching were the fun parts. Those are the things you think about when you take over a high school program. It’s the other responsibilities that often don’t cross your mind until it’s too late.

In my head, leaving two hours before kickoff was the right thing to do. I did the math, not wanting to get to Vancouver too early, but at the same time knowing we needed to get there with enough time to get off the bus, go to the locker room to suit up, and get warmed up on the field to ease into the game. Well, at least that was the plan. What can I say? I was young and confident. By the time the first game came around, I thought I had it all figured out. All I had to do was get my kids to the game so they could have their shot at redemption. Easier said than done.

When 5 P.M. rolled around, my kids were accounted for, everyone had their gear, and we loaded up the necessary game-day equipment.

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