“If you do your job, you’ll get your shot. When you do get that shot, don’t try to make something happen. That’s when mistakes are made. Just do what you’re supposed to and trust the other guys on the field to do their job, too.
“Once in college, no one is going to hold your hand and make you do what’s right. You have to step up and get in the right mindset. When you’re asked to run ten-yard sprints, do you run eight, or do you run ten? If you have to run 60, do you run 58, or 60? Again, it’s a mindset; it’s a habit you create. It’s not really about what you want; it’s what you are willing to do to get it.
“Maybe you have to give something up that may not be a good habit to replace it with a better routine. Whether it’s how you recover, how you sleep, how you spend your free time. Everybody has to make that decision. It’s not just about the freedom to goof off. As a college football player, you have to earn playing time. That’s what it all comes down to.
“If I ask you if you want to be number one, all of you will raise your hands. Nobody says they want to come in second. But are you willing to do what the best do? Your hardest task will be staying motivated and doing what you know you need to do to become that best instead of just doing what you want to do. That’s why high achievers don’t like mediocre people, and mediocre people don’t like high achievers,” David said and looked at each of the twenty signal-callers.
“I think you get what I’m trying to say about college, but let’s talk about the next two days. Up until now, you’ve been working on improving yourselves at Elite 11. I hope you’ve all taken advantage of the world-class coaching that you’re getting. But come Friday, you’ll be competing against each other.
“The biggest tip I can give you is to remember what you’ve learned this week. Coach Trent has created a playbook that will have these pro coaches scratching their heads. Play within yourself and run the plays as drawn. If you do that, I guarantee you’ll succeed,” David said.
◊◊◊
It didn’t take him long to figure out who the best quarterback was this year. It turned out he was the first junior invitee since David had been invited three years ago. His name was Colt Macklin, and he was from Long Beach, a suburb of Los Angeles.
Colt was six-six but only weighed 185 pounds. He wasn’t that strong and not very quick, but David recognized an exceptionally accurate throwing motion when he saw one. That was, until David walked over and stood behind his coach to watch the drill they were doing.
Colt kept glancing back at David while waiting his turn, and once he was up, he began to overthrow everything. It didn’t help that the camera crew was suddenly in his face, drawing Coach Trent’s attention.
“I think I make him nervous,” David told Coach Trent.
“Good. Colt has yet to fail. I want to see how he handles it.”
David kept his opinion to himself, knowing that Elite 11 had their process. It was designed to push quarterbacks past their capabilities. They wanted to see if Colt would melt down under pressure or work through it.
“He’s your number one, isn’t he?” David asked.
Coach Trent gave him a sharp look.
“Who told you that?”
“No one. I have eyes,” David said.
The coach relaxed once he found out that none of his staff had shared that information.
“He is. If he puts on fifteen pounds of muscle, Colt will be the best prospect we’ve seen since you were here,” Coach Trent admitted.
He threw an interception, which had the coach in charge of the drill yelling at him.
“What the hell is wrong with you? You’ve made that throw since day one!”
“Get over here!” David barked.
Everyone turned to see what Coach Trent would say to David interfering.
“You heard the man,” Coach Trent said.
Colt jogged over and looked like he thought David was about to take his head off. The cameraman rushed over to listen in.
“Look, it’s easy to bounce back when you’re down if you’re in the middle of the pack, but not elite. When you’re at the head of the pack, it’s a lot harder to keep pushing to get better. You know that you’re the man to beat, and you let yourself lose focus. Just relax. You have to concentrate on what you’re doing.
“Offensive football is execution and assignment football. Know your job. Carry out your assignment and get it done. I’ve watched you run twelve plays, and you’ve had four bad ones. We both know that you’re better than that,” David said.
“You’re right. It’s just that I’ve always looked up to you, and when you came over, I began to press,” Colt admitted.
“I’ll tell you what. After you’re done today, we can hang out. But you have to get your head back into the game,” David said.
“I’d like that.”
Colt took a moment to gather himself and went back to the drill. Coach Trent was all smiles when he saw Colt throw the next ball flawlessly.
◊◊◊
David met with Colt and his parents after practice. David asked if USC had offered him yet, and was surprised when they hadn’t even contacted him.
David remedied that by calling Bryant Franzese, USC’s recruiting coordinator, with them listening in.
“Bryant, I found our next quarterback at Elite 11. He tells me that we haven’t even offered, and he lives in Long Beach.”
“You mean Colt Macklin?”
“That’s the one.”
“I thought he was a strong Alabama or Clemson lean,” Bryant said.
“That was before David Dawson came to USC,” Colt said.
Bryant called David a trigger word for not warning him that the kid and his family were listening.
“Before my mom has to swing by and pay you a visit, why don’t you talk to Colt’s dad and get the process started,” David suggested as he handed over his phone.
◊◊◊
Coach Trent’s talk went well. He was used to being on TV for the Elite 11 broadcasts and had done thousands of interviews.
Well, it started out that way but devolved into two guys talking football.
Later, Professor Blum suggested a lot of it would have to be cut because they’d gone too far into the weeds for the average fan to follow. But he assured David there was more than enough to make his next show.
David took the professor out to dinner to thank him for his help today and all summer. This class was by far his favorite.
◊◊◊
David showed up forty-five minutes early the following day to stretch and warm up. Thirty minutes into his preparations, the other quarterbacks began to show up and watch. He had a good sweat going when his receivers arrived five minutes before they were to play.
“Did you want to throw us some passes before we start?” one of them asked.
“What’s the point now? I guess we’ll see if you know the plays and can catch a ball. I’ll warn you up front that I’ll be aiming for your face mask, so get your hands up and catch the ball.”
The NFL coaches that had been hired to make life miserable for the Elite 11 signal-callers brought their defensive players to the field. They all looked sweaty and ready to play. David predicted that this wasn’t going to go well for him.
He huddled his team up and called the play.
“Trust that the ball will be there,” were his words of warning as the huddle broke.
“Set! Hike!” David called out.
He’d called an easy crossing play over the middle. When his slotback made his break, the ball was in the air. It hit the kid square in the facemask, all but knocking him off his feet. The ball popped straight up, and the defense was able to intercept it.
David turned his back on the field of play and addressed his fellow quarterbacks. He didn’t let them see his disappointment. Instead, he went into teaching mode.
“When you start winning, human nature, especially when you’re young, is that you get comfortable. We can’t allow ourselves to get comfortable. We have to keep pushing to get better. Each play relies on every player doing their job.