“Yes. He’s had his bath, too,” Dad told me.
“Can you watch him for a few more minutes? I want to change into sweats and get comfortable.”
Dad just nodded. When I got back, we went into the living room and talked. I put a blanket down on the floor and entertained Kyle while Dad and I caught up. I took the time to tell him how much it meant to me that he’d come to my meeting with Tom’s firm on Monday.
He told me that he’d gotten an interview with the country club. Dad said that his vacation time had run out. I knew it pained him to ask, so I let him off the hook. I told him to send all the household bills to Kendal and she would pay them. I also gave him my debit card so they could go grocery shopping. He told me that one way or another, he would get back to work after this round of chemo. I told him his number one job was looking after Mom. He was going to argue until I explained how much a personal nurse would cost us. Kendal and Tom had done the research, just in case.
Saturday February 22
WELL, THE SHIT TRULY hit the fan after Bill tried to snatch Tracy on Wednesday. Tom went completely ‘Rambo Dad.’ He first had Tracy press charges for battery and attempted kidnapping. He then had Bill expelled since it happened on school grounds in front of about seventy witnesses. The only thing he didn’t get done was get Bill put back into jail. Somehow, Bill’s lawyer had thwarted that for now. Rumor had it that his family had a rich relative who hired the lawyer. They had to put their house up as security for bail. I guess every guy has family that loves him. To Tom’s credit, he countered that by getting a restraining order. He even hired a security firm to protect her. Hopefully, that was the end of Bill Rogers.
That was the talk while we got ready for this week’s seven-on-seven tournament. They called this a ‘winner’s tournament.’ Over the last couple of weeks, seven teams had won tournaments and were all invited. I asked all the players on Brad’s team if they wanted to play. Only the three that had played on my team agreed. The two juniors that I was making a point to get to know were Trevor Millsap, a receiver, and Lou Davis, a cornerback.
I turned in my roster to Coach Hope earlier in the week:
David Dawson – Quarterback
Mike Herndon –Quarterback
Tim Foresee –Linebacker
Bert Nelson –Fullback
Jake Holcombe –Tailback
Wolf Tams –End
Jim Ball –Tackle
Ed Pine –Tailback
Bill Callaway –Receiver
Trevor Millsap –Receiver
Lou Davis –Cornerback
We plugged in Bill and Trevor on offense and Lou on defense. Jim and Bert were the odd men out on offense and Wolf got to sit down on defense. On offense, I had six legitimate targets to throw to. If I was on my game, we’d be hard to beat.
For the first game, we drew a team from St. Joe. They had been runners-up in the playoffs for the largest division in the state. They were all juniors, and their quarterback had made first team All-State. We were a decided underdog. If St. Joe wasn’t considered the top seed, I couldn’t wait to see the team that got the bye.
The university had set up bleachers. That way we could watch the other games in comfort. Unlike last time, where it was double elimination, this time it was one-and-done. We were stretching out, shooting the shit with Magic, when Coach Hope came rushing over, looking pale.
“What’s wrong, Coach?” Magic asked.
“I just got interviewed for TV. Midwest Sports is carrying the games live, and that’s not all. There must be a scout from every university in a three-state area in the stands.”
“They’re all here to see him,” Magic said, pointing at me.
That gave everyone a good laugh. Magic gathered us around.
“Okay, we’re playing the best team in the state. We’re doing it on live TV, and in front of every recruiter imaginable. Big deal. St. Joe will be the nervous ones. They have everything to lose and nothing to gain in this game. St. Joe probably thinks they’re a three-score favorite. They’re scared shitless.
“That’s why we’re going to take them out of their game from the beginning. David’s going to throw one of those pretty passes that seem to sail down the field without any effort. Bill’s going to blow by them and catch it in stride. They’ll be down 7–0 before they know what hit ’em.
“St. Joe will suddenly be living their worst nightmare. A bunch of young bucks just took the lead in front of every dream school they want to go to. They’ll try to get it back all at once. We won’t let them. By the end of the game, they’ll know that they just played the best team in the state!”
I had watched as the guys went from doubting themselves to believing we could win. Even Coach Hope was fired up. We jogged out on the field with a swagger. We knew we were going to win. Tim and I went out for the coin flip. We almost laughed when we saw how nervous they were. They kept looking into the stands. We won the coin flip and took the ball first.
We huddled up for the first play.
“Okay, we’re going to put Jake in motion. I want to see if they’re in man or playing a zone. Bill, you’re going to line up in the slot and do a down-and-up. Mike, you’re going to do a post to clear the outside for Bill. Wolf, you do your usual ten-yard buttonhook. If I need to dump it off, you’re the hot receiver. On two,” I said, and we broke the huddle.
“Set, Go, Go!”
Jake began his motion on the ‘Set’ call. I watched as one of their defenders followed him. On the first ‘Go,’ they inched forward to jump the play. They were going to be aggressive and try to get a turnover. At the snap, I did a three-step drop and looked left where Jake had gone. I turned to find Bill. He was going three-quarter speed on his out and looking back at me. Counting in my head, I pumped the ball and he cut and blew past his guy who was trying to get into position to intercept.
It happened just like Magic described it. I threw a long ball that let Bill run under it. I thought at first I had overthrown him, but he always made me look good. He put on a burst of speed, gathered it in and jogged into the end zone. I was surprised at how quiet the Field House was. Then I realized that everyone was stunned.
I was proud of my guys. They acted like they’d been there before. We did some high fives and lined up for defense. When their quarterback threw his first pass, I knew we’d won. He was aiming the ball instead of throwing it. He threw three straight incompletions.
By halftime, we were up by three scores. They came out in the second half and showed why they were the favorites to win it all. They stormed back and even took a lead. But Bill and I caught them with two quick scores in the fourth quarter to win the game.
I hadn’t realized it, but my family had shown up. Mom and Angie had made subs and brought bags of chips. Dad had a cooler of Gatorade and water. The team relaxed behind the stands and had something to eat. I saw some college coaches I knew and waved at them from a safe distance. They were all being careful not to ‘bump’ into anyone with all the other teams watching.
Coach Hope wasn’t so lucky. He was fair game. While Coach got swarmed, the reporter that I have a love/hate relationship with, Jeff Delahey, showed up. I invited him to join us for a sandwich, and he sat down with us. I introduced him to the guys and my parents.
“How do you guys feel after beating St. Joe?” Jeff asked.
“Careful guys, he’s trying to get you to say something that’ll get us in trouble,” I said, winking at him. “Let me show you what you say when they ask you something like this.” I gave them my ‘aw shucks’ look. “Sir, St. Joe is a fine team. We were worried if we even belonged on the same field with them. Did you know their quarterback was All-State last year? I was in awe of their talent. I predict they’ll run the table.”