During our group training, it became clear there was a reason the four of us were put together. Flee was one of the quickest guys I’d ever seen. He had some moves that left me shaking my head. Roland had an incredible arm, and Percy wasn’t just here because of his dad’s connections.
I could feel my competitive side coming out. I remembered my pledge to follow Ridge’s example. I had met him at the USC football camp and at first thought he was a jerk. I later realized he was just super-focused. I decided I was going to show the Ohio State staff who was the best quarterback here today. I wasn’t intimidated by the older guys. I’d gone toe-to-toe with Ridge last year, and he was the number 1 rated quarterback in his class. None of these guys had that something extra that Ridge had.
I began to give it my all in a cone drill. It was a basic box configuration so they could see you run in all directions: front, sideways right, back, and sideways left. It was a timed drill. It looked like they had staff keeping track of everything we did. I ignored what the other campers were doing and just focused on going full-out for every drill. I could tell the intensity of the other campers went up when I began to excel. The coaches noticed it, too.
“Good job, just like Dawson!”
CAMP WAS GOING WELL. Coach Lunt, Ohio State’s quarterback coach, made a point to introduce himself between drills. I got the feeling they liked what they saw. Then I saw Tami. She motioned for me to join her. I told the coach running the drills I needed a moment. He didn’t look happy but didn’t stop me.
“Call Kendal’s office,” she said as she handed me her phone.
I did and got the receptionist. She put me through.
“David, I have you on speakerphone. I have your parents, Tom, Don Rigby, and Roy Thompson here.”
Don and Roy were the managing partners for Rigby, Thompson and Associates. I had met them a couple of times. They normally allowed Tom to run the Entertainment Division, so this must be big.
“Okay, what’s the word?” I asked.
“David, it’s Don. I think you pissed off Devin. He’s trying to play some games. Range Sports and Chrysler have partnered to offer a Range Sports Edition of the Charger. They plan to regionalize the marketing of the new cars and get sports celebrities to endorse the car with their team colors and number on it. Range has asked us to find the sports stars for the endorsements.
“This would create a conflict of interest with you and Range and force us to decide whom to represent, especially regarding your contract,” Don said.
I understood his point. A law firm could not serve two masters.
“David, this is Roy. We’re 95% sure as to what we want to do, but I’d like to get to 100%. Could you do us all a favor and tell us everything that’s occurred to this point?”
I spent the next fifteen minutes recapping what had happened in New Orleans. They asked a lot of clarification questions. Tom then told me they needed a few moments to talk and they put me on hold. I don’t think it was more than ten minutes later that I was back on the call.
“I want to get you up to speed. We’ve talked with Deb at Ford Models and Tyler at AT Modeling. Neither one is happy with Range Sports, nor interested in working with them in the near future. Rigby, Thompson and Associates has relationships with both companies and we wanted to confirm we went at this as a united front,” Tom told us.
“That being said, we can take the gloves off concerning the negotiations for the termination of your contract. Range Sports coming to us to find athletes was fishy. This task was something more geared towards Ford or AT Modeling’s skill set than ours. We think they were trying to undermine your support,” Don said.
“I thought it was spelled out how either party could terminate the agreement,” I said.
“It does if there’s cause or you’re at the end of a year. By all accounts, you fulfilled your obligations in a professional manner. This is simply a case of Devin getting his feelings hurt. Frankly, I’m surprised his Board of Directors is allowing this. He has guaranteed you three more premium shoots this year. We can also ask for damages due to you turning down other opportunities,” Roy explained.
“I don’t know if I’m comfortable with punishing Range Sports,” I shared.
“Do you trust us to handle it?” Dad asked.
I laughed.
“Before I answer that, how mad is my mother?” I asked.
“You do have to come home at some point,” she threatened.
“Speaking of which, I may stay another day here in Columbus.”
“Call me later and we’ll discuss it,” Mom said.
“So, do I stop wearing Range Sports gear?” I asked.
“Yes,” Kendal answered.
“I hate to say it, but it’s kind of a relief. With football, and everything else, doing these shoots was starting to be a chore. I’ll never forget everything Range Sports did for me specifically what Sandy did. I feel bad we’re parting ways. I guess I have mixed emotions about the whole thing,” I said.
“Want us to call Nike?” Kendal teased.
“If you can figure out how to get me a contract and not have the NCAA on my back, please do,” I responded.
My feelings really were mixed. Range Sports had been a big part of my life. They had stepped up numerous times and helped me and my family out. I would never forget the many things Sandy Range had orchestrated when I had my accident in Colorado. She and I would always be close.
When I talked to Tami, she had a different take on what had just occurred.
“I want you to remember what Rigby, Thompson and Associates just did. Instead of treating you as their client, they had to weigh the pros and cons of supporting you or throwing in with Range Sports. I know you like Tom and Kendal, but at some point, you have to be 100% sure they’re in your corner.”
“What do you think I should do?” I asked.
“Nothing for now, but don’t forget this.”
WHEN I WENT BACK TO doing drills, I didn’t have the same energy. Coach Lunt noticed, and pulled me out of the rotation.
“Did you get some bad news or something?”
“My contract with Range Sports has been terminated,” I said.
He looked pensive.
“That might not be so bad in the long run. Most schools have contracts with specific companies.”
“Do you have any pull with Nike?” I asked.
Ohio State was a Nike school.
“Why do you ask?”
“I heard about the Elite 11 regional camp on Monday. I wondered if you could help get me in.”
“It might be too late. I’m surprised you weren’t asked to compete,” he said, then paused. “Well, maybe not, if you were tied into Range Sports. Let me see what we can do. If you do well during camp, we might be able to get you in. Now get your head in the game, and join the rest of the guys.”
Bo Harrington, my quarterback coach, had warned me about the politics of the shoe companies. I hoped that by ending my relationship with Range it would convince them to let me into their club, so to speak.
Unlike previous camps, the one at Ohio State kept us busy until nine at night. If you were staying overnight, you were to stay on campus. The three guys I was rooming with got together with their families and planned to explore what the campus had to offer.
I wanted to lift and swim, if I could. Tami agreed to go with me to keep me company. I finally got a chance to tell her about the Elite 11 camp, and also the latest on Range Sports. Tami had talked to Sandy Range and I’d spoken to Kendal.
“I have some news on Range. I called Sandy to find out what was going on. Part of the problem is Cora. Her parents were none too pleased when she decided to spend time in Park City with Devin. Sandy’s concerned that everything’s happening too fast once again.
“By the way, Sandy also said not to worry about anything. She said she couldn’t stop Devin, but she could influence the outcome. I’m not sure what she meant,” Tami said to assure me.