football

hey there boys, girls, and those with a little of both. well, it’s just about time for the blood to flow, the lights to glow, and to bask in the glory of the game.

i dont expect all of you to know what im talking about, but there are some of you who can relate.

i am a football player. i am a warrior. i am one of over 30 brothers, each of us from seperate families, but a family in our own. we sweat together, laugh together, bleed together. i dont like all of them, but i respect them as my equals, as we’ve all felt the sting of battle, the burning lungs, the straining muscles. we’ve all fought for the extra yard, foot, inch. we’ve pushed ourselves further than we thought possible on a reguar basis…

every day i live for my game. at times, the only thing keeping me alive was football. that sport has saved my life, and in return, i’ll sacrifice nearly anything in this world to play. it’s not just the game i love, it’s the way it impacts your entire life. this will be my fifth year playing football, and with every game i play, everytime i strap on the pads, i become better. a better player, a better person.

when i get out of bed in the morning, it’s all i can do to stand up straight. i’ve sacrificed my body for the good of the team, and i’ll continue to do it untill my body shuts down for good. then i’ll coach. my knees throb, my back burns, and my shoulders are pierced with daggers, but i’ve learned to fight through it, to take that final step before you collapse. i’ve lied to my coaches, told them it doesnt hurt, and my brothers do the same. one of us hid two concussions from the trainer so he could play. one was willing to loose almost all use of his arm to fight our rivals. they know we’re hurting, but they know we’re willing to give anything to play, so they let us.

when my time in this sport is done, i know i’ll cry. i’ve lived for football for as long as i can remember, going back to playing on the playground in grade school. the wall was on goal, the fence the other.

by the time most people are waking up, i’ve pushed my strength and speed to the limits and found ways to break them. i’ve had the wind knocked out of me, and got up and did it again till i got it right.

this fall, i’ll sacrifice alot to play under those lights. i’ll be on leave from work, i’ll have very little time with my girlfriend. i’ll be so sore i’ll have to psyche myself up to get out of bed. i’ll spend my nights doing homework so my grades let me play. i’ll give up my lunch and study halls to watch game film. my life will become football. my saturdays will likely consist of ice packs and IBprofin. and im going to love every minute of it.

in short, my life is football, and i wouldnt want it any other way…

Quote of the day:

No.1 Speech, by Vince Lombardi

“Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all the time thing. You don’t win once in a while; you don’t do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.

“There is no room for second place. There is only one place in my game, and that’s first place. I have finished second twice in my time at Green Bay, and I don’t ever want to finish second again. There is a second place bowl game, but it is a game for losers played by losers. It is and always has been an American zeal to be first in anything we do, and to win, and to win, and to win.

“Every time a football player goes to ply his trade he’s got to play from the ground up — from the soles of his feet right up to his head. Every inch of him has to play. Some guys play with their heads. That’s O.K. You’ve got to be smart to be number one in any business. But more importantly, you’ve got to play with your heart, with every fiber of your body. If you’re lucky enough to find a guy with a lot of head and a lot of heart, he’s never going to come off the field second.

“Running a football team is no different than running any other kind of organization — an army, a political party or a business. The principles are the same. The object is to win — to beat the other guy. Maybe that sounds hard or cruel. I don’t think it is.

“It is a reality of life that men are competitive and the most competitive games draw the most competitive men. That’s why they are there — to compete. To know the rules and objectives when they get in the game. The object is to win fairly, squarely, by the rules — but to win.

“And in truth, I’ve never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn’t appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat.

“I don’t say these things because I believe in the “brute” nature of man or that men must be brutalized to be combative. I believe in God, and I believe in human decency. But I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle — victorious.”