“Now, at the start of the second half, they show him pressure and Cover 0 outside—that’s man-to-man coverage.
So he gets to the line thinking he only has to sell the safety on the seam route to open up a tough throw to his first read on the outside hashmark. But when the ball’s snapped, Stanford bails. Now it’s not Cover 0, it’s Cover 4. That’s often referred to as the ‘quarters’ alignment because each member of the secondary is responsible for a quarter of the field. It’s a zone coverage. The defender is now ready to
drive on the outside hash. Matt practically gift-wrapped their pick-six.
“From there, his confidence was shot. When Matt got a look that he appeared to not recognize, he wouldn’t throw it. He hesitated because he didn’t want to throw another pick-six ball.
“I predict this problem will not be easy to fix because Matt’s head is messed up. If we had all summer to work on it, maybe. But we’re in season and have Texas next week.
It’s another nationally televised game where Matt will be worried he’ll be the cause if we lose,” David predicted.
“What would you do to help Matt?” Tami asked.
“Coach Thomas needs to be more creative and flexible with his play calling. I would try to get Matt some throws he’s comfortable with and run the crap out of the ball.
“The only real criticism I have of Coach Thomas’s game plan is he needs to sit Matt down and tell him to take more vertical risks with Bill in mind. Just throw the ball up, and if it’s a pick, it’s a pick. Oh, well. Matt needs to be aware that Bill will make the play more often than not. We’d have won if we’d completed one or two deep balls today,” David said.
◊◊◊
Chapter 7
David went to the hospital Monday morning to get his CT scan. He remembered his mom telling him Mondays were usually bad for the kids in the pediatric oncology ward because their parents had to work. After his scan, he went to the children’s ward and found the head nurse at the desk handing out assignments.
“Sorry to interrupt, but would it be okay if I popped in and told the kids good morning?”
“You’re the football player?”
“Yes. David Dawson.”
“Okay, I’ll have Nurse Betty take you around.”
Nurse Betty was in her mid-twenties and wore scrubs with teddy bears on them.
“Have you ever done this before?” she asked before they went into the first room.
“My mom is a cancer survivor. Once she got better, she started a charity to help families. She also volunteered, and I helped out a bit. When I came in for a scan, it reminded me that I haven’t given of my time recently.”
“Let’s start here, then,” Nurse Betty said as they entered the first room.
There was a girl sitting in bed who was probably eleven or twelve. She was completely bald, and a younger girl sat in the chair next to her bed. She was also bald.
“Hi, I’m David,” he said and asked the younger girl,
“Why did you shave your head?”
“Because my sister’s hair fell out from the cancer, and now we look alike again.”
“Mission accomplished. Why do you want to look like your sister?” David asked as he gave the little one a warm smile.
“Because she’s the prettiest girl I know, and I want to be just like her.”
‘Oh, boy,’ David thought as memories surfaced of the effect cancer had on his mom when it ravaged her body.
“Your sister is very pretty. You are, too,” David said.
“My parents are worried about money, so I’ve been collecting some after school. I’ve raised nearly a thousand dollars, so my mom doesn’t have to worry about the rent,”
the little girl said. “Why are you crying? Are you sad?”
David hadn’t realized that he was. Sure enough, a tear ran down his cheek.
“They’re tears of joy. When I was a bit older than you, my mom got cancer, and I got a job to help pay her bills. It makes me feel good to see you care enough to help out.
What are your names?” David asked to change the subject.
“My sister’s Lisa. I’m Sadie,” the younger girl said.
“Nice to meet you. I’m David.”
Lisa, the older one, finally spoke. “Will you come back to visit us?”
Something his mother had taught him was to tell kids the truth. It was hard enough to be sick. They didn’t need false promises.
“I don’t know. I have a lot going on with college,” David said and saw Lisa’s smile falter. “Why do you ask?”
“Sadie gets sad sometimes and needs someone to talk to,” Lisa shared.
‘Just shoot me now!’ David thought. The sick girl was worried about her little sister.
“Do you come before school most days?” David asked Sadie.
“When my mom can drive me. We only live a few blocks away, but my mom doesn’t want me walking.”
“How about I pick you up two days a week? I can even take you to school after. I’ll do that until Lisa gets better,”
David found himself promising.
“Or I go to Heaven,” Lisa said.
David had to blink back more tears.
“Do you believe in Heaven?” Sadie asked.
“I do. I’ll give Nurse Betty my information. Have your mom call me, and I can meet with her to make sure it’s okay if I help out,” David said.
When he got out into the hall, he had to stop and lean against the wall.
“Heaven?” David asked Nurse Betty.
“Lisa is terminal. She puts up a brave face for her sister.”
David gave her his information for their mom and went to class. He couldn’t face more sick kids today.
◊◊◊
On Tuesday, Dr. Liao authorized David to begin doing light workouts with Tank. He cautioned that this was only the second step of a multi-step wellness plan, so he shouldn’t think he would play against Texas.
The chat rooms and press were all over the David versus Matt as starter controversy. It was probably best that David couldn’t practice with the team yet.
He did have something to look forward to, though.
Professor Blum had asked him if he could entice one of his former castmates to come in and talk to film students.
David said he would so long as he was the one to act as moderator. The entire department nearly had kittens when he told them Rita James had agreed to come in.
When it was announced, they quickly changed the venue to the Bovard Auditorium, which could hold over 1,200.
David had been given ten tickets in the front row; he’d given five to Alex and five to Crystal. The rest were reserved for students, faculty, and USC’s film-school staff.
Professor Blum planned to film the interview and put it on the campus website. Thankfully, the student director wasn’t the same one who needed too many cameras.
When Rita found him backstage, David was kicked back, doing his critical-thinking reading. This week, they were
learning about cognitive bias, specifically the Barnum Effect, which held that when confronted with a vague statement, a person’s mind filled in the gaps.
Because our minds are given to making connections, it’s easy for an individual to take vague statements and find ways to infer their meaning so they seem specific and personal. Combining their egos wanting validation with a strong inclination to see patterns and connections meant that when someone told someone a story about themselves, they would latch onto whatever fit their personal narrative.