Riverside lined up in the ‘I’ formation. It was just as I imagined. I felt myself drop into ‘the zone,’ and everything seemed to slow down. Jim was in front of me and he stood the guard up. The fullback had no choice but to help double-team Jim. The tailback saw I had a free shot at him, so he stutter-stepped and decided to run around the end. Instead of shuffling down the line, I turned my hip and ran as hard as I could. The tailback saw me the moment before I took him off his feet. I would have buried him if he hadn’t dropped the ball. I shoved him away, picked up the ball, and ran it in for the first score of the game.
We kicked off, and held them to three and out. On fourth down, they shanked the kick out of bounds, and we had first and ten on their 48 yard line. I was completely surprised when Coach Hope gave me a pass play to run on first down. Both Coach Diamond and I just smiled as I headed to the huddle.
“Be ready, Wolf. We’re going to run a little play-action your way. Play action Y-skinny on two.”
We lined up in the ‘I.’ Riverside crept up to defend the run. I looked over the field and it looked like the play was going to be a good one.
“Down, Set ... Hut, HUT!”
Tim must have been excited, because he snapped the ball hard, and I about dropped it. I turned to hand the ball off to Ed, but I had turned the wrong way. To top it off, Wolf fell down. When did I get so cocky? The play we had called was a timing play that was supposed to be ‘bang-bang.’ We did it that way because we knew our ‘O’ line couldn’t block for very long. They were used to it being that way and they released their blocks. Crud!
I thought about going all Johnny Manziel on their butts, but I caught a glimpse of Bill cutting through the secondary and saw a small window where I could get him the ball. At Elite Quarterback Camp, I had learned that sometimes you just take the shot because the reward of putting a long score on them was worth it. I fired a rifle right past the ear of the linebacker that was focused on knocking me into next week. I had time to plant my back foot and explode into the linebacker.
The tremendous crack of pads had everyone’s head snapping around as Bill snatched my fastball out of the air. He did a little stutter-step and then cut left as the cornerback dove to tackle him. There’s a reason they teach you not to leave your feet since it’s hard to change directions once you’re in the air. The cornerback’s dive put him right in the path of their safety. Bill did a little showboating as he high-stepped into the end zone. He got a fifteen yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that was assessed on our kickoff, and I got warned about not hurting Riverside’s linebackers. Their linebacker seemed to be okay, once they helped him up.
From that point, we could do no wrong, and Riverside seemed to realize that tonight was not their night. We were up 28–3 at halftime. I had a defensive touchdown, two TD’s passing and one rushing. That was when Coach Hope benched me and let Mike play the second half. He did let me play some fullback. When I ran over three of Riverside’s defenders to spring Jake for a score, I was done for the night. We ended up winning 45–10.
WOLF AND I QUICKLY showered and got dressed. I had a stupid grin on my face when I was putting my shoes on.
“Why are you so happy?” Wolf asked.
“I just realized that I didn’t get dinged up tonight. I actually feel good. Let’s pick up a couple of ladies and have some fun tonight,” I said as I high-fived Wolf.
We walked out of the locker room to find reporters waiting for us. I handed Wolf my keys and told him to pick up Cassidy and then come back for me. I ended up doing a thirty-minute interview. Topics ranged from why I was pulled, to where I thought I might go to college. Coach Hope joined me just before Wolf got back. He admitted that he originally wanted to play me at fullback. It started to get ugly, so I was happy when Wolf pulled me away.
WE HURRIED TO GET TO Peggy’s house, and I went in to get her. Mr. Pratt met me at the door.
“Peggy isn’t going to the dance with you,” Mr. Pratt said.
“May I ask why not?” I asked.
“She’s been grounded,” he said, with no further explanation.
“May I talk to her for a moment?” I asked.
“No. You should just leave.”
I decided to give it one more shot.
“Sir, Peggy is on the Homecoming Court. My guess is that she’ll be Homecoming Queen. I know you don’t like me for some reason, but you’re destroying what should be one of her most precious memories. Not every girl gets the chance to feel like a real princess. It saddens me to think how you’re damaging your relationship with her,” I said as he slammed the door in my face.
I had been working behind the scenes to get Bill and Peggy to be Homecoming King and Queen. I felt bad for Peggy that her dad would take that from her. I was surprised that her mom would put up with that. Speaking of moms ... I called mine.
“Hey, Mom, I need your help.”
“What is it?” she asked.
I filled her in as to what was going on. If anyone could help Peggy, it was my mom. I went to the Jeep, and Cassidy interrogated me all the way to the dance.
WE WALKED INTO THE dance, and Alan waved us over to a table. Jeff was there with his on-again, off-again date, Elissa, and Jim was sitting with Faith. Cassidy and Wolf joined us. Alan, of course, noticed someone missing.
“Where’s Peggy?” he asked.
“She’s grounded and couldn’t come.”
“What did you do?” he asked.
“Buddy, it’s not always me. Her dad wouldn’t tell me.”
Gina got a big grin on her face, which confused me. How could my date being grounded make her happy?
“Is this seat taken?”
I looked up to see Beth smiling at me. I jumped up and hugged her.
“Why are you here?” I asked.
“I have to crown the Homecoming Queen,” she reminded me.
Beth had beaten out Suzanne last year. I wondered if Gary was coming back also. I wouldn’t put it past him to hit on her again. The first slow song of the night came on and we all got up to dance.
“How is Purdue? Have you made a lot of friends?” I asked.
“Do you mean am I dating anyone?” she shot back.
I just shrugged. That was what I meant.
“No, I haven’t found anyone. I’ve gone out with a couple of guys, but no one special. I’m trying to make sure I get good grades the first semester,” she said, and she laid her head on my shoulder. “I miss you like crazy. You need to come to Purdue and spend the weekend.”
“I should have done that a couple of weeks ago. I’m booked up the rest of the year,” I confessed.
I explained to her about training for the movie. I was meeting my fight instructor tomorrow and my acting coach on Monday.
Beth told me all about Purdue during the second slow song. She loved her roommate and was enjoying her classes. She was working hard in her chemistry class. It was intended to weed out the ones not cut out for a degree in pharmacy. She told me she was leaning towards pharmaceutical sales. Beth would be good at something like that. She came across as very sincere and wasn’t afraid to talk to people.
Somehow, Tracy found out I was at the dance, stag. When I got back to the table, she was sitting in my seat with a smile on her face. She and Beth hugged. Beth and she sat down, leaving me standing. Tracy pointed at Mona and sent me off to dance with her. Tracy made sure my dance card was full and my mind was off Peggy.
During one of the breaks, I went around and talked to everyone. I found the freshman cheerleaders, and they all had dates. Emma saw me coming and jumped up to head me off.
“Hey, David,” she said, trying to distract me.
Some of these boys had not been vetted by yours truly. I wasn’t happy to see Piper with Justin. Justin is an okay guy as a teammate, but I would never let him date a friend. He had slept with Jan Duke and then dumped her. He then bragged about it to anyone that would listen. He was the poster child for who I did not want them dating.