After catching the ball, Logan was trapped in a circle of three defenders. The closest player, Crabtree, was seven to eight yards away and couldn't get there in time. The situation was suddenly looking grim.
In an emergency, Logan's mind was incredibly clear. He slammed on the brakes, stopping abruptly, then leaped backward, narrowly avoiding a tackle from the player on his far left. The moment his feet touched the ground, he used the momentum to sprint to the left. The remaining two players tried to close the circle, but the player on the far left blocked their path. In an instant, Logan broke free from the three-man trap.
He had an open field in front of him.
Sprint, sprint, sprint! Logan put all his effort into his run!
The Seahawks' secondary defense was in complete disarray. Other players scrambled to cover, but Williams and Ginn cleverly stopped and began to escort Logan, constantly blocking. They managed to take out at least three players who were trying to help.
Sprint, still sprinting. Logan ran past the forty-yard line, the midfield line, and the other forty-yard line. He was finally pushed out of bounds by two of the Seahawks' safeties at the thirty-five-yard line, ending the drive and avoiding the disgrace of giving up a touchdown.
The crowd at Candlestick Park was jolted awake, watching in disbelief as everything unfolded before their eyes. What just happened? What on earth just happened? Why had the San Francisco 49ers' offense suddenly come alive? Why had the San Francisco 49ers suddenly made it to the thirty-five-yard line? What was going on?
At the same time, the commentary booth was in a similar state of chaos. Their situation was no better than the Seahawks' defense. What was going on with this drive? All the commentators scrambled to watch the replay, shaking off their drowsiness and paying attention to everything happening on the field.
Lu Ke looked up at Logan, who was running back. He shook his head and gestured again for the offense to move up quickly. He led the entire offense past the midfield line to the thirty-five-yard line, with the end zone now in sight.
At Lu Ke's signal, Marcus came off the field, and Hunter came on. Jim's voice came through the headset: "Are you sure, Bambi?" In his rush, Jim had forgotten to use his name and used his nickname instead. "If we're going to run the ball, Marcus is fine."
What kind of plays was Kendall Hunter, a fullback, suited for? Either Marcus would run the ball and Hunter would block for him, or they would fight for a yard at the goal line, using Hunter's weight and size to gain one or two yards.
But now, on the first play of a new drive, there seemed to be no need for Hunter to be on the field.
Lu Ke turned his head and gave Jim a hand signal, conveying his intention, "To confuse them." He didn't want the Seahawks to figure out the different functions of the two running backs. Especially since Marcus had been acting as a receiver in the last few plays, not a running back. He was trying to confuse the Seahawks' defense even more.
After coming on the field, Hunter was incredibly excited and a bit confused. He was jumping up and down next to Lu Ke, asking loudly, "What should I do? What should I do?" This was his first time playing in his career, and it had come sooner than he expected.
Lu Ke leaned closer to Hunter and started whispering to him.
The Seahawks' defense on the opposite side was now facing a dilemma. Was this a smoke screen? Was it a run or a pass? What was this rookie quarterback's running style? They had no answers. They would only find out during the play.
Lu Ke lined up in a pistol formation to further confuse the opponent. After the snap, he handed the ball to Hunter without hesitation.
Then, Hunter, like a clumsy and heavy bulldozer, pushed forward.
But the Seahawks' defense had put most of their players on pass coverage. The players on run defense were still in their positions, but their reaction time was a millisecond slower. In that millisecond, the 49ers' offensive line completely tore open the defensive line, creating a path.
Hunter saw a clear path in front of him. Without any hesitation, he held the football, lowered his shoulder, pushed forward, and charged ahead.
Hunter's strength was his power, and his weakness was his speed. The Seahawks' defenders on the first line finally came to their senses and made a tackle in time. But even so, Hunter still gained seven yards.
For a running back, a seven-yard run was a highly efficient result. A powerful run like that also showcased the power and aggression of football to the fullest. The fans at Candlestick Park finally seemed to come to their senses, and the cheers and roars gradually grew louder.
With the help of his teammates, Hunter stood up and involuntarily pumped his fist. He looked at the fans cheering and roaring for him from all directions, still a little confused. Then he saw Lu Ke walk over, pat him on the shoulder, and signal him to come off the field and let Marcus go on.
Hunter nodded in a daze, and in his haste, he ran toward the sideline. But after a few steps, he realized he had run to the wrong side. In a football game, unlike soccer, the coaches and players of the two opposing teams stand on opposite sides of the field. Hunter had run to the right side, which was where the Seattle Seahawks were.
The players who were getting ready for the next play couldn't help but laugh. Logan yelled, "Run, run, Forrest!" The humorous reference to "Forrest Gump" made everyone laugh again.
If there are more than eleven players from one team on the field when the team starts a play, even if the player is leaving the field but is too slow, or is standing on the sideline and accidentally falls onto the field, it is a penalty, and the team must lose yards.
So, Hunter also quickly jogged off the field and was replaced by Marcus.
Lu Ke called out loudly, "Hurry, hurry!" The cheers from the crowd weren't overwhelming, which allowed Lu Ke's voice to echo throughout Candlestick Park. Then came a series of dazzling play calls. After making sure all his teammates had heard him, he glanced at the Seahawks' defensive formation out of the corner of his eye.
In their continuous fast-paced offense, the Seahawks' defense didn't have time to adjust and still maintained their base formation, "4-3-2-2"—four defensive linemen, three linebackers, two cornerbacks, and two safeties.
The entire layout of the field was in his mind. Lu Ke then started the play. After taking two steps back, he was faced with a fierce rush from the Seahawks, and the pocket collapsed very quickly. Besides the four defensive linemen, there were also two linebackers who came to help, for a total of six players on the rush. In less than two seconds, the defenders were right in Lu Ke's face.
But Lu Ke wasn't panicking at all, as if everything was expected. He didn't even adjust his feet and threw the ball to his left.
The cornerback on the left was Brandon Browner, and the safety on the left was Kam Chancellor. Both players were outstanding and were also star players in the secondary defense who had the potential to be selected for the Pro Bowl.
Most of Lu Ke's previous passes had gone to the right, but this time, he suddenly attacked the left. However, Browner and Chancellor were highly focused and weren't distracted at all. They immediately moved to cover the area. But the problem was that their initial defensive positions were too close to the right side, so there was still a slight difference in their speed when they came over.
Kyle Williams!
It was Williams! Not Logan, who had also moved to the left! This was completely unexpected for Chancellor and Browner.
After figuring out who the receiver was, Browner quickly sprinted over, but he was half a step late. He watched helplessly as Williams reached out his hands and effortlessly caught the football. He then used his momentum to continue running forward. Before Chancellor could trap him, Williams had already scored a touchdown!
After Williams ran into the end zone, he looked at the referee to confirm that he had scored, then raised his hands high and ran toward the stands, shouting loudly, "Do you like that? Do you like that?"
It was the third touchdown! Who would have thought that the San Francisco 49ers would have three passing touchdowns and completely dominate the Seattle Seahawks in the game? This performance was truly shocking and amazing! All the audience members were stunned and at a loss for words.
Not only Lu Ke, but the entire San Francisco 49ers' offense was under immense pressure. The team had a major cleanup in the off-season, lost every preseason game, and had two quarterbacks get injured. The 49ers seemed to be cursed, and there was no hope for them before the start of the new season. Wasn't the fans' angry roaring a provocation to them?
Now, with three passing touchdowns, the offense had turned in an excellent performance in the first three quarters, effectively fighting back against the fans' doubts. So, Williams also imitated Logan's actions and roared at the fans, "Do you like that?"
It was a loud slap in the face to the fans.
The fans were a little stunned, but...they didn't care. Even if they were slapped in the face, so what? The team had proven them wrong with their actions, and they were happy about it. They even wished they were wrong. Because they craved victory. For the past eight years, the San Francisco 49ers had been so far from victory.
At this moment, they seemed to be touching victory again. As for who brought this victory? No one cared.
Then, the cheers finally erupted, and the home crowd, like a lion awakened from its slumber, began to roar and shout frantically, "49ers! 49ers! 49ers!" It was only at this moment that the excitement of the first game of the regular season began to feel real.
Amid the roaring noise, the commentators in the booth had a strange look on their faces. In that last offensive drive, they had started at the twenty-yard line and taken two and a half minutes to get a touchdown. It took six plays, five pass attempts, four completions, and one run.
For any quarterback, this would be a perfect performance. But...Lu Ke? Perfect? This didn't seem right, did it?
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