Date: September 28, 1990 (Friday).
Location: Ratliff Stadium Locker Room / The Field.
Event: The "Mojo" Game (Second Half).
Part 1: The War Room
The visitor's locker room at Ratliff Stadium was designed to break you. The air conditioning "coincidentally" wasn't working. It was ninety degrees, smelled of ammonia and blood, and the concrete walls seemed to vibrate with the stomping of the fans above.
The team sat on metal benches. We looked like we had been in a car wreck.
My ribs were throbbing a dull, constant ache.
**Larry Allen** was sitting with a towel over his head, breathing like a steam engine.
**Zach Thomas** was pacing, mumbling to himself, eyes wide and unblinking.
**George Sr.** stood in the center. He looked at the defensive coordinator.
"We can't stop the option," the coordinator said, wiping sweat from his glasses. "They're too fast. If the end crashes, Stoney pitches it. If the end stays home, Stoney keeps it. It's pick your poison."
"It is not poison," a voice said. "It is probability."
Everyone turned.
**Sheldon** was standing on a bench. He had taken off his earmuffs. He was holding his clipboard like a tablet of commandments.
"Sheldon, sit down," the coordinator snapped.
"Let him talk," I said, wincing as I stood up. "What do you have, Shelly?"
Sheldon pointed a skinny finger at the chalkboard.
"The opposing quarterback, Mr. Case, thinks he is making a read," Sheldon said. "He is not. He is making a decision *before* the snap."
The room went quiet.
"Explain," George Sr. said.
"Observation," Sheldon said, tapping his clipboard. "When the play is a 'Pitch' to Lloyd Hill, Mr. Case's left foot is angled outward at 45 degrees to facilitate the sprint. When the play is a 'Keep' or a 'Dive', his feet are parallel."
He looked around the room.
"I have tracked 18 plays. The correlation is 100%. If the foot is turned, he is pitching. If the foot is straight, he is keeping."
The defensive coordinator looked at the clipboard. He looked at George Sr.
"Coach," the coordinator whispered. "If that's true... we know the play before they run it."
George Sr. looked at Sheldon. He looked at the terrified faces of the Seniors. He looked at the angry faces of the Recruits.
"We're changing the front," George said.
"To what?" the coordinator asked.
George looked at Zach Thomas.
"The 46 Bear," George said.
The room gasped. The 46 Bear was the defense the Chicago Bears used. It put eight men in the box. It covered the center and both guards. It was a suicide pact: *We are going to stuff the run, and if you pass, our corners are on an island.*
"Dad," I said. "If Stoney throws a fade to Lloyd Hill... we have no safety help."
"He won't have time to throw," Zach Thomas said, cracking his knuckles. "If I know it's a pass... I'll eat him."
George Sr. nodded.
"Sheldon calls the foot," George commanded. "Zach calls the adjustment. Larry, you play both ways. I need you at Nose Tackle."
Larry stood up. He looked massive in the cramped room.
"I like Nose Tackle," Larry said. "I get to hit the Center."
"Let's go!" George yelled. "We didn't fly here to lose! BREAK!"
***
Part 2: The Trap
The third quarter began.
Permian received the kickoff. The crowd was deafening again. *MO-JO! MO-JO!*
Stoney Case trotted onto the field. He was smiling. He thought we were broken.
He lined up under center.
Highland Park lined up in the Bear Front.
Larry Allen was directly over the center. Zach Thomas was creeping up to the line.
I watched from the sideline, ignoring the pain in my ribs.
*Come on, Sheldon.*
On the sideline, Sheldon was peering through a pair of binoculars.
He lowered them. He signaled to the defensive coordinator.
*Parallel Feet.*
"DIVE! DIVE! DIVE!" Zach Thomas screamed, shifting the line.
Stoney Case snapped the ball.
His feet were straight. He tried to hand it off to the fullback up the middle.
But Larry Allen didn't get blocked. Larry Allen drove the center five yards into the backfield.
The fullback ran directly into Larry's chest.
*WHAM.*
It looked like a car hitting a wall. The fullback went down instantly.
Loss of 2.
The crowd quieted slightly.
Second Down.
Sheldon looked through the binoculars.
*Angled Foot.*
"PITCH! PITCH!" Zach screamed.
Stoney snapped it. He turned to pitch it to Lloyd Hill.
But Zach Thomas didn't wait for the read. He shot the gap the second the ball moved.
Stoney turned to pitch—and found Zach Thomas in his face.
*CRUNCH.*
Zach hit Stoney just as he released the ball. The pitch went wild. It bounced on the turf.
Lloyd Hill dove on it to save the turnover, but it was a loss of 8.
Third and 20.
Stoney Case got up slowly. He looked at the Highland Park sideline. He looked confused.
*How did they know?*
They punted.
***
Part 3: The Slugfest
The rest of the third quarter was a war of attrition.
Permian's offense stalled. Sheldon's code was perfect. Every time Stoney tipped his hand, Zach Thomas was there to blow it up.
But our offense was struggling too.
Permian adjusted. They started blitzing every down.
My ribs were screaming. Every time I threw the ball, I took a hit.
**Highland Park 7, Permian 14.**
Time: 4:00 left in the 3rd.
"We need points," I told the huddle. "Defense is killing themselves for us."
I looked at **Jimmy Smith**.
"Jimmy," I said. "They're pressing you. Clifton Abraham thinks he owns you."
"He's fast, Georgie," Jimmy said, breathing hard. "He's NFL fast."
"So are you," I said. "Double move. Hitch and go. Sell the stop."
"Blue 80! HIKE!"
I took the snap.
The blitz came. Two linebackers up the middle.
I stood in the pocket. I knew I was going to get hit.
*One second. Two seconds.*
Jimmy ran five yards and stopped.
Abraham bit. He jumped the route.
Jimmy exploded upfield.
I released the ball a split second before a linebacker buried his helmet in my stomach.
*OOF.*
The air left my lungs. I hit the ground.
I didn't see the catch. I just heard the silence.
I rolled over.
Jimmy Smith was dancing in the end zone. The ball was spiked.
Abraham was kicking the dirt.
**Highland Park 14, Permian 14.**
I stood up. The world spun for a second.
George Sr. was waving me over.
"You alright?"
"Fine," I lied.
"Defense is holding," George said. "But Larry is gassed. He's playing every snap."
I looked at Larry. He was hands-on-knees on the sideline, water pouring off his face. He had played Center on offense and Nose Tackle on defense for 20 minutes straight.
"He's a machine," I said.
"Even machines break," George said grimly. "We need to end this in the 4th."
***
Part 4: The Betrayal
The fourth quarter started.
The score was tied 14-14.
The "Mojo" crowd wasn't chanting anymore. They were nervous. They were witnessing a dogfight.
And then, Stoney Case figured it out.
On the sideline, Sheldon lowered his binoculars.
"Angled foot," Sheldon whispered.
"PITCH!" Zach Thomas screamed.
But Stoney Case didn't pitch.
He had realized he was tipping the play.
He faked the pitch. He kept his foot angled, but he pulled the ball back.
Zach Thomas bit on the pitch. The entire defense flowed left.
Stoney Case tucked the ball and ran right.
There was nobody there.
The "Bear" defense had no safety help.
Stoney sprinted. 20 yards. 30 yards. 40 yards.
He crossed the goal line untouched.
He pointed at our sideline. He pointed at Sheldon.
**Permian 21, Highland Park 14.**
Time: 3:15 left in the game.
"He changed the pattern!" Sheldon yelled, throwing his clipboard down. "He introduced a variable! That is cheating!"
"It's football, Shelly," Eric said, handing him a water. "He adjusted."
I put my helmet on.
The stadium was rocking again. The chant was back, louder than ever.
*MO-JO! MO-JO!*
We had the ball.
We had 3 minutes.
We were down by 7.
And my ribs felt like broken glass.
***
Part 5: The Last Stand
"Kickoff return team!" George yelled.
We started at our own 20.
"This is it," I told the huddle.
Larry looked at me. His eyes were red with exhaustion.
"I got you," Larry wheezed. "I won't let them touch you."
"I know, Larry."
We marched.
Short pass to Jimmy. Run by Zach (who was now playing fullback too). Screen pass to the tight end.
Time: 0:45 left.
Ball on the Permian 10-yard line.
4th and Goal.
"Timeout!" George yelled.
We jogged to the sideline.
The entire stadium was standing. The noise was a physical weight.
"What's the call?" George asked. "They're in a goal-line stand. heavy blitz."
"They're keying on Zach," I said. "Every time he moves, their linebackers shift."
"So we throw?"
"No," I said. "No passing lanes. They have six DBs in."
I looked at the play sheet. Nothing in the 1990 playbook worked against this speed.
I closed my eyes. I accessed the library of my future knowledge.
I needed a play that neutralized speed. A play that used their aggression against them.
"Zone Read," I said.
George looked at me. "What?"
"Zone Read," I repeated. "Shotgun. We leave the defensive end unblocked. If he crashes, I pull it and run. If he stays, I hand it to Zach."
"We don't have that play," George said. "We never practiced it."
"I know," I said. "Draw it up in the dirt. Larry, don't block the end. Let him come free."
"You want me to let him kill you?" Larry asked, horrified.
"He won't kill me," I said. "He'll kill the running back. And I'll be gone."
George looked at the clock. He looked at my ribs.
"It's your call, son," George said. "Don't die."
"Break!"
We walked to the line.
4th and Goal. Game on the line.
The crowd was screaming so loud the ground shook.
I stood in the shotgun.
Zach stood next to me.
"Do not block the end," I shouted at Larry.
Larry nodded.
"Blue 80! HIKE!"
Larry snapped it.
The Permian defensive end, a monster named **Bo**, saw the unblocked path. He grinned. He crashed down the line to annihilate Zach.
He crashed hard.
I put the ball in Zach's stomach.
Bo tackled Zach. He buried him.
But Zach didn't have the ball.
I pulled it back.
I stepped around the pile.
The entire defense had collapsed on Zach. The edge was wide open.
I walked into the end zone.
Un. Touched.
**Highland Park 20, Permian 21.**
Time: 0:00.
The stadium went dead silent.
I stood in the end zone, holding the ball up.
My ribs were screaming. My head was spinning.
But we had scored.
George Sr. was already on the field.
He held up two fingers.
We weren't kicking the extra point for the tie.
We were going for 2.
We were going for the win.
[Quest Update: The Adjustment]
* **Defensive Scheme:** 46 Bear (Success... until it wasn't).
* **Sheldon's Code:** Broken by Stoney Case.
* **The Audible:** Zone Read (Executed).
* **Current Status:** 20-21. One play for the win.
[System Notification: "Legend" Status requires Victory. A Tie yields no XP.]
***
AUTHOR'S NOTE
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