It was another game day weekend, and that meant Jackson and Kenny were once again spread out along the back seat of Tommy's car, heading to the game.
This time they were driving towards Arizona City—it was the near perfect middle ground between Arcadia High and Walden Grove High, for the Titans' meeting with the Red Wolves.
The pain of Jackson and Kenny's loss wasn't as fresh, so the music was louder and the mood a bit more uplifted. However, Kenny was still a little ticked off.
'Coach left us off the team, AGAIN. I don't get it. What more do we need to do?' he asked to no one in particular.
Jackson frowned, looking him over. Kenny was annoyed but his shoulders sagged with acceptance. 'We didn't do great at training. Next week,' Jackson promised, extending a fist.
Kenny smiled at him, then bumped his fist. 'Next week, for sure.'
They both settled back into their seats. Tommy's smirk turned towards the road from the rear-view mirror.
'Hey,' Kenny said, 'have you asked Jasmine to one of these games yet?'
Tommy scanned through his memory for when he'd heard that name before, then a knowing grin spread across his face. His gaze drifted back to the rear-view mirror, one eyebrow raised.
'I haven't,' Jackson mumbled. 'Why?'
'Aww come on, little bro, you shouldn't be scared to ask your girlfriend out to the game.'
Jackson blushed. 'Wh-What? She's not … she's not my girlfriend.'
'So, you don't like her?' Tommy wasn't letting up.
Jackson's cheeks darkened. He looked away, stammering, and then he saw salvation. 'L-Look! We're here.'
Thankfully, they arrived at the field and Jackson could escape from the car and the questions.
Snickering, Kenny and Tommy followed him out, then strode towards the stands. 'Let's see if Rudy's here,' Tommy said.
Kenny frowned, but helped in the search. Rudy wasn't THAT bad. At least not compared to some of the other varsity members.
Coach Otsen stood amongst the Titans in their locker room. Focused, determined faces stared back at him. 'Don't take this game for granted,' Coach Otsen said. 'We can't afford to have such a shit first half like last week—the Wolves will eat us alive if we play like that.' His eyes lingered on the defence, then on Grant and the Receivers. Discontent grumbles answered him.
'Offensively, we're gonna focus on the run game. There's gonna be a bigger burden on you this time, Mickey, but we need your legs if we're going to win.'
Mickey smiled. 'You can count on me, Coach.'
Coach Otsen nodded, his attention turning to Wesley. 'When they crack down on the run, you need to beat them with your arm and find the openings we've made.'
'Easy.' Wesley was the most laid back in the room, a cool air of smugness about him.
Coach Otsen turned back to the defence. 'I need you guys to watch out for big plays. We know the Wolves like grinding their opponents down. They're gonna chip away at us, but don't get sucked in by all the short stuff; they're ALWAYS looking for the big shot.'
Murmurs of agreement and mumbled acknowledgement spread across the defensive players. Coach Otsen got up in their faces, squatting down with his hands on his knees.
'DON'T GET SUCKED IN!'
Rudy wasn't hard to find. Again, he was near the Titans' bench. When he saw Jackson and the others approach, he smirked, eyes locked on Kenny. 'Hey, I thought you were gonna be down there with the rest of the varsity team this week, yeah? What happened?'
'Fuck off.'
Rudy laughed, almost falling back out of his seat. The Titans weren't down in their locker room for much longer, and soon they marched onto the field.
'Good afternoon, Rudy,' Tommy said.
Rudy smiled at him, happier to see Tommy, someone he could actually look up to, and someone who gave him the respect he deserved. Though he was a little surprised. 'Didn't expect you two weeks in a row.'
'I guess I'm lucky. My schedule works really well with the Titans.'
Again, Tommy took the far seat next to Rudy, forcing Jackson and Kenny to sit next to him as well. Rudy and Jackson said little to each other, just a mutual nod.
As Jackson settled into his seat and watched the Titans warm up, he said: 'I hope they win.'
Rudy scoffed. 'Of course they will.'
'They'll win. They have to,' Kenny said. 'Another win means they survive another week; means we have another shot to earn that varsity spot.'
'As long as one of us gets a spot, that'd be a win in my books,' Jackson said. Kenny and Rudy didn't feel the same way. They both thought it had to be them. Kenny at least wanted Jackson to come along if a second spot opened.
'Who'll get dropped for one of you to move up, though?' Tommy asked.
As the teams prepared for the start of the game—the Titans won the toss, though curiously elected to receive the opening kick—the group looked over the Titans.
An obvious choice would've been the freshly promoted player who took Rudy's spot. Rudy said as much, however, whilst Nick wasn't getting any reps as a Receiver he was still an integral part of the team, being the Kicker.
'Okay, so not Nick, but who was the Kicker before that?' Tommy asked.
Jackson gave him a dirty look, and Rudy let out an exasperated sigh. 'One question at a time, yeah?'
Tommy laughed. 'Sorry, sorry.'
'Anyway, the previous Kicker is still our Punter, I think his name was Jerry? Uhh, I think he's also supposed to be a Safety, though I've never seen him play a snap on defence.'
Maybe Jerry could get dropped. Nick had done the punting for the JV Titans too, but … would that really open a spot for a Receiver?
'The guy we're looking to replace is probably Dion,' Rudy said. The name was unfamiliar to his three listeners. Rudy pointed out a boy on the bench. His back was to them, so they didn't get a look at his face. He kept his curly hair cut short against his head, and while it was clear even from a distance he was large, he sat self-consciously. He hunched together, almost curling up on himself, like he didn't want to get in anyone's way.
'He doesn't play much,' Rudy continued. 'Super quiet guy, too. Like REALLY quiet. I'm pretty sure he's a junior, and in the two years I've been with the team, I could count the amount of times I've heard him speak with my fingers.'
The others watched as the Titans' offence took to the field after the opening kickoff. Dion didn't see a snap on the first drive, but he didn't need to. The offence marched down the field, and Mickey hammered home a rushing touchdown from the 4 yard line.
Nick came on for the extra point, and he was as automatic as ever. The Titans had taken an early 7–0 lead.
'Woo!' Jackson and Tommy were on their feet, cheering for the Titans.
Rudy waited until they sat back down to continue his explanation of why Dion would be the most likely to get dropped.
'You see what I mean about him not getting any snaps though? I mean, we don't even play with three Wideouts all the time. And a four wide set? Forget about it, we're more likely to play with two Tight Ends or two Running Backs. Coach Otsen knows the offence's weakest position is Wide Receiver. That's why he plays into our other strengths instead.'
Kenny and Jackson frowned. Kenny remembered how, even when Rudy was on the team last, he was mainly sitting on the bench. Would that be the fate of whichever one of them got called up next?
'You're basically saying that, even if we get called up, our fight still won't stop,' Jackson said. 'We have to become a starter to get playing time.'
'The second option at that,' Rudy said with a nod.
'It doesn't matter. Earning a spot is the first step. It'll be that much easier to prove I'm a starter when I'm already on the team,' Kenny said.
After that opening drive, the rest of the quarter was slow. The Wolves' defence adjusted quickly, and the game became more of a feeling out process.
By the end of the first, the score was only 7–3, still in the Titans' favour.
Going into the second quarter, the Titans were still running heavily. It was a good time to study the run game. See, the Titans were a strange team, despite their star player being their Tight End, who worked best as a Receiver and aerial threat, they were still a run-focused team most of the time, which caught a lot of opponents off guard.
Shane was the most flashy, the one who stood out more, and he naturally drew a lot of attention. Not only did this help his other Receivers get better looks, but it opened up avenues for the run game as well.
You add a dual-threat QB like Wesley—more a threat with his legs than his arm if we're being honest—and you get a lethal running attack.
It was an interesting contrast to the JV team, which was much more pass-centric in their offence. Unfortunately for our prospective Receivers, it meant getting called up was hard simply because they didn't fit the varsity team's system as well as they did the JV team's.
But the varsity Titans could still throw, and often won games off the back of their Receivers—mainly Shane—and their connection with Wesley as a passer.
As the second quarter dragged on, and both teams scored a touchdown—the Titans thanks to a powerful 17 yard catch and run by Shane, and the Wolves off of a 2 yard scramble from their QB—Rudy offered some insight into what it was like having Wesley as a QB.
'Yeah, so, he's got a cannon of an arm. He really whips those passes in FAST. … But they're not always on the money. You combine his inaccuracy with his power and you get some pretty hard to catch balls.'
'I could catch them,' Kenny muttered.
Rudy side-eyed him but kept going. 'Yeah, anyway, you can see how that wouldn't really help our lacklustre Receivers play any better, yeah? Thankfully, we've got Mickey. Offensively, he's our second best player, by far. Him and Shane are the one-two punch.'
'And Wesley's pretty athletic for a Quarterback,' Tommy pointed out. 'That read-option is tough to stop.'
'Yeah, he's got his legs, at least. Relies on them too much though,' Rudy said, bitterness dripping from his voice.
'When he has some more Receivers he can trust, like me and Jackson, then maybe he'll be more comfortable throwing the ball,' Kenny said.
Rudy glared at him fully this time. Kenny glared back.
Jackson frowned. 'I don't think it's that. Sometimes he has people open, he just doesn't throw it. I don't know what it is … but I don't think he wants to be upstaged by his Receivers. Even with Mickey and their option, you can see it at the goal-line, Wesley takes it more. He wants the touchdown; he wants to be the reason the Titans are winning.'
Tommy laughed, reaching over to ruffle Jackson's hair. 'That's my little bro. You're gonna be a hell of a coach when you're done with being the greatest Wide Receiver of all time.'
Rudy rolled his eyes.
The Wolves' defence cracked down again, and despite Mickey being a beautiful blend of speed and power, strength and agility, he was shut down for the rest of the half. Even Shane couldn't get much going, and the Titans only scored another field goal before the end of the second quarter.
Unfortunately, just before the half ended, the Titans' defence let up another big play and gave away a 56 yard touchdown to a deep ball over the top.
Despite Coach Otsen's repeated warnings, the defence forgot the key message of "don't get sucked in" during the Wolves' two-minute drill.
At half-time, the scores were even at 17–17. Despite this, one team went into the break with broad smiles and all the momentum, whilst the other trudged off the field with lowered heads and a furious demon at their backs.
Rudy, Kenny, and Jackson weren't far behind the Titans as they went to their locker room. The trio slunk in after the players, barely making it inside before Coach Otsen slammed the door closed.
Coach Otsen was fuming. For good reason, too. 'What did I tell you?' He hadn't even given the players time to get settled at their lockers before his tirade started. 'I told you over and over not to get sucked in. Even when it's the two-minute warning, I don't care if they're attacking the sidelines with short, quick passes—they're ALWAYS looking for the touchdown.' He sighed, rubbing at his temples.
Jackson and friends stood in the corner, Jackson and Kenny silent as they tried to shrink away from Coach Otsen. Even without his anger being directed at them it was still fierce. Meanwhile, Rudy was holding back laughter as the defence got grilled.
The anger came from all sides against the defence. Even most of the offence was glaring at them, their hateful, burning gazes adding fuel to Coach Otsen's fire.
'DON'T let that happen again. Use this as a lesson. You need to be better in the second half, or our season will end here.' He took a deep breath. 'Offensively, we're doing okay. We just need to be patient and trust our run game. We'll grind them down first. But, that said, I still need some help from my Receivers; Shane can't be the only target getting open.'
Grant grumbled, 'Shane, Shane. Always fucking Shane.'
Coach Otsen whipped around to him. 'You got something to share, Grant?'
'No … Sir.'
Coach Otsen stared at him for a few seconds more. 'Alright, bring it in.'
The three JV boys watched the team collapse in on Coach Otsen, fists together. They threw them in the air in unison and shouted at the heavens, promising to win. The team thundered past out of the locker room, then the coaches ushered the three boys from the room as well.
When they returned, Tommy asked how it went.
'It was pretty fun,' both Kenny and Rudy answered. They looked at each other funny then settled into their seats, faces like they just smelled something sour.
'They're sticking with the run game. Mostly it sounded like Coach was just going over the same messages he's been giving them since before the game,' Jackson explained.
'Hmm.' Tommy frowned. 'Anyone else worried that the Titans will lose?'
'No,' Kenny and Rudy answered together, again. Their expressions soured further.
Jackson shook his head. 'No way. The Titans, as long as Shane's leading them, are unstoppable.' He stared down at the field as the Titans came out for the kickoff. His statement hadn't been made through arrogance but conviction.
He watched the Titans like he was watching his favourite hero fighting their arch nemesis, and he knew the hero was going to get back up.
The Titans—as if to prove Jackson's point—came out with a passionate fire. The defence held the Wolves scoreless and didn't even let them get past half-field to start the second half.
Then came the offence and Shane, perhaps the personification of Jackson's hero he so wholeheartedly believed in.
He led their counter drive and marched the Titans downfield, despite Coach Otsen's insistence they were still going to rely on the run. When someone's hand was this hot, you fed them.
They were at the goal-line in no time. However, the drive stalled there. First, Wesley missed a wild pass over Grant's head. Then, Mickey brought them to the one-yard line, but was crushed there. Last, on third down, Wesley held onto the ball during the read-option when Mickey had a free lane. Wesley, on the other hand, was tackled for a loss.
Coach Otsen was so furious he used one of their timeouts, despite being less than halfway through the third quarter.
'That was some of the WORST football I've seen. What the fuck?' He glared around at the offence. Only Mickey and Shane met his eyes.
'I'm NOT settling for a field goal. Not now. We didn't come all that way just to settle for three points. Look, this play, we CAN'T fuck up. You listening, Wesley? All you need to do is hit Shane with a shovel pass, got it? Goal-line shovel. You all remember how to do that, don't you?'
Heads nodded, and affirmations were mumbled.
'Good! Now get out there and score a fucking touchdown. Quit playing like you WANT to lose.'
After Coach Long's furious speech, the play worked to perfection. From Shotgun, Wesley flipped the ball over to Shane, who then burrowed in against the O-Line and together they forced their way into the end-zone.
Unfortunately, that was where the positives ended for the Titans that quarter. The defence was pushed back progressively more, letting in a field goal, and then another goal-line push for a touchdown, whilst the offence failed repeatedly.
The Wolves held the lead 24–27 going into the last quarter.
That's when Coach Otsen made a change, and instead of using their two TE formation, they went back to three Receivers, and more than that, Dion was put into play.
He didn't look impressive at first, slow, plodding, but he could use his body well and he secured a nice catch on a little Out route for a first down.
Tommy watched him closely. 'Why don't they move Dion to Tight End? A big boy like that. Seems like he'd fit better, wouldn't he?'
'Yeah, he's not really fast enough to be a Wideout,' Kenny added.
'Easy,' Rudy said, 'he can't block shit. I don't even think he knows how to block on snapchat.'
'Blocking can't be that hard,' Jackson said.
'Oh yeah, that's what you Wide Receivers always think. Then you play a couple of snaps at Tight End, let in a few sacks, don't seal the edge for your Running Back, and THEN you change your tune real quick,' Tommy said.
Jackson chuckled. 'Well, maybe I think it's easy because you always make it look easy, big bro.'
Tommy grinned, and they laughed together.
Despite Dion's flaws, he didn't try anything beyond his means, and Coach Otsen knew his limitations well and didn't force him into any situation he was unsuited for. As such, it wasn't long before he snagged an incredible grab on a back shoulder throw, and brought the Titans right to the goal-line after a 22-yard reception.
Tommy whistled. 'Talk about a rainbow.'
'But that catch! Did you see it? I can't believe he was in. How'd he do it?' Kenny still wasn't sure if his eyes had seen right.
'It was both of them,' Jackson said. 'I mean, that catch was amazing. We all saw it. He wasn't even looking, but he still knew exactly where to drag his feet.' Jackson thought back to their previous practice with the varsity team. He hadn't been paying attention, but Dion was up there with Shane and Grant as the only ones to go through the foot drag catches without messing up once.
'And even with the defender right there,' Jackson continued, 'he still ripped it away from him and didn't even bobble it as they fell out of bounds.'
Tommy chuckled. 'Probably the best catch of the day. Yet that was probably the best pass too.'
'The pass was a fluke, yeah,' Rudy said, almost spitting the words out. 'It was pure luck Wesley actually threw it in the right spot.'
'Nah, to even be "lucky" like that takes skill,' Tommy said. 'He can throw a good ball. Sounds like he just needs to work on his touch.'
Luck or not, the catch stood, and it set Mickey up for a rushing touchdown only a couple of plays later. The Titans were back in business, and back in the lead to start the last quarter.
Jackson looked down at the bench as Nick booted the extra point through. Everyone was excited and celebrating … all except one player. Demetrius—who had been benched in favour of Dion—must've been having the same thought Jackson was at the moment. Maybe it was him who was really in trouble of being cut.
Dion's catch and Mickey's lead-taking touchdown seemed to light a fire under the Dons. The defence held strong after that. They barely budged no matter what the Wolves tried, and they smothered everything deep, too.
It was Shane who hammered the final nail into the coffin. He put the game to bed with another touchdown, ending with a hat-trick as his last came off a deep post that went all the way for 38 yards.
At the end of the game, the score read 38–27 for a Titans victory. The crowd was thunderous, and the celebrations unleashed. The players didn't have to hold back. Their hard work over another year had culminated in another Regional championship. They were moving onto State.
Coach Otsen was the only one who held back and had a muted celebration. His focus was on the future. He knew the State championship was the true goal, and another Regional trophy had simply been expected, just like the trophy they got for leading their division.
'I guess there really wasn't anything to worry about, huh?' Tommy jostled Jackson as the group stood and started down the steps.
Jackson looked back at him with a grin. 'I told you.'
To those three JV Receivers, the win had meant more than just a Regional championship. It meant another week where they could prove their mettle and earn their way into a roster spot on the varsity team.
However, after Dion's gutsy performance, it dawned on them that such an accomplishment was going to be harder than they had expected.