Michael Lin

Running-backs Don’t Run Back

            For the past years, the sport of football has never really appealed to some non-athletic kid like me. I never really got the point when my parents would force me to watch the football games on television when I didn’t understand the point. One of the days, my father told me to put down whatever I was doing and to come watch the football game with him.

            “Why?” I asked.

            “Just watch,” he would reply in a monotonous voice.

            It was extremely hard to concentrate. I sat in a black leather chair that wasn’t optimally positioned towards the television, so I resorted to placing my legs over the arm rest. The seat wasn’t exactly comfortable either. What was happening on the television screen was another story. Men acting like savages to take control of a ball was what I perceived. How could I ever enjoy this? Football never really meant anything to me on my middle school years.

            High school came around faster than I expected. I really loved music, and I then joined the marching band. Even, with a football game going on in front of my eyes, I still did not comprehend what was happening. But on one particular game, it was the homecoming game for our school. I had gained some knowledge from the older kids in my section, and the game was getting to a very close score. The freezing atmosphere really set the mood for tension, yet everybody was overheating from the excitement. The whole field smelled of excitement, tension- and body odor.

            Our football team was around one point from the opposing team and we were in possession of the ball. My mouth tasted of sugar from the candy we got as a gift; I needed the energy to blast the last few minutes of the game. It was at this time that I felt the greatest about football, and I understood somewhat of what was going on. Our team was steadily making progress across the field then suddenly we made a touchdown! Our side of the football field exploded in cheers and we blasted the school song into the oil-painted night sky. The game wasn’t over yet! There were a few minutes left in the game and the opposing team somehow scored a touchdown against our team. We had to make a comeback or our team would’ve lost.

            Excitement filled the air again as we got near the touchdown area again. This moment, the timer was getting dangerously close to zero. We had to do something soon or we would lose the homecoming game. Yelling erupted everywhere with each play… Then we finally made the touchdown! We played the school song for the last time of the night then it was over. Endorphins slowly faded out of our systems then the excitement faded.

            “We won the game!” I told my mom when I arrived home that night.

            “That’s good! How much did you win by?” she asked with enthusiasm.

            “Two points!”

            Days after the event, I learned to love the sport of football. My brother convinced me to get a football game on my phone so I could play with his friends. Through this game, I learned even more about football because my brother would tell me about the positions of each player and their purpose. Honestly, I never expected myself enjoying the sport of football before. Football brought me closer to some of my classmates and friends at school and the experience has been amazing ever since.