Boy of Fall

For Schyler-

Set behind the quarterback in your two point stance
Your eyes peer through the facemask at the distant goal
Fingers nervously drumming on your thigh pads, you fidget
Until the moment right before the snap where everything goes perfectly still
Your muscles tense
From the stands, it looks like you almost stop breathing, your concentration is so great
The ball is snapped and everything happens at once
The quarterback spins and hands it off to you, as you are set loose like a cannon
Looking for a hole, you juke left and right, until there it is-
And you're gone.
Breaking tackles,
Stiff-arming the opponent,
Legs churning under you,
As you move gracefully down the sideline
Into the endzone.

This is not your first time in the endzone, and not your last
As you toss the ball to the referee to focus on the next play
You head to the sideline,
To talk things over with the coach, or should you say Dad.
On this sideline you stand
With your hands on your hips
Shoulders heaving with exertion of the sixty yard run.
Broad, padded shoulders that are forced to take on so much more than the opposing team
The harsh jeers from the crowd roll of your back like the sweat and blood
You dedicate to the game
Having your teammates' backs, regardless of whether or not they have yours
Because it's who you are, green number 34.

Lofty dreams set high from the time a football touched your hands
You put in your time
Logging hundreds of hours in the weight room since age 13
Thousands of yards of sprints in the 110 degree heat of the preseason
Night after night spend in front of the T.V. watching game film
Looking for anything and everything you can improve on
To make your game better
Dedication stronger than your own strong will

Records set and broken
You rush your way to the top of the record books
Of your school, the district, the state
Looking toward a bright future in football
My boy of fall.