They had come so close to the biggest win in their life, but they fell short.
The locker room was different this time, this time there was no chatter. This time people went about their business
quietly, thinking about the game that could have been.
The mood in the room was somber, like every single one of them had lost a loved one. To some of them, they had, it was
so close, just a first down here, one less penalty there, and maybe the game could have ended differently.
But yet, it didn't. They had lost there chance at making a mark, sure it will make the headlines as the upset that almost
was, but who wants to be that?
Donald McKillop just sat next to his corner locker on the bench, still with his pads on, just looking at the floor. He felt the
weight of the loss on his shoulders. No one said a word to him.
"Those two interceptions, if I hadn't thrown them.... and why did I just throw the ball away? I know thats a penalty, ahh that
was so dumb, I cost us the game.", donald thought to himself.
This was the first time Donald had ever made it into a game. He had been very successful with his team in High School
back home in California. His deceivingly strong arm led his team to a division 3-AA super bowl birth, they lost it, but he
still got them there, even if he didn't garner much attention.
Vermont made notice of him though, and recruited him to come 3,000 miles across the country to play 1-AA ball for them.
Donald McKillop accepted their offer in December.
Three months later, some kid by the name of Jack Kramer, of Brattleboro, Vermont, walked-on to the football team. Jack
had played fullback for his high school team, mostly a receiving one as he still had good speed and hands.
One day after practice, during the beginning of training camp of McKillop and Kramer's freshmen year, a few guys were
just tossing the ball around, Jack was one of them. Eventually it turned into a two on two touch-game. Jack played QB,
and was zipping the ball all over the place. The coaches caught a glimpse of the fun, and on the next day at practice
decided to give him a few reps at quarterback. He stuck, his speed matched with his throwing skills was too much of a
threat to pass up.
Jack became QB1. Donald McKillop became QB2. At first he was upset, naturally as he should be, but McKillop was a
quiet kid, and a good teammate. He kept his feelings to himself and accepted his new role. He started to focus less on
football and more on his schoolwork, he wanted to get into something physics-related. And anyways, how was he
to compete with the charismatic, double-threat that is Jack Kramer?
But now here we are, some two years later, when Jack Kramer gets caught by a rolling linemen, and is reported as out for
the game. It was time for Donald to step into the role he was brought here to do, in front of 92,400 at Tiger Stadium.
He just couldn't put it away though, he played well, but costly mistakes lost the game. Now he just sat quietly, like he
normally does, but for once his jersey was covered in dirt and grass stains.
Jack sat in the opposite corner of the locker room, but he was already in his "civilian" clothes, having been taken into the
locker room early. He sat with his leg up on a stool, holding the ice on his knee, a pout on his face.
He wanted to come back into the game, desperately. He nearly fell on his hurt knee begging Coach Motherway to put
him back on the field. But Motherway would have none of it.
"We can't risk having you get more hurt Jack, we're gonna need you for the next 10 weeks."
"But I'm fine I swear! I can play on it, See?" He proceeded to jump up and down a few times, hiding the wince on his
face, before Coach Motherway could grab him to stop.
"No Jack, you're not playing any more in this game, now go cheer your team on the sidelines." He went and say down on
the bench and crossed his arms in frustration. He stayed that way until the last quarter, when even he couldn't contain
his excitement over his frustration.
But now, still naively thinking he could have one that game, he returned to his crossed-arm position.
Coach Motherway eventually made his way into the locker room, once he had finished his post-game interviews. His
players expected the worst from him, especially after last week's episode, but thats not what they received.
He walked into the room, chuckling to himself, shaking his head, looking at the floor. The team looked around at each
other, wondering why he was in such a chipper mood.
Coach Motherway stopped walking once he had reached the center of the room.
"Ya know, I just got asked a whole bunch of questions by a bunch of reporters." The players looked up at him wondering
where he was going with this.
"And they were very amusing to me, there was a lot of 'coach, how does it feel to come up short?', and 'coach, what could
you have done differently to have won that game?'
"But frankly, I don't really care that we lost that game, I don't care about what we could have done differently to win. Yeah,
not this week I didn't. Do you wanna know why?
"Because you guys played your asses off. Thats why.
"McKillop pick your chin up son, that was a brilliant game you threw out there, you kept us in that game, we owe the
chance of even beating this team to you, do not blame yourself for this loss.
"And Kramer...stop pouting like a kid not allowed to play on the monkey bars, would ya?"
Everyone in the locker room laughed, Jack eventually broke up too.
"Guys, that was a great performance, if we can play like that against the rest of the scrubs in the MAC, then I think that
we have a shot at proving we do belong. Now bring it in here...except for you Kramer you just stay there... Go Cats
Go on three, one, two, three."
"Go! Cats! Go!"
