Sunday, November 7, 2021

11/6/21 Bittersweet Ending (Football Season)?

     It shouldn't bring a tear to my eye, but I can't help and get a little teary eyed when the season ends.  The season started with so much potential and promise of things changing and looking positive.  The coaches were focused on reaching the playoffs for the first time in a long time.  We bought into the hype, Baby A spent every free moment in the gym, getting up to his 550 squat, which just sounds painful from my civilian position over here, but Mijo is all legs and butt.

    Looking at the boys, defeated and with the season done, it is hard to look back and see only two wins, especially after so much hard work.  The record can't show it, but these boys still improved so much, in every other regard.  Every year, for example, it has been annoying to watch half the team disappear after a lot of the boys failed their first six weeks, that did not happen, and that was due to the coaches keeping those boys focused on the importance of what they on and off the field.  The coach recounted one of those stories where the athlete came and celebrated with the coach that he has never had an all passing six weeks report card, which was largely due to the coaches keeping them accountable every week.  Last year, the season ended with about 23 boys left at the end of the season, this year, at least they were all together at the end to support each other, as a team.

    It also really sucks, because the senior boys are done, they will probably not play any more football past that point and that is a little sad, for the boys, who kind of understand, at that point, that what they do is finite.  It really didn't help that while the boys were slowly getting off the field, Marble Falls was having a thing for their seniors and they were playing the sappy music that forces the tears as their seniors do a last walk on the field from one endzone to the other and meet their parents at the other end.  As visitors, we just get to stand goofily watching our babies there in their uniforms down on the field.

    On the other hand, no more long practices, no more worrying every day that our boy will break something, it was scary when he hurt his shoulder, at least until next year, no more sitting out in the cold to support our kid.  Win or lose, I know Mijo went out there on every play and played to the best of his potential, he never gave half ass, he gave all that the coaches asked of him.  That is something that once learned or developed cannot be taken away.  I know from this experience, Baby A is the kind of kid that will give you 100% and never try to make life easier by giving you excuses, so even when the record or scoreboard does not show it, these coaches have produced a winner in my book.

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