Week 11 Ham @ Edm. Monday rolled all too quick for my liking. It was game day and I didn’t get enough sleep. After taking a hard look at things, A.J was right. How did I manage to get a penalty on my day off? In all my years of playing competitive football, I have not once tasted the pleasure, they joy, the sensation, of ever winning a championship. The saying "football is game of inches", is really true!
I have never tasted a big win. Being so close on several occasions, it had never turned out to be. One loss that really stuck with me was in 2003 at the World Global Jr. Championship in California. During the 4th my team and I were 7:29 left from capturing the title. Up 21 it came down to 4th and 1 on their 42yrd line. Now, any member of that defense you ask and they will tell you the same thing I'm about to say, "WE STOPPED THEM FOR A LOSS"! They were issued a favourable spot from the officials. Now, any member or staff of that 2003 Team Canada can second this story. So the yards stick came off the sideline. It was time to measure. At such a crucial point in the game, I am still in awe of what happened. As the yardstick was picked up, it seemed to me the referee was tugging harder than normal and the chain slipped off from the stick. It was as if it wasn’t properly attached... When it was all said and done U.S.A got the first down by a smidge of the nose.
Two plays later, a 52 yard touchdown catch sparked their comeback. They won in triple overtime (college rules) 34-31. That was the closest I have ever been to winning a championship. So how important is an inch to me? IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!
When an inch in is given and not earned it hurts. Having painful experiences like that prompted the comment to slip out. So with all that in mind, I went in to see the head guy on Monday morning. Nervous I stepped into his office and took a seat. Before any conversation could get started I said, “Coach it was me! I took that penalty. I get very emotional when it comes to football, and I was not happy with the spot. I'm sorry it will never happen again.” To my surprise he wasn't mad. He was actually quite happy I came in and owned up to the penalty. He explained to me that it is much easier to get a penalty on the bench than one on the field. In a close game he said that could have really hurt us. I explained that at that time the game was done and they were taking a knee, but this was a great learning experience for me. It was my first year sitting on the bench. Rookie mistake! So the moral of the story is, watch what you say on the sideline, and everything is not as bad as is seems. You feel much better when you own up to your actions whether good or bad.
Back at practice on Tuesday A.J asked me what happened. I told him I owned up. "Really? good you're still here... So what you got planned for this week?" I laughed "STOP IT!" Still working on my practice speed I was still at 22%. I slowly started to understand the speeds and effort levels. I would let guys win, only slightly challenging them to move their feet. It didn't feel nice letting people win because it felt like I was instilling bad habits in myself. So instead, I would finish the play visually, as if I won or made the play. Thinking about what happened two weeks ago, I did not want a repeat. Wednesday at practice L.W took notice of how I was in position but never made a play on the ball. "How come your letting them catch the ball Okpro?" he questioned. "Lenny I’m scared! I don’t want to hurt anyone! I can’t finish the play how I like to finish, and that’s with people paying the price!" He then told me, "Its not all about hitting, you gotta have a little finesse in you game. You gotta be a little more Sweeter! You gotta add some SWEETNESS to your game". He was right I used to always focus more on the contact. More food for thought.
I have never tasted a big win. Being so close on several occasions, it had never turned out to be. One loss that really stuck with me was in 2003 at the World Global Jr. Championship in California. During the 4th my team and I were 7:29 left from capturing the title. Up 21 it came down to 4th and 1 on their 42yrd line. Now, any member of that defense you ask and they will tell you the same thing I'm about to say, "WE STOPPED THEM FOR A LOSS"! They were issued a favourable spot from the officials. Now, any member or staff of that 2003 Team Canada can second this story. So the yards stick came off the sideline. It was time to measure. At such a crucial point in the game, I am still in awe of what happened. As the yardstick was picked up, it seemed to me the referee was tugging harder than normal and the chain slipped off from the stick. It was as if it wasn’t properly attached... When it was all said and done U.S.A got the first down by a smidge of the nose.
Two plays later, a 52 yard touchdown catch sparked their comeback. They won in triple overtime (college rules) 34-31. That was the closest I have ever been to winning a championship. So how important is an inch to me? IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!When an inch in is given and not earned it hurts. Having painful experiences like that prompted the comment to slip out. So with all that in mind, I went in to see the head guy on Monday morning. Nervous I stepped into his office and took a seat. Before any conversation could get started I said, “Coach it was me! I took that penalty. I get very emotional when it comes to football, and I was not happy with the spot. I'm sorry it will never happen again.” To my surprise he wasn't mad. He was actually quite happy I came in and owned up to the penalty. He explained to me that it is much easier to get a penalty on the bench than one on the field. In a close game he said that could have really hurt us. I explained that at that time the game was done and they were taking a knee, but this was a great learning experience for me. It was my first year sitting on the bench. Rookie mistake! So the moral of the story is, watch what you say on the sideline, and everything is not as bad as is seems. You feel much better when you own up to your actions whether good or bad.
Back at practice on Tuesday A.J asked me what happened. I told him I owned up. "Really? good you're still here... So what you got planned for this week?" I laughed "STOP IT!" Still working on my practice speed I was still at 22%. I slowly started to understand the speeds and effort levels. I would let guys win, only slightly challenging them to move their feet. It didn't feel nice letting people win because it felt like I was instilling bad habits in myself. So instead, I would finish the play visually, as if I won or made the play. Thinking about what happened two weeks ago, I did not want a repeat. Wednesday at practice L.W took notice of how I was in position but never made a play on the ball. "How come your letting them catch the ball Okpro?" he questioned. "Lenny I’m scared! I don’t want to hurt anyone! I can’t finish the play how I like to finish, and that’s with people paying the price!" He then told me, "Its not all about hitting, you gotta have a little finesse in you game. You gotta be a little more Sweeter! You gotta add some SWEETNESS to your game". He was right I used to always focus more on the contact. More food for thought.
Thursday was team photo day! The only thing that really upset me was that this was the only time I got to semi-suit up. Other than that it was a fun morning filled with practice, pictures, jokes, and laughs. The last practice of the week we would have a ball drill, and the one with the most drops has to get breakfast for the unit the next day. More often than not it was me! I don’t think really because I had bad hands, but I think Pre our multitalented kicker was throwing the ball just a touch harder, higher, and lower to me. "Pre why you gotta put so much spice on it?" He smiled and said "It will make you better". So once again I am buying breakfast for the largest unit.
Game Day. This game was not as clean as previous ones. As a matter of fact it was plain sloppy from an offensive stand point. Filled with turnovers, Jason Goss was the man today. 3int with 2 going back to the house he set another record in the Esks books. It was really at that moment, looking at all the talent I had around me, and being one the few rookies in the DB squad that I started to enjoy watching from the sideline. Every time the play would come close to the sidelines I was pulled away by teammates, reminded not to say anything. They made a big joke out of it, it was a good laugh. Great Defensive game Esks win 38-33.
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