Page 97 of Brick Wall
Chapter Forty-Eight
Sebastian
It’s here.
The final game of the season, win or lose. And tonight, we plan to win.
But isn’t that everyone’s plan? Two teams with the same goal? I don’t think either team plans to leave disappointed.
Unfortunately, one team will.
I have been in both positions before already. This is my third Super Bowl appearance in my career, all three playing for the same team. We won early in my career, and we lost my second one a few years later, so I know both sides very well.
This year is different, though. It feels different.
I step out on the natural grass field, look up in the crowd of seventy-five thousand people, and search for her.
I don’t find her. There are way too many people for that, but I know she’s there. Annie, my mom, my sisters, my honorary brothers, my family, my friends, they all came out to support me and cheer me on tonight.
I have an air of calmness around me that I have never felt before.
Something about this season, this team, me—it’s all been different,better.
And I can’t help but think, whatever happens tonight, I am going to be okay. I’ve got an amazing group of people in my life, amazing teammates, and an amazing career. I’ll be fine, either way.
However, we came to show the world that the Boston Revolutionaries are the best football team, and we deserve the W tonight.
* * *
It’s been a hard-fought game on both sides. Going in, we knew it wouldn’t be an easy one. This is the first and only time we’ve played this team this year. We watched a lot of tape, but watching and doing is completely different.
It’s been a back-and-forth battle all the way through.
The game is now tied at twenty-four, and there’s two minutes left. We got the ball right before the two-minute warning. I look at Quinn and see the ferocity in his eyes, and at that moment, I know we’ve got this.
We have eighty yards and two minutes to win it. We’ve faced much tougher odds this season and still have come out on top.
Cal snaps the ball to Quinn, and the pressure is on. He does a quick pass to the outside to the slot receiver for seven and the player is pushed out of bounds to stop the clock. The same play is called again, and we gain eight more yards. We arecreeping up the field. We are taking our time and doing this right.
We make a few more short gains, but it’s enough to move the chains forward.
We are now roughly ten yards shy of reasonable range for Bryce Ellis to kick a field goal. There’s thirty seconds left on the clock, enough time to gain more yardage.
Quinn throws it deep down the field, but the receiver misreads the pass, and the throw is off. Quinn stays calm and sticks to the script. He makes a short pass to a running back, but the RB is able to break a tackle and gain ten yards on the play before he steps out of bounds to stop the clock once again.
We are now in field goal range with eight seconds and one timeout left. Quinn has one play left to get Bryce in the best field position possible.
We are expecting a blitz, and I’m beat. This two-minute drill is hard, especially since there haven’t been any runs called to break up all QB’s passes.
Just one more block for me and one more pass for Quinn.
Quinn reads the blitz correctly but only has the ball in his hand for a quick second before he does a screen play to the left and Myles Jones steps out of bounds to gain six yards and stops the clock.
Our field goal unit is called on the field with three seconds left in the game.
Bryce lines up, and lets the ball go straight through the center of the goal posts.
Three points are added with zero time left on the clock.
