In the late 1980s and earliest of 1990s I used to take a bag of footballs on a weekend afternoon and go to a high school near where I lived. This high school did not have any goals posts. The field, within the confines of a running track, was a decent place for one to swing one’s leg. I punted that bag of footballs from one end of the field to the other. I used to look around and consider what a nice place it would be to actually play a football game. The field runs North and South with a nice neighborhood of houses lining the fence to the East of the property. I know I used to try to show off now and again for the few folks looking to see what was making that funny sound. It was the sound of a football clapping against a bare right foot.
I do remember one day I had a friend out there with me. He was charting my hang time. It was on this field that I hit a ball that hung up in the air longer than any one I ever had on a watch. That in itself is reason to be a bit reminiscent, when I look at that field and those houses that still sit beyond that fence.
In 1988 and 1990, I knew this would be an awesome place to plant some goal posts and put on a game. If only the school would get around to doing so.
Well, they did. And yes, it is a great place to watch a football game. I saw one there this past Friday night. The sound of the ball hitting my foot came back to me. I also thought about watching a spiraling ball take off and get smaller as it would go like it wanted to do so. I thought about the sweat that can come from swinging the leg…it is a nervous sweat more than a physical one. I thought about the end of workout ritual of punting the balls in the air one at a time and catching them in the ball bag. I would not leave until I caught them all in the bag. On a couple of occasions, I almost ran out of daylight to do so. Talk about goofy looking. Kick the ball. Grab the bag. Chase the ball down (hopefully it went straight up in the air). Catch it in the mesh ball bag. It was one of those things that just had to be done.
This past Friday night I watched as the North Harrison Cougars played on that field. Stands, goal posts, a press box, a concession stand, rest room facilities in a building close by. The place has really come up in the world.
The field is located in Sellersburg, Indiana. The name of the school is Silver Creek High School. The NH Cougars played the SC Dragons on the field I punted on in its dark ages. It was great to see that the place had come to life. It looked better than I imagined.
The game was pretty good too.
North Harrison came in with a 4-2 record. The buzz was that there might be some tough sledding ahead, given that the regular starting quarterback was out with an injury and a sophomore with no varsity experience was going to take his place. At the beginning of the game he looked the part. Two fumbles early on. Let us just say he was getting that out of his system.
I tweeted via twitter, my only social media vehicle beyond speaktherights.com, that I had not been more proud of an NH Cougar team since 1982. That was not an overstatement.
The Cougars overcame the early turnovers. The Cougars stayed together and did not point fingers when things were going awry. The Cougars stayed the course. The Cougars played tougher and were more physical than they had been all year. The Cougars won 14 to 13 in overtime. It was 7 to 7 at the end of regulation. The sophomore quarterback making his first start ran for one TD and threw for another in overtime.
The difference in the game was one point. This is where this field gets personal again for me all these years later.
In the overtime period, Silver Creek got the ball first. They had ten yards in front of them. They ran it up the gut for 4 yards. That made it 2nd and goal from the 6. They ran it up the gut for 3 yards. That made it 3rd and goal from the 3. They ran it up the gut for 2 yards. That made it 4th and goal from the 1. They ran it up the gut for a touchdown. Their kicker lined up for an extra point. I don’t make it a habit of rooting against kickers. That is like a form of cannibalism to me. I was, however, hoping this young man would miss for the sake of my Cougars. He did just that. Wide left.
North’s turn.
North got the ball. They had ten yards in front of them. On the first play the Cougar qb dropped back to pass and found his receiver in the right corner of the end zone. Touchdown! North’s kicker ran out on the field.
In concert there was a crisp snap, a solid hold, and a kick that was as true as The U.S. Constitution. It was a thing of beauty.
The irony here is that it was the first time I had seen a game on that field at Silver Creek. It was the first time I had seen a ball kicked or punted there that had not come off my foot. To add to the irony, three days before this game, the Cougars’ kicker, Ben, and I had a meeting of the legs on the North football field. I kicked some. He kicked some. We held forth together on the sweet science of swinging one’s leg. It was the first time that we had such a summit. If it wasn’t good timing for Ben, I can tell you it was good timing for me. And on Friday night, I watched Ben’s kick sail through the air above referees who looked at each other and nodded their heads in agreement…then raised both arms parallel above their heads. It’s Good! You better believe it was. As I witnessed this scene, I don’t think I could have been anymore delighted had I kicked it…not now.
After the game I found Ben and told him I was very proud of him. The smile on his face said it all. It’s Good!
Speaking the rights…
Danny Johnson