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| Words and photo by F LoBuono |
The Scrimmage
Since it was preseason and this was not an official game,
the stands were virtually empty. No marching bands blared school fight songs.
No cheerleaders where present to root on their teams. The sounds of the
quarterback barking his signals went uninterrupted by cheers or jeers. At the
snap of the ball the collision of the players smashing into one another
reminded me of the sound of a steel door slamming. Finally, whistles blowing,
the coaches would stop the action and rush in to either congratulate or
admonish a player, depending on the outcome of the play. It was a bizarre,
violent ballet. I guess that’s what I loved about it. Despite the violence,
there was also an inherent beauty within the game. It’s this contrast, I think,
that first drew me to the game of football, and still does.
The action would be a welcomed break from the monotony of
training camp by allowing us to finally compete against another team instead of
each other. It would be a “controlled” scrimmage and not a “real” game, i.e.
coaches would be allowed on the field to provide instruction wherever, and
whenever, needed. I was not scheduled to start but was slated for some playing
time during the latter part of the contest. Because of my success as a freshman
(I was a starter on both offense and defense), the coaches wanted to see what
potential I might have on the varsity level. I was long (almost 5’10”), lean
(about 140 lbs.), and cat-quick. Man, I could really run then. And, I was
intensely competitive. Despite my slim physique, I was anxious to prove that I
belonged with the Big Boys.
As the scrimmage began, I actually got to watch the action
unfold from behind our defense, rather than from the sidelines. It provided an
interesting perspective. The coaches would point out, in real time, why a play
was successful or not, depending on what they had observed. Personally, I
marveled at the speed and aggression of the players. It was all happening much
faster than it had in practice, which in turn was much faster than what I had
experienced as a freshman player. I couldn't help but think: these guys are really good. Was I REALLY
ready to compete? I was soon to find out.
After about an hour of intense action, most of the front line
players would yield the field to the younger ones, including me. The coaches
called for me to “get my helmet on and be ready to get in there”! My heart
began to race and my heart pound. This was everything that I had trained for. I
had worked out with weights all summer and designed a special diet of mostly
protein shakes to prepare myself for the rigors of the season. I had increased
my weight and strength drastically. I was as ready as I was going to be. I
buckled my chin strap, focused my energy, and waited for the command. Finally, it
came: “LoBuono, GET IN THERE”!
Without hesitation, I sprinted to take my position in the
defensive backfield. I was going to play strong
safety. My main responsibilities would be to cover the tight end on passing
plays and support the run (i.e. tackle) on the others. In addition to speed and
strength, the position required a certain technique to play it successfully. This
is where the coaching came in. And, I was well coached. The man responsible for
play of the defensive backfield was “Coach Larry”. A former player himself,
Coach Larry might be best described as a refrigerator with a head, i.e. he’s
thick. Down deep, he is a kind and caring soul. On the surface, he is an
exploding volcano. His speech is so animated that it usually involved sharing
a little of his spittle with you. He couldn’t help it. He loved the game, loved
coaching, and it showed. Instructions came out of his frothing mouth in
torrents – watch for the screen, watch
for the draw, watch for the square-out, watch for the square-in, watch for the
short pass, watch for the long pass - just watch for EVERYTHING!
I buckled my chin strap, inserted my mouthpiece and made the
final adjustments to my equipment to assume my position. Coach Larry, as was
his custom, grabbed me by my facemask and, placing his face an inch or so from
mine, added one last instruction: don’t
forget, if the corner forces the running back inside, I want you there to make
the tackle. I understood- if the offense ran an end sweep, the corner back
would prevent the running back from turning the end of the line and force him
back into the defense where I would be waiting. We were setting a trap.
I charged into the defensive huddle where my teammates were
planning their next alignment. Now, the huddle was a mixture of veteran players
and rookies, it was easy to spot the difference - the uniforms of the veterans,
having already played most of the scrimmage, were streaked with sweat and caked
with mud. The rookies’, not yet bloodied, were shinning like new dimes. We
broke the huddle with a hardy clap and a unifying shout of DEFENSE. I took my
position as the last man – literally. They don’t call the position safety for nothing. No one was to get
passed me. I liked having that responsibility.
The quarterback barked his signals, Red 19, Red 19, Hut, Hut, Hut, and the ball was snapped. It was
to be an end sweep! He pitched the ball to the running back who was circling
behind him. The back made a mad dash for the sideline. As he reached the end of
the line, our cornerback, doing his job, was right there to force him away from
the sideline and back into the field of play. I saw the whole thing unfold –
just as the coaches had diagrammed it on the blackboard. I was ready. I placed
myself at an angle where I thought the runner would be forced to turn. I had calculated
perfectly. He was heading right for me! I prepared myself to deliver the blow
and stop the play. I crouched into a tight ball, turning my legs into
steel-like springs. I flexed every muscle in my body. I was going to stop this
running play cold. Perfect. Then – WHAM!!!
I’m not sure how much time had actually elapsed, but the
next thing I remembered was lying on my back, looking straight up at the sky
with Coach Larry straddling me, screaming, OH
MY GOD, SON! YOU’VE GOT TO PROTECT YOURSELF OUT THERE. YOU ARE GOING TO GET
KILLED! All the while, little drops of his saliva were spraying all over my
prone body. I was so confused. I had no idea what happened. One second I was ready
to play the hero in my first varsity action, and the next I’m wondering not
only where I am, but who I am! When Coach asked if I knew
who I was, my response was “Monday”. Apparently (I had to actually be told
this), just as I thought I had set up the running back for a big hit, one of
the offensive lineman was doing the same to me. In my tunnel vision to tackle
the running back, I was not aware of all that was going on around me – you
know, the BIG picture. The offensive lineman, apparently, was. When he saw the
opportunity, he took it and knocked me into an altered state of consciousness.
A few moments later (it felt like an hour), I was able to somewhat
regain my composure and I began to pull myself together, wits first. Coach
Larry helped me to my feet where I readjusted by equipment. I was hit so hard
that I had to practically redress myself. Coach Larry had backed off a bit and
now had his arm around me as we walked off the field. He spoke more gently and,
again, admonished me to always be aware of my surroundings on the field. He
didn't want to see me get hurt.
After a few plays I was able to regain my composure and
return to action. I overcame that embarrassment and many others to actually
have a decent career playing football on the high school, college, and
semi-professional level. I even went on to coach it for a time – always
remembering that on the field, as in life, you must be prepared for the
unexpected. Things don’t necessarily unfold the way we want them to. Life has a
way of knocking you down. It’s going to happen. It’s the getting up that counts
the most.
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