It’s always fun to go on the road for a game. You get to hop on a bus for a couple of hours and often the funniest times in a season happen on a bus or in a hotel. But the comforts and routine of a home game can never be replaced. Our day starts 5 hours before kickoff with an optional chapel service from our chaplan H.D. We have 45 minutes for breakfast which is usually fifteen of eating and thirty of watching the early college game. While most of the team is reviewing special teams notes, a handful of offensive linemen hang out in the computer lab, often trying to see who can find the most ridiculous picture or story online. That has been a tradition for the last couple years and probably will continue for a long time.
The whole team then meets for five or ten minutes in a large lecture hall to revisit keys for the week before the offense and defense meet separately. Both sides clarify any questions or changes made throughout the week. After this we’re on our own for usually ninety minutes until we have position meetings on the field. Most guys like to throw a ball around, kick field goals, or field and kick punts to loosen up physically and mentally. By the time meetings are over, the juices get going and you know its game day.
Home games are also great because you’ll often see a handful of guys you used to play with who show up two hours before kickoff. Its an opportunity to revisit old memories and catch up on new developments. You get to see your loyal and crazy fans like Jenna Brister dressed up in claw slippers, red tights, a purple cape and face paint. Home games are an opportunity for them to plan their entire day around the game, starting with red and purple cat paw pancakes for breakfast and finishing with a celebratory dinner at Ruby Tuesday’s.
For the first time since I’ve been here, the game of the week to watch isn’t the one on Saturday. It’s tonight where the alumni team whose roster reads like an all-american ballot will take on our JV team. This could quite possibly be the game of the year, as some will put on a Linfield pads and jersey for the first time in nearly 20 years. Guys who never thought they would play another game will get what most former college athletes only dream of: one more game.