Untitled-2

It was the first day of school and Melvin felt out of place. The only true friend he had was Clay, and he was nowhere in sight. The first class on his schedule was Biology. When he walked into the room he talked to no one and took a seat in the back. The teacher ran over classroom guidelines and a rough outline of the curriculum for the year. Once the bell rang Melvin went out into the hallway to try to find out where his Geometry class was. Insecure and afraid to ask another student, he searched for a map of the hallways on the wall. He found the map and noticed a flyer next to it that said in big red letters "Football Sign-ups". Over the summer he remembered Clay mentioning that he was thinking about joining the team as a way to meet new friends and have some fun. Because Melvin thought of himself as small and uncoordinated, he never considered playing. He always liked football and watched it on television, but never actually thought about playing. Over the course of the day he weighed his options and talked to Clay about it.  "My mom really wants me to join the team. You should play too, if anything it will give us something to keep us busy," he explained. Although he had never played football before or let alone any competitive he decided if it would help make him popular he'll give it a try. "Okay, I guess I'll play," he said as he sighed. After school Clay and Melvin went to sign-ups together. When they arrived at the sign-ups several of the players gave them awkward looks and wondered if they were serious about playing. "Third grade soccer sign-ups are tomorrow!" Troy screamed out towards Melvin and Clay.  Troy was the best player on the team last year and he was the team's star running back. Everyone around the school knows him and he is very popular. Other players continued to say similar things to them, but they ignored the jaunting and got fit for their equipment. After they received their equipment they met their coach, Coach Smith. He seemed like a nice guy and he told him he was happy to have some new players on the team. They were later informed that the first practice was tomorrow and that every position is up for grabs. That night Melvin was having trouble sleeping. He sat in his bed wondering if he should really go through with playing. He finally fell asleep hoping that the first day of practice tomorrow would go well for him and Clay. One thing Melvin admired about Clay was that he never really got nervous. Whether it is a final exam or a situation like this he never seemed to let his nerves get the best of him. It was two-fifteen and the school bell just sounded. Melvin was on his way to his locker to get his books. Clay was waiting for him at the end of hallway like always. "What's up, you ready for practice today?" Clay said. "I guess so. I'm pretty nervous though. Troy and the other guys were laughing at us at sign-ups, I just hope it is not like that all year." "It won't be," he said, "Once the season starts all you have to do is show the coaches how you can play and all of that stuff will end." "Hopefully," Melvin sighed. They both walked into the locker room where some of the players were already putting on their equipment. Both Melvin and Clay got suited up and headed out to the field. Once everyone was out there Coach Smith led the team through some stretches. After stretching they split into position groups. Melvin and Clay both were on the smaller side so they went with the running backs and defensive backs. The first drill they did was a tackling drill, it took them a while to get used to it but eventually they got the hang of it. The next drill Melvin got a chance to run the ball. The time he went up he beat his guy and impressed Coach Smith. "Nice job Melvin! Keep up the good work," he exclaimed. Although it was his first practice Melvin was doing alright. He and Clay were holding their own against players who have played football in previous years. As practice went on it was evident that Troy was the best player. He broke tackles and it seemed as if everyone was afraid to go up against him in drills. Coach Smith was intrigued with Melvin's effort so he wanted to see how he matched up against Troy. He put the two of the up against each other in a drill that had Melvin running the ball and Troy tackling. Melvin got the hand off from the quarterback and headed towards the two cones that marked the hole. Troy ran towards Melvin quickly and tried to wrap him up by the waist. Melvin gave him a stiff arm and beat him through the hole. "Great job kid, that's what I like to see!" Coach Smith yelled excitedly. A few other teammates were surprised at how Melvin matched up against Troy. He had beaten the team's star player in only his first day of practice. After everyone was done giving Melvin high fives Coach Smith wrapped up practice with a talk to the team. He reminded them to keep up the hard work, and that they still have a long way to go until they are ready for their first game in only four more days. Maybe this won't be so bad after all Melvin thought, as he put his equipment back into his locker. As they walked outside to the front of the school they saw Clays Mom's car already waiting for them. She asked them how their first practice went and then she dropped Melvin off at his house. When Melvin got home he was exhausted, he grabbed his books from his back-pack and thought he would get his work done so how he get a good night sleep. He only had to complete two small assignments in Biology and Geometry, his favorite classes. They took him fifteen minutes in all to finish. After that he got something to eat, showered, and went to bed. He was a lot more excited about tomorrow's second practice than compared to the first. That day at school went by pretty fast. Melvin and Clay met each at the end of the hallway and walked to the locker room. They got changed into their equipment and went onto the field. Coach Smith started practice the same way, stretching and then straight into position drills. After the drills were completed, they broke up into offensive and defensive groups. Melvin and Clay each got a chance to run the ball against a live defense. After practice Coach Smith addressed the team about their game in only two more days. "We need to keep on coming to practice and getting better every single day. With only two more practices until our first game, new players may need to step up and play a lot more. I like what I'm seeing out of you guys, and as long as you keep your heads straight we will be fine against Richmond."  The next two days of practice went well. The team improved and Coach Smith thought that they finally were ready to play.  It was finally Friday, the day of the big game against Richmond. It was a home game and Melvin and Clay were supposed to show up at the field at six-thirty, and hour before the start of the game. The team they were playing Winfield, a school that was roughly fifteen minutes away from Winfield, Melvin’s school. They were expected to be a decent team but they had some young and inexperienced players also.  “I’m a little bit nervous,” said Melvin, “Winfield looks like a good team.”  “We’ll be alright,” Clay and the other guys assured him.  The team got dressed and was ready to take the field. Both Melvin and Clay were going to start, but Coach Smith reminded them to be ready at any moment.  When they finally took the field the crowd was cheering very loud. Melvin knew this was his chance and he was ready to show Troy and everybody else that he could do it.  The game was finally kicked off, Richmond was on offense first but they failed to move the ball so they punted. This continued for almost the entire game.  Early into the fourth quarter Winfield received the ball on a punt. Troy tried to catch it and run down the sideline, but a gang of Richmond players tackled him. He stayed down for a while and seemed to be seriously injured.  Coach Smith turned to the sidelines and yelled, “Where is Melvin, we need someone in for Troy.”  Melvin was nervous and sprinted out onto the field. He didn’t know what Coach Smith was going to do. Troy was the team’s best running back and Melvin had never even carried the ball once. He had proved himself in practice, but this was the real thing.  The play was sent into to the quarterback, it was a run play for Melvin to the right side. The ball was snapped and he received the handoff. He cut back after the hole closed and picked up a solid eight yards.  “Nice run!” Coach Smith shouted from the sidelines.  Melvin knew he could do it from this point on. It was his game to win and show everybody that he was a true player. For the remainder of the game, Coach Smith called running plays to him. On each run he consistently gained chucks of five to eight yards. <span style="color: #404040; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"> Eventually Richmond ended up winning the game. In the locker room Coach Smith and the other players congratulated Melvin. He was awarded the team’s Most Valuable Player. Although he was thrilled about his award, he felt some sympathy for Troy. Even though he bullied he and Clay, he never wanted to see him get hurt. <span style="color: #404040; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"> “Good game M.V.P.,” Troy said to Melvin. <span style="color: #404040; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"> “Thanks,” Melvin unexpectedly answered. “That means a lot coming from a player like you.”