It began on a dry, crisp August day on the field that many look at as a place for rites of passage. Our coaches loved telling us that the field is where we start our lives as men. They often made sure that we did not ruin the same field that they had practiced on when they were younger. I entered my sophomore year that season, and I was on the defensive line. There was my teammate, He was the guy that always had a big smile on his face, but the smiles came to an abrupt end one day.

It was evident that there was something up with him. He seemed a bit irritated and was slacking during the drills. After our drills were finished, we got into a skirmish. He was pushed off by the coach and then he walked away. I didn’t really worry why he did it, but I knew he was already upset.

Our coaches had the list of the first and second line up. I had always been trying for the first line up throughout the season but the coach called my name for the second line up. Right then, I knew things had to change because I wanted to be in the first line up. Throughout that week, I tried to work hard to get in the first line up, but again, I didn’t make it. I knew that it was without my teammate that I was suffering. I knew that I did not have that other guy pushing me to my limits and I had to change that. I later talked to him about our skirmish earlier in the week.

We eventually worked things out. He came back to practice the next day and while we were doing our drills, I noticed that he was behind. I would always get at him for slacking. We were later put onto two different teams to scrimmage each other. After the scrimmages, he was upset at his performance. He felt like he had not done enough. I talked to him about it, and how he could get over it. Over the next few days, leading towards our first game. I did what I had to do. I worked with him and myself to get us in the first line up. Whenever he would slack, I would remind him of who he was playing for. It was a way for him to build himself up and to be a better player.

Everyday we became better and better. We both drove each other that week. On the day before the game, our coaches told us the line up. He began to read the first names off, When the names were called, we knew immediately that the coach had made the right choice – we were both in the first line up! Game day came, and it was one of the longest days of my life. We got our gear, suited up and got on the bus. The bus ride was refreshing. It got our minds on the game and, of course, our rivalry.. We got to the field and it was a good day to be playing the game of football. The energy surged as we went against our rivals from the kickoff to the last minute.

It was a very back and forth game. They just kept scoring on us but we fought back. We went on to lose that game, but it wasn’t the loss that counted. It was the hard work and effort placed into the game. We walked off that field exhausted, but we both had put all the effort into preparing ourselves for a fantastic game. I was glad that I had my teammate and the determination for us to get better.