Blood, Sweat and Tears Part 81
At the start of the second half of the championship game, there were even more empty seats in the stands. Obviously, the fans wanted to beat traffic back home since there was not much for them to stick around for. While it disheartened the Wolverines when they stepped out into the chilled air, it also gave them even more purpose in doing whatever it took to turn the tide in their favor.
Just as they had at the start of the first half, the Boars smirked and stared proudly on their prey from across the field. "God, I can't wait to wipe those looks off their faces," Trowa muttered under his breath.
Chuckling deeply beside him, Wufei reassured quietly, "We'll get the chance. Don't forget that they're also trying to cover up the fact that they've been wearing themselves out. Scare tactics have worked well for them up until now."
* * * * * *
Seated in one of the leather seats of the owner's box, Dorothy bit her bottom lip nervously. In her lap, little Hope was curled up close and dozing off.
With a small smile as she watched the child, the team owner was silently grateful once more that the children had not been around to witness their father-to-be being beaten pretty badly during the last quarter. Had they witnessed something like that, it would have taken time to calm the youngsters down. Instead, they returned from their visit to the snack stand unaware of the incident.
As dangerous as the game was becoming for her team, Dorothy's stomach churned over the thought of their having to endure another two quarters of Houston's brutality. Thirty minutes on the play clock was a terribly long time. Her cold eyes glued to her players as they filed along their sideline, she held her breath and wished them the best.
Noin, Quatre, Solo, Hilde, Lady Une and the remainder of the children filled up nearly all of the remaining seats as they watched the field closely. The air was so still that it seemed as though everyone was holding their breath in anticipation of what was to come.
* * * * * *
Smiling widely in the commentator box, Tim greeted, "Welcome back, everyone. It is officially time for the Wolverines to sink or swim coming into the second half of the game. Since they have the first possession at the start here, they are going to have to make something happen if they want to stay in the running for the championship."
"Right you are, Tim," Adam stated. "While towards the end of the last quarter Pittsburgh showed some signs of life to move down the field to get a score on the board, they are going to have to do a lot more than that to defeat Houston. Every team that has been this far behind the Boars in the past has failed to close the gap and take the lead."
Coach Tishim smirked as he paced up and down the Houston sideline. "We have them right where we want them, boys," he called over the crowd. "Finish them off!" With a loud battle cry, the kicking team charged onto the field.
Zechs looked over to his punt return team and told them, "Show them we're not down yet, guys!" Letting out their own yell, the athletes ran out to their places near the Houston end zone.
The kick was made and a beautiful catch placed the Wolverines with seventy-one yards from their goal. It had been the best return for them of the day. Cheering, the offensive line finished strapping on their helmets and took their mark.
His bandaged hand wrapping around the football, Trowa looked up into the fierce glare of the lineman right in front of him. "Why don't you and your little friends just take it easy before you get yourselves hurt?" the defender sneered.
Snorting, Trowa smirked, "Funny. I was just about to suggest the same thing to you." Stunned by the retort, the lineman blinked his widened eyes. His surprise was quickly replaced with rage and those eyes narrowed once more with a deep growl.
All attention was brought back to the game when Heero shouted, "Set! ... Set!... Hike!" Instantly snapping the ball back, Trowa pushed himself forward with everything he had to wrap himself around the lineman to hold him back. Not only was the center much more forceful, but the entire defensive team moved with a force that they hadn't shown.
Never expecting such a surge, the Boars were caught off guard and actually pushed aside and held for a few heartbeats. It was all the time Heero needed to spot Wufei as the receiver spiraled and spun himself free of the blockers following him. Hurling the ball at his friend, the quarterback grunted in effort.
Eyes locked on his target, Wufei ran ahead to make a perfect catch unmatched. The moment the football was in his hands, he focused on what was ahead of him and nothing else. Sprinting on, he was taken down after a gain of sixteen yards.
"First down and then some!" Adam exclaimed as the people in the stands surged to their feet shouting. "That woke the crowd back up." Laughing as he looked over to the slack-jawed and wide-eyed Boars, he added, "And the whole Houston sideline as well."
Howard clapped his hands and grinned, "That's setting the pace, boys! Keep the momentum going!" Just beside him, Darren folded his arms and bit his lip.
Without breaking for a huddle, Heero ran to his new spot and gave his teammate a signal by brushing his right shoulder that the ball was going to be run. Settling into the ground, the offensive line focused on their glaring opposition.
Arms raised, Heero made his cry and the ball was snapped. Spinning, he handed it off into his lover's possession. Another gap in the Boars' wall was opened for the running back to clear with little difficulty. Not wasting a moment, Duo ran without looking back.
Throwing his headset to the ground, Coach Tishim screamed, "What the hell is going on out there! Stop that son of a bitch!" Winded and nearly at the last of their reserves, his players hurried after Maxwell as fast as they could.
"Unbelievable!" Tim cried over the deafening crowd. "Duo Maxwell just ran for another twenty-four yards to put his team well past the half-field marker! The Wolverines might actually score on this possession! They are already in field goal kicking range!"
In the stands, the fans that had been heading out for an early leave suddenly stopped and all but ran back to their seats. Witnessing that from her view in the owner's box, Dorothy snickered with a relieved smile.
Looking to his teammates as they huddled together, Heero called, "All right, here's the order! Run, throw, run! We'll huddle again if we need to after that!" Quickly breaking the huddle, the Wolverines returned to their line and hunched down.
After the next snap, Duo was able to break away again with the help of his friends holding back their weakening opposition. The thirty-one yards that remained were cut down to only eighteen yards following that charge. Looking more and more shell-shocked with every play, a dazed Houston defense returned to their new marks.
At the Wolverine sideline, their coaching staff was having a good laugh. "The bastards don't even know what's hitting them!" Trent chuckled as he shook his head.
He spun to his defensive team and pointed to the field. "Don't let a score here go to waste! Now you can actually see that you can better these guys!" Smiling widely, the players nodded and chomped at the bit to get their chance to prove themselves. If the offensive line could do it, certainly they could as well.
On the field, Heero's eyes were narrowed in determination as he cried, "Hike!" Desperation setting in, the Boars forced themselves to work harder at preventing any further progression. Their legs burning, the blockers did their best to stay on top of Wufei and Scott.
For a split second, Chang managed to free himself enough for a catch. When he turned to signal that he was ready, he found that Dailey was already in the end zone when he still had a bit to go yet. "Shit! He's getting quick!" Wufei laughed himself.
Instead of trying to get into the end zone to make the catch himself, the Chinese receiver met Heero's eyes and pointed excitedly to his counterpart. Quickly spotting his new target, the quarterback dug his feet in and hurled the football just as he was about to be taken down. At the last minute, he narrowly avoided the attack by breaking as soon as the ball left his hand.
Head up to watch the ball, Wufei muttered, "Come on. Come on. Get there."
Eyes wide in realizing that he was the one intended for the catch, Scott dodged and weaved from two blockers that suddenly joined him. Jumping up along with them, he opened his arms and kept his gaze on the quickly descending ball.
All around, everyone froze. There was a collective gasp from the crowd as the fans held their breaths while rising to their feet. Wolverines and Boars alike stood at the edge of their sidelines in witness. Those on the field that were not in the end zone froze in place with wide eyes.
Growling deeply, Scott stretched himself as far as he could in midair to get to the ball before his challengers. Unable to feel or hear anything, he came back down the ground. Heart racing, he was afraid to look down but he saw the referee across from him raised his arms over head to sign a good touch down.
"Touchdown, Dailey! Touchdown, Dailey!" Adam cheered as the audience exploded. "In a selfless act from Wufei Chang, Scott Dailey is the first Wolverine to score a touchdown in this championship game!"
Slowly looking down to his hands as the blockers walked off shaking their heads, Scotts wide eyes gazed on the football gripped tightly in his hands.
All of a sudden, he was engulfed by his laughing and cheering teammates in a round of hugs and pats to the back. "Nice work, Dailey," Wufei smiled as he patted his shielded head when he finally reached him. "Couldn't have done it better, myself."
Beside himself, Scott shook his head, "But... but you could have made it to the end zone, yourself."
Waving his hand nonchalantly, Chang snorted, "I've made plenty of touchdowns. You earned this one." His face breaking out in a wide smile, Dailey did not need to speak a word of his intense appreciation. Dropping the football, the second-stringer threw his arms around his counterpart. Wufei laughed and returned the embrace.
Duo whistled through his teeth and shouted, "Let's hoist him up, gang!" There was not a single argument as he and the rest of the offensive line gathered Scott up on their shoulders to walk him off the field after his big victory.
Just when they did not think the crowd could grow any louder, they did as the blonde receiver removed his helmet and waved happily to the stands. On the sideline, the remainder of the Wolverines gave their teammate a standing ovation.
Back in the commentator booth, Tim smiled, "You know, over the years, no one has been able to say a bad thing about the Wolverines. While they have never been a threat up to now, they have always been respected by their peers and sports fans alike.
"This whole display is a great example of what that's the case. There is no showboating or spotlight stealing on this team. And when one of their own makes a big play the way Dailey just did, they make their appreciation known."
Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh kicker made a clean kick for the extra point.
Adam grinned, "That's right, Tim. And now, suddenly, we have a football game. With the score now at 17 to 10, it is within reason that the Wolverines could actually turn this around. They're clearly not out of the woods yet, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel."
Still celebrating on their sideline, the Wolverines grinned and waved over to their suddenly less-than-sure challengers across the field. No longer glaring and smirking, the Boars were clearly shaken and confused over their situation.
Folding his arms, Trent smirked to his team, "Make me proud, boys!" With a cry, the defensive athletes took the field.
* * * * * *
Over the next few possessions, it was becoming more and more clear that there was something very different about the Wolverines. They were applying themselves more than they had the entire first half.
At the end of their own resources, the Boars had no choice but to switch some of their weakest first-stringers with their backup players. Just to keep their starters fresh, Zechs sent in a lot of his own second and third-stringers knowing that they were far more experienced than Houston's supportive athletes.
For a while, the score teetered back and forth. Wufei managed to make a touchdown, as did Duo. Then sheer fear of losing their crown kicked in for Houston. Whether they were exhausted or unprepared, they pushed themselves to the limits to keep ahead in the game.
With less than two minutes in the game, the score was 31 to 24 in favor of the Wolverines. Now, it was all up to the defensive team to keep the Boars from scoring to tie the game. And Houston only had forty yards to go from making it. Just One good throw or a successful run and they could pull it off.
Pacing the line back and forth, Duo muttered over and over, "OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod." His hand gripping the back of his neck, he yelled to his teammates, "Come on, guys! Hold them back!"
In the stands, the crowd was clapping their hands to chants of "Defense! Defense!" Looking like he was about to shoot flames from his glaring eyes, Coach Tishim had his arms folded and back straight in a defiant stance.
The football was snapped and all eyes were on the quarterback as he kept the ball to make a throw. "Stop him. Stop him," Heero whispered anxiously as his wide eyes stayed on the other team's captain.
As hard as they tried, the defensive linemen could not break through to get a hold of the quarterback before he fired the football. Eyes wide and jaws hanging, the Wolverines watched the ball hang in the air for an eternity for a receiver twenty yards away from the end zone. "No! No! No!" Zechs cried as his hands reached for the top of his capped head.
From seemingly out of nowhere, two blockers charged into the scene the moment they saw where the football was headed. One managed to get to their man sooner than the other and spun just as his target fell towards them. Leaping, the red-and-gold clad blocker came down with the football held tightly in his care.
Adam jumped from his seat exclaiming, "Interception! Pittsburgh intercepted the ball!" Paper and other items were thrown into the air as the audience broke into wild cheers and cries while jumping from their own seats.
Sprinting from his challengers, the blocker ran in the opposite direction for the Wolverine end zone. "Go! Go! Go!" Dorothy, Quatre, Lady Une, Noin, Hilde, Solo and the kids shouted in the owner's box.
On his way to the end zone, the blocker held up the football and pointed to his elated teammates while they celebrated and cheered him on. Free and clear of any opposition, he ran to seal the win with another touch down. All around, there were streamers, cups and signs thrown onto the field as the crowd exploded.
"It's official, everyone!" Tim announced over the noise. "The Pittsburgh Wolverines are the American League champions! They are going to the Super Bowl!"
Duo jumped into Heero's arms with a celebratory cry. Paying no mind to anyone else around them, he kissed his partner soundly before yelling, "We're the league champs, 'Ro!" Unable to trust his voice on account of the emotions swirling through him, the quarterback just gave a wide smile and nodded.
Ever the gentleman, Zechs was one of the first to reach the middle of the field to shake the other coach's hand. "Good game, Tishim," he told him sincerely. "Damn good game." Pushing the offered hand away, the red-faced Houston head coach grumbled angrily under his breath and walked off.
Howard stood beside his boss and patted his back. "Some people just can't lose graciously," he grinned. "Don't let it get to you."
Laughing, Zechs turned to him and replied, "Pops, there is not a damned thing that could bring me down today!" No sooner had those words left him was he doused with water from the huge cooler. Even that only served to make him laugh all the harder.
* * * * * *
On the other side of the country, the Cougars were sitting in their locker room following their own game. Each person in the room sporting a cap and shirt reading 'National League Champions AC201,' they stared at the glowing screen of the television before them.
Having to watch the Wolverines interviewed and exalted as they were, their stomachs wretched. None looked more fit to be tied than Treize and Alex as they glared to the images at the front of the pack.
"All I have to say," the head coach gritted without looking back to his team, "If you cannot beat these jokes in two weeks at the Super Bowl, you had all better hope that another team will pick you up when you're fired."
Behind him, his players just smirked and snorted. While the man was not one to make idle threats, there was no need to be alarmed that they might actually lose to worry about it.
This was going to be the year that everyone would be talking about the San Francisco Cougars- the NFL Champions of AC201.
TBC...
Back to SkyLark's Fanfictions Page