OMIGOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHHH!

Saturday, November 16th, 2013.

A date which will live in infamy.

FOR THE COWBOYS!!!!! :-D

Y'all, I don't know how explain what a MONUMENTAL DEAL today's youth football game was. Our team's first tackle football playoff game ever - in three years. Against the Cowboys - the dirtiest team in our division (players ejected EVERY WEEK for unsportsmanlike conduct! How on earth can they be OK with that being their "normal"?!?! SMH.) The same Cowboys who cheated their way to barely beating us for a medal at the 7-on-7 passing league playoff night back in May, (there were *no refs* that night. Insane, I know.) The same Cowboys we've already lost to twice this season, including our worst game of the year just LAST WEEK. What are the horrific chances we'd face those hooligans, again, first round of the playoffs...

But we did.

Breaking the run-through banner! GAME ON:

And we brought our A game!!! Our Falcons played harder & better than they've played any game all season. Or truly, EVER!!! Even when the Cowboys played dirty, we didn't bend to their mess. Will was lighting up the defense like he used to, and we were up 6-0 at halftime! When I crossed the field with my cheerleaders, (our cheerleaders switch sides at halftime to do one cheer for the other team & then go back to our home sides to do our halftime dances,) the other coach was flipping out: "We KNEW they were going to be better than they were last week!" ;-) :-D You better believe it, baby! :-D

BTW - our halftime dance? Best the cheerleaders have ever done, as well!!!

The middle stunts practicing for our halftime dance (Annelise flying on the left)

Our precious Falcons girls are even full of spirit when taking their post-dance halftime break!

The second half was sooooooo long. At the start of the 4th quarter, it was still 6-0. I wished it could just end then! :-P But the Cowboys scored & made their extra point, so we were down 6-7 and needed to fight. We did. 13-7.

Then on the last drive of the 4th, THEY SCORED! :-O It was like a nightmare. 13-13. If we held them, we'd go to overtime; it not, we'd lose by one point...

WE (& esp. Will Blake = defensive machine!) HELD THEM!!!

But then the agony of OVERTIME! (I honestly just wanted to pass out. If any of y'all have watched me freak out over a Redskins game on TV, trump that up exponentially when it's my son & my husband's coaching on the line!!!) We got the ball first. We had four downs to score... WE DID!!! And made our extra point!!!

But it's not sudden death - they got an equal four downs to try to score as well. We held one. We held two. They scored on three.

Heart. Floor. Gut. Punched.

If we could hold them from their extra point, we'd win! If not, more OT. At this point, let me note how proud I am that I was still coaching my cheerleaders, instead of being carried off on a stretcher. :-P ;-) Honestly, coaching cheer is SUCH a blessing, b/c I am a sideline-screaming mama, and it was a gift to "have" to focus on the girls, instead of 100% freaking out. :-D

It all came down to this last overtime play. We were all exhausted. The players, the coaches, the cheerleaders, the parents - we had all put every ounce of heart we had forth on that field. We prayed. (I prayed numerous time throughout the game!)

They snapped the ball for the extra point attempt. Guess which defensive Falcon flew in to take the runner down? WILL BLAKE!!!! (Along with awesome teammate, Preston! ;-))

OMIGOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FALCONS WIN OUR FIRST PLAYOFF GAME EVER! DEFEATING THE DIRTY FOES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :-D They. Were. Stunned. STUNNED!!! And it was AWESOME! They completely took for granted that they were going to beat us. They came in cocky and freaked out when we went up first & didn't succumb to their *pinching our players (I know - what?!?!) & kicking our players in their helmets when they were down*!!! We played hard, never got discouraged (our biggest obstacle this year), and never, ever gave up! We deserved this huge upset win more than any other game, perhaps in our youth league's history.

Cheering us to victory! (Annelise flying with "FIGHT")

So not only did we vanquish a major foe, not only did good triumph, not only did these players get their first playoff victory ever, not only did JB get his coaching cred kicked up a few points ;-), but NOW WE ALL GET HUGE TROPHIES! :-D (Isn't that what's most important to the kids?! :-P ;-)) The top four teams in the league get trophies, so if you won today, that means your team (& cheer squad) will be presented with big trophies at halftime of the Turf Bowl (league Super Bowl on Dec. 7th), even if you lose next week and end up 3rd or 4th overall. The teams who lost today get nothing. Absolutely zilch.

Our entire household is still glowing.

Exhausted, but glowing. :-)

JB sent this to the team yesterday:

I told Will in the car on the way home that he will remember this day and this game for his entire life.
His first playoff win.
With *his dad* as his coach.
With his mom & sister cheering.
In overtime.
Against a huge rival.
With *him* essentially winning the game for us.

What do Falcons do? RISE UP!!!
(And now, play again NEXT WEEK!!! :-O :-D)

Comments

  1. What an awesome family experience! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a neat story!! Congrats to the whole family!!!

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  3. We are STILL floating on Cloud 9 over this...
    Just...magical...

    ReplyDelete

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