MICHAEL'S SPORTS

In this COVID- ridden season which has forced states to postpone football until January, Michael's sophomore year came to a conclusion Thursday night on a crisp evening as his Veterans Memorial Chargers fell to the Donna Redskins, 16-7. They finished with a 2-5 record. They could have easily finished with a 5-2 season, but crucial mistakes and falling short in the clutch cost them three victories. My son's final game embodied this harsh and pitiless reality.

Trailing 13-6 with twelve seconds left in the half, the Chargers' punter, deep in his own territory, fumbled the snap followed by a block that gave the Redskins the ball on the five with two seconds on the clock. They kicked a field goal to increase their lead to 16-7.

With five minutes remaining in the game and the ball at midfield, the Chargers gambled on a fourth-and-seven. Michael lined up in the slot, which is midway between the offensive line and the outside receiver. He ran a wheel route. He starts ten yards down the field, cuts to the sidelines and then turns it upfield. He could have walked into the end zone, but the pass slipped through his outstretched fingers and fell to the turf.

In an world of eternal "ifs" highlighted by sports being a game of inches, a normal punt and a Michael catch would have given Vets a 14-13 victory. But that's not the way the football bounces. Regardless, the season was an amazing experience for Michael. As a sophomore he led the team in catches, yards and TDs among the receivers. He returned kickoffs and took hits the likes he has never sustained in his life. And he leapt to his feet eager for more.

He has natural talents, fast feet and great hands for starters, but how bad does he really want it? He begins with a personal trainer Monday whose body speaks for itself. As hard as it is for me to believe, Michael will be a junior next year. He dreams of playing college football, so the next two years are decisive if he is going to realize his goal. I will do everything on my part to help him, but he is a big boy now, just short of being a man, so, ultimately, there's not much that Daddy can do but shell out the cash.

I didn't miss any of Michael's two scrimmages or seven games. I sat in the stands with Claudia and the rest of the loyal fans. When a team isn't playing to expectations, the buck stops with the coaches. This is a veteran staff. They have had success at Vets and at other schools prior to their arrivals with the Chargers. Beyond their experience, they are caring persons who are passionate about their players. I was a longtime athlete and coach and I know something about the frustration Michael felt as the pass slipped through his hands and something of the disappointments the coaches endured as wins ended in losses.

My biggest regret as a player came my senior year in high school. Starting as a shooting guard, I was the leading scorer in our first game, but a number of challenges came my way. Rather than stepping up to the free-throw line and sinking my shot, I slinked into the lockerroom and quit because I didn't have the balls to overcome the obstacles facing me. That cowardly decision haunts me to this very moment because I could play ball.

During my 39-year stint in the BISD, I made a name for myself by coaching Porter boys soccer to several district titles and an appearance in the state finals. I was the first head girls soccer coach at Rivera, but I resigned after one solid season in order to coach the boys' junior varsity and freshmen teams. I didn't like the pressure and responsibility of being a varsity head coach. During that time the Raiders went to three state finals and triumphed as Texas first 6A champs in 2015. I have told colleagues on many occasions that in order to be a good assistant coach, you have to have been a good head coach.

But my assignments weren't limited to soccer. I coached football at both Porter and Rivera and I finished my coaching career my last two years with the tennis program. I could write a memoir about coaching I had so many experiences, most of them positive, but there were difficult moments with players, parents, teachers and administrators at your throat for the slightest reason. This is one of a thousand tales, but we were in Harlingen for a game when my second-string goalie had a temper tantrum because he wasn't starting. He left the field and walked home. I spent the next 12 hours frantically trying to track him down for fear of the repercussions that might befall me for his immature behavior.

Coaching is tough. Dealing with so many different personalities in a competitive setting in which your failures appear on The Brownsville Herald's sports section's front pages requires all one's skills and talents. Just like me as a senior, you have kids quit on you for no apparent motive. It is a constant juggling act with so many UIL rules and local regulations that you're constantly looking over your shoulder. You would think there would be a brotherhood with an unspoken code among coaches, but oftentimes your worst enemies are fellow coaches who are as bad as Trump trying to steal the presidency. They will search for a technicality posted in small print and report you in order to have a loss metamorphose into a win based on a forfeiture.

I digress, but this anecdote is an insight into the gray world of putting teams on the field. If a player was academically ineligible, I would never play him. That was a black-and-white infraction that resulted in an automatic forfeiture, but there were few coaches who outhustled me in convincing a teacher to change a 17 into a 71, 70 the passing grade. One one occasion a female instructor told me after I related my plight, "I will pass Juan, but you have to buy me at $50 gift certificate for Red Lobster." Juan was the top scorer in South Texas, so I had no other choice. "But I need that grade officially in the books by four today," I servilely beseeched her. "Okay," she tersely replied with a haughty scorn smeared across her matronly face.

For the last two years I have been looking over the shoulders of the Vets football and track coaches since Michael is also a sprinter. They are true gentlemen. As aficionados we naturally second-guess coaches, but they are professionals and it is their call. What is the difference between a 5-2 and 2-5 season? The greatest coaches can't affect an outcome if their squad doesn't execute properly and their opponents do. That's the bottom line. Just like the athletes put their faith in their coaches, coaches put their faith in their athletes with a hope honed on the practice field that the latter will rise to the occasion.

I can't wait for next year!!!