When the Game Stands Tall, Special Movie Edition

by Neil Hayes

  If you’re a one-way player and you’re not out there kicking ass, that’s a crime. There’s no excuse for that. I don’t care if you’re playing against King Kong, if you’re a one-way guy, with the training you’ve had and the condition you’re in, you ought to be killing people out there.… There’s no reason why any of you should be dragging your ass the way [Andy] Briner and [Derek] Landri did last year. Those guys were two-way players. They went in and they didn’t come out. Or they came out when they were totally gassed. Make that decision now. Don’t be riding over to Memorial Stadium wondering what kind of effort you’re going to give today. To answer the question, you have to live up to what they already think of you. It’s a great question. Are their hearts as big as their chests? I read that in the paper today, and I thought, damn, what a compliment, but is it true? You’ll have to prove it with your play.

  “Anything I said about The Streak still holds true. I don’t give a shit about the win or the loss. I do care about how you play, with passion, desire, heart, intensity, grit, determination, do not give up, do not let up, that’s what I care about. That’s all you should care about, too. So, if we win it’s like, yes! We earned that son of a bitch. And if we lose, you say fuck it. We did the best we could. We move on. That’s how it’s got to be, because you’ll regret it later if it’s not.

  They go through the offensive and defensive checklists, with even more attention to detail than usual. But it’s getting late, and because kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m., Ladouceur doesn’t want the meeting to run long. He wants players to get their rest.

  “I still think I’m improving,” Cameron Colvin tells his teammates. “I haven’t proven anything yet. You guys can depend on me.”

  The coaches hope Gino Ottoboni will be the X factor, much like the unheralded Drew had been the year before. With the Poly defense keying on Drew—they aren’t going to let him sneak up on them again, remember—Ottoboni will play a more prominent role in the offense.

  “I feel like Cameron does, like I really haven’t proven myself yet,” Ottoboni says. “I’ve never rushed for 100 yards and that’s disappointing. Tomorrow afternoon I may not rush for 100 yards but every yard will be hard-fought. I’m not going to let you guys down because I know you guys are going to be doing the same thing.”

  “I don’t expect you to go for 100 yards,” Ladouceur tells Ottoboni. “I expect you to score a touchdown and pick up some first downs.”

  John Chan talks about how he hurt his knee in the second quarter of last year’s game and watched helplessly from the sideline when his teammates needed him most. He feels that he never proved himself against Poly, but vows that will soon change.

  “It seems like Poly underestimates me, and I don’t blame them because I haven’t done anything yet,” Cecil says later. “I look at this as an opportunity to make big plays.”

  ★ ★ ★

  Memorial Stadium on the University of California, Berkeley campus sits in picturesque Strawberry Canyon, with the pine tree–covered Berkeley hills to the east and a panoramic view of Oakland and San Francisco to the west. It remains one of the most spectacular settings in college football, even if the weathered wooden benches are filled with splinters and curling strips of paint hang from its cement walls.

  De La Salle players are getting their ankles taped, reviewing scouting reports, checking their equipment, and listening to music when a crisis arises.

  Kicker Tony Binswanger has forgotten his helmet.

  “Sorry, Coach,” he tells Eidson, who keeps his cool. No problem, he tells Binswanger. There are two hours before kickoff, enough time for someone to drive back to school and pick it up.

  “We can expect a few shanks now,” Eidson whispers to Aliotti as they discuss whom they should dispatch to fetch the helmet.

  Ladouceur paces around the silent room as kickoff approaches. He walks onto the balcony, near where former Cal coach Pappy Waldorf once addressed swelling masses of fans as if he were a presidential candidate. Below, he sees De La Salle fans are tailgating in the parking lot, and the mothers of several players join hands in a pregame prayer.

  A floor fan drones in the front of the room, drowning out the nervous coughing and throat-clearing. Ladouceur shares a joke with Blasquez before slowly making his way to the front of the room and closing the sliding glass door to the balcony, which clanks shut with the finality of a cell door. He turns off the fan and composes his thoughts.

  “You guys enjoy this day and have fun,” he says at last, breaking the silence. “The fun begins when you start making plays out there. It’s a special day for De La Salle football. It’s a special day for high school football, and you guys are part of that. You should enjoy that and be proud of that. It takes a lot of work to get to this point where we are right now, and it will take a lot more work to put us over the top in this one. I know you guys are going to do that today.”

  Long Beach Poly players can be heard chanting “Let’s go Po-ly!” through the closed locker room door as they prepare to take the field. It’s unnerving.

  “Don’t panic,” Ladouceur resumes, louder now. “Don’t worry about making mistakes. Mistakes are going to be made. They’re going to make plays today. We’ve got to make more plays than they do. You do that with execution and by getting after them. Be smart on special teams. Get good field position for us. Don’t clip. Don’t let a punt roll. If it’s a bad punt take it on a good hop, get in front of it and have fun. This is what you guys do as football players. We’re at that game. So go out and glorify yourselves personally and collectively, and I mean that in a very spiritual way.”

  Strangers slap them on their helmets and shoulder pads as they walk silently through the locker room door. “Put a hurt on them,” one gray-haired man says. Players hold hands as they walk solemnly down two flights of stairs, through the low stone tunnel, and into the brilliant sunshine. The grass is an almost electric green in contrast to the deep blue sky. “California” is spelled out on a backdrop of blue and gold diamonds in one end zone. “Golden Bears” adorns the other.

  Stadium workers have roped off seating in both end zones of the 75,000-seat stadium. The De La Salle side is packed from top to bottom, goal line to goal line. The pregame reception for De La Salle alumni and supporters was packed. The whole day feels like a reunion.

  Poly fans, facing the early afternoon sun, fill up about one-fourth of the visitors’ side. The final attendance will be announced as 15,000; the crowd appears much larger than that.

  Freddie Parish was a two-way standout during his sophomore year at South Torrance High School but sat on the bench behind All-American free safety Darnell Bing during his junior year at Poly. He was so physically impressive at recruiting combines during the off-season that he collected fourteen scholarship offers before starting his first game for Poly. He already has committed to Notre Dame.

  A De La Salle teammate points it out during warm-ups—Parish has a picture of Drew on the pad that protects his lower back. On the left side of the picture is the word “Drew,” and on the right side, “Who?”

  Broadcasters tell their audience that Cecil has yet to throw a touchdown pass as the offense takes the field in their home green jerseys.

  Drew, who returns the opening kickoff 25 yards, runs up the middle for two more on the first play of the game before being hit hard by Parish. The Poly defense isn’t as massive as it was the year before, but this still looks like a college team. Poly players, in their white jerseys with green numbers, gold helmets, and gold pants, tower over the De La Salle offensive linemen.

  Ottoboni gets the ball next and is swallowed by the Poly line. The senior has never been so nervous about a game. The defense will be preoccupied with Drew, and he hopes to play the role that Drew played the year before. He has gotten more repetitions in practice, and Panella told him earlier in the week that this will be his breakout game.

  Cecil drops confidently back on third-and-8 and hits Cameron Colvin for an 18-yard gain. On the next pla
y, Chris Biller, starting at right tackle, fires off the ball and straight into the team highlight film.

  Biller is matched against six-foot-five, 250-pound defensive end Junior Lemau’u, who is ranked the number two defensive end in the West after bench-pressing 185 pounds thirty-five times at a recruiting camp during the summer.

  Biller, five inches shorter and forty-five pounds lighter, buries his facemask in Lemau’u’s chest and drives him 10 yards off the line. Then, with a powerful twist of his torso, he wrenches the larger defender onto his back and falls on him.

  It is easily the most dominating block of the year, and it helps Drew pick up 17 yards to the Poly 35-yard line.

  “Besides the fact that it was a great block, it said a lot about what we do,” Ladouceur says later. “It shows a lot of the belief and courage our kids have, that they can take out guys who are bigger and stronger than them. They have the ability to rise above size and ability difference by sheer determination. It stood for something besides a great block.”

  Ottoboni picks up five yards, and 15 more are tacked onto the end of the play because of a facemask penalty on the Jackrabbits.

  Drew disappears into a scrum in the middle of the line on the next play before popping out the other side. He absorbs a ferocious hit from a Poly defensive back but somehow spins away, dropping his hand to the turf to maintain his balance. He keeps his legs churning and dives to the 1-yard line as the De La Salle crowd goes wild.

  Cecil scores on a sneak and Binswanger, who received his helmet with time to spare, adds the extra point to give the Spartans a 7–0 lead with 9:07 left in the first quarter.

  Panella is in Cecil’s face as soon as the senior walks off the field, congratulating him for the game-opening drive. Biller wears a Cheshire grin as he walks the sideline, his hair clipped in military style.

  Eidson expects Long Beach to throw deep. He wouldn’t be surprised if left-handed quarterback Leon Jackson throws a bomb to Derrick Jones on the first play from scrimmage, repeating the Jackrabbits’ opening play from the 2001 game.

  “We’ve got fast guys, but we don’t have anybody as fast as Derrick Jones,” Eidson said earlier in the week.

  Dwayne Washington picks up a yard on first down before recovering his own fumble. Spartans’ linebacker Terrance Kelly pops Lorenzo Bursey after a 3-yard gain before Jackson finds receiver Alex Watson wide open over the middle for a 26-yard gain.

  “There’s got to be a safety back there,” Aliotti points out on the sideline.

  “I know that!” Eidson screams, signaling in the next play.

  Jackson’s scrambling ability worries Eidson. He has been emphasizing the importance of defensive linemen staying in their lanes all week, even if it means sacrificing a pass rush. It is a lot to ask, considering that the average Poly lineman is six-foot-four, 284 pounds, and De La Salle’s defensive front averages six-foot, 225.

  It means that the Spartans’ line will be forced to rush straight up the field against a much bigger opponent on almost every play, which could help give Jackson the time he needs to find receivers downfield.

  He finds Watson open over the middle again, but the pass is high and Watson is unable to hang on. Two plays later, Poly punts.

  Eidson’s strategy appears to be paying off as the first quarter continues. The Jackrabbits are unable to run the ball, and Jackson is growing frustrated. After a short completion on third-and-long ends Poly’s second drive of the game, the quarterback, who doubles as the punter, stands on the field shaking his head in disgust.

  He shanks a punt off the side of his foot for 13 yards on the next play, giving the ball to De La Salle near midfield.

  Ottoboni gains 21 yards on the fifth play of the next drive, but the gain is nullified because of a holding penalty. Still, Ottoboni is central to the game plan, which becomes even more obvious when he runs a draw play on third-and-9 from the Long Beach 27-yard line.

  He tries to spin off a hit in the middle of the line when a defender lands on his lower leg, bending his knee and ankle at an unnatural angle. The ball pops loose and a huge pileup ensues. Poly players signal that their team has recovered the fumble as officials wade into the pile.

  It takes several minutes to sort everything out. Officials rule that Ottoboni’s forward progress had been stopped before the fumble occurred, and therefore De La Salle maintains possession. Players begin to back away. Ottoboni remains on the ground. Soon Blasquez is at his side.

  Ottoboni spends the rest of the game on a stretcher on the sideline with ice bags on his left knee and ankle, his arm draped over his eyes to block the sun and hide his tears. He felt that his De La Salle career would be defined by his performance in this game. None of the scenarios he had played out in his mind during the past week prepared him for this.

  “This could’ve been my opportunity, my chance,” he thinks to himself as he lies there. “This was supposed to be my game.”

  Meanwhile, a trend is developing defensively for De La Salle. Poly isn’t running the ball effectively, and Jackson has nowhere to run and no open receivers to throw to. Poly offensive players are bickering, as Eidson predicted.

  “They’re getting tired already,” Panella observes from the sideline.

  De La Salle coaches never considered Cecil a classic passer; they predicted that he would be more of an option quarterback. It hasn’t evolved that way. Cecil gained positive yards through the first four games but has not established himself as a running threat. He’s quick enough to elude tacklers but does not have the speed to break big runs.

  He drops back to pass on third-and-5 on the Spartans’ next drive. When he can locate no open receivers, he tucks the ball under his arm and runs around the right end for six tough yards and a first down. He keeps the ball again on the next play and picks up eight more before being levelled by Parish. Cecil leaps to his feet and bangs helmets with a teammate. He’s not hurt. He’s as fired up as he’s ever been.

  It’s third-and-1 at midfield one play later when Cecil fakes the handoff up the middle and runs down the line, stringing defenders out. Then he spins back to the inside, picking up two yards where none existed, and De La Salle has another critical first down.

  It wasn’t the start of the next play that people will remember. Cecil bobbles the snap, almost allowing the ball to drop to the ground, before he drops back and surveys the field.

  Cameron Colvin is streaking down the seam, a full step ahead of a Long Beach Poly defender. Ladouceur has been waiting to match up his six-foot receiver against Poly’s five-foot-six cornerback.

  Cecil is hit as he throws, but the 46-yard pass is on the money. Colvin catches it at the 3 and runs untouched into the end zone, where he points to the sky to honor his late mother. He hadn’t planned the tribute. In fact, he didn’t even think of it until he crossed the goal line and heard the roar. Back near midfield Britt Cecil jumps to his feet when the realization hits him: that’s his first touchdown pass.

  The defender burned by Colvin redeems himself by blocking the extra point, making the lead 13–0 with 3:18 left in the half.

  As the players walk off the field at halftime, a number on the scoreboard seems to flash like a beacon. Long Beach Poly, with its tremendous size advantage and three backs who came into the game averaging more than eight yards per carry, gained only one yard rushing.

  “We found something out,” Eidson says at halftime as Ottoboni is carried into the locker room. “They’re not gods. We can wear them down but they’re not going to quit. If they score one touchdown their momentum will skyrocket.”

  “They’re tired up front,” Panella tells them. “We have to keep pounding. We’re in better shape than they are. They’re giving you great blocking surfaces. They’re standing straight up.”

  The halftime scene is radically different than it was the year before, when the players were physically wiped out. Blasquez tailored his off-season conditioning program so that players would be in peak physical condition for this game.

 
; Unlike 2001, players can’t wait to get back on the field. They feel as if Poly is ready to crumble. Ladouceur warned them that this will be a dirty job. Now they want to finish it.

  De’Montae Fitzgerald broods as minor adjustments are made and fluids are consumed.

  “What’s wrong with De’Montae?” Ladouceur whispers to Aliotti.

  “I don’t know,” Aliotti responds. “It looks like he swallowed a lemon.”

  Fitzgerald is hungry for his opportunity. He wants to contribute. There isn’t anyone in uniform who cares more about the people in that room. He desperately wants to make a difference.

  “You guys played hard in the first half,” Ladouceur says. “You guys did a great job on defense and offensively, too. You guys are moving the ball a little bit. We’ve got to move it again in the second half and get two more scores. We’ve got to keep plugging away. I think these guys are getting a little tired. They’re not as good as they’re cracked up to be. But you have to get after them to make it happen. So, there it is. You’ve played half of this game. You guys can do this. You jumped on them and now you’ve got to finish them. We’re kicking off, and you’ve got to hold those guys and get the ball back. If we take it in one more time we’re in good shape. Make that happen.”

  The first drive of the second half is an extension of the first half for the Jackrabbits. The smaller, quicker, perhaps even stronger De La Salle defensive line stuffs the run and pressures Jackson.

  Jackson throws deep to Jones, but he is surrounded by Colvin, Drew, and Bates. Poly salvages some momentum when Jackson’s 51-yard punt is downed at the De La Salle 1-yard line.

  If the Spartans are going to score on their opening possession of the second half, as Ladouceur urged them to do at halftime, they will have to march 99 yards against one of the nation’s top defenses.

  A quarterback sneak gains two yards and gives the offense some breathing room, but the Spartans are soon faced with a critical third-and-8 deep in De La Salle territory.