A week before our first game the sophomore football team traveled to a field behind the famous Greek Orthodox Church designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and just to the east and north of Milwaukee Lutheran High School whose sophomores were about to scrimmage with us. Their coach got together with Coach Gunderson and took his second team defense to scrimmage our second team offense. So, we remained where we were and scrimmaged against their first team defense on the portion of the field nearest the school.
Nothing memorable happened on offense. I don’t even recall if I had a chance to carry the ball. However, when we switched to our first team defense and everybody was able to play his own position their coach came over to watch while Coach Gunderson watched the second teams play. Of course, this is when my big moment came. One of our linemen hit their running back and the ball came loose. I dove from my outside linebacker position to the bottom of the pile forming around the ball and recovered the fumble.
On the ride back to school the bus was filled with chatter about my defensive play, but it would be of little consequence in another week.
During the week that followed drills became more intense, and we even had a short scrimmage with some of the second string varsity players. Nemovitz, who had been on the team as a freshman but had missed the first month of practice due to some injuries, started taking handoffs from Wiemeri. He was not as big as Ariana or myself and he fumbled easily when hit, but he had the one thing we both lacked, speed.
After our final practice Coach Gunderson gathered us all together to tell us that despite the fact the Rufus King sophomore team had been city champions the past three years they were no better than us. Then, he added his little equalizer by telling us they put on their jockstraps the same way we did, one leg at a time. We trotted back to the locker room pumped up and filled with confidence.
When they first got off the bus they didn’t look that tough, but when they came down to the field and stood near Cox, our tallest player, there was little doubt they held a size advantage. Still, we knew if we played together as a team we could defeat them. On the first play from scrimmage Wiemeri called my number. I went off tackle and kept my legs pumping before someone got my feet and another hit me across my midsection. As I returned to the huddle it looked like I might have picked up a couple yards.
Next, Ariana went up the middle but only went another couple yards. Wiemeri called my number on a cross buck over the other side. Determined to keep my legs pumping until I picked up the first down I was met by a swarm of tacklers as I made it to the line of scrimmage.
After we punted, on their first play from scrimmage they ran a sweep in my direction. There were four or five huge monsters charging in my direction and I had no idea I was backpedaling until we were all in the end zone.
Coach Gunderson had a few choice words for me, and I heard some parents commenting on the inappropriate terms, but that was the last thing I heard. A few plays later Nemovitz went off tackle, headed for the sideline and made it into their end zone. I may have offered a halfhearted cheer.
We never scored again. They scored five or six more times using the sweep effectively on both sides. Nemovitz, Ariana, and Wiemeri took turns getting hit and fumbling. King’s uniforms never got dirty, and I just held back the tears.
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