Rouse vs. Rockdale

Well... a lot has happened over the weekend, so I am sorry that I have not written my post sooner.

Rouse Raiders fell to the Rockdale Tigers 56-0.
Sounds worse than it actually was.

Factor One,
the Rockdale Tigers were ranked #10 in class 3A, so when you look at the score and you think about that- its really not so bad. Also consider the fact that we are a group of Sophomores and 4 Freshman. They had 18 Seniors and 15 returning starters. That is enough said right there.

Factor Two-
From my own personal point of view, I was nervous. I was nervous from the get-go. I am always this way on game day, so it was actually quite exciting. I realized how much I miss the Varsity, Friday Night atmosphere. I also realized that our players have never experienced this type of excitement before and unfortunately for them- they don't have anyone to look up to and see what they go through on game day to get ready for a Varsity game.
The JV Field and the Varsity Field are very different Fields. Sure they look the same and they are have the same measurements, but the experience and the pressure is much different.
Not only is it an eye opening experience for the players, but it is also much different for the parents.

This was all put into prospective for me when, right before the game, I did my normal routine: search for Josh walk down to the fence and give him a good luck speech. However, I couldn't find him, so I am searching, searching , searching the field, the sidelines and no Josh.
I notice the players in the tunnel getting ready to come out and finally I found Josh. He was in the tunnel gearing the players up. Typically a coach will give the team a pep talk and walk to the sidelines and let the team finish pumping each other up.
So, it seemed strange to me to see Josh in the tunnel with the guys.
Then, it dawned on me that the boys probably had no idea WHEN to run out of the tunnel themselves. They have never done it and they have never seen it done either. They have NO ONE to look up to. Everyone is Looking UP TO THEM!
That in itself had to be overwhelming.

They had to be nervous and really, it showed in the first few drives of the game. If I could have yelled anything knowing that the players would hear me, the only words out of my mouth would have been "Calm down"

Factor Three-
We were unhealthy the entire week leading up to this game. That is a factor that NO ONE can help and unfortunately everyone that was sick, were all sick during the same week!

Good things-
1) we gained some Varsity experience! That is great and it was fun. Whether we won or lost, I was excited to watch some Friday Night Football.

2) Our players NEVER gave up. Never- they played the entire game and never gave up, or quit trying to make a play. They played all 48 minutes of the game. They TRIED and tried. That team was just plain better than us and they had Varsity playing experience and they have Seniors AND did I mention that they are a #10 3A team? The score really should have been a lot worse and believe me when I say that they did not back off of us in any way. They would have scored more if they could have, so really when you look at the scoreboard 56-0 isn't that bad considering you have Seniors playing Sophomores/Freshman.
Think of it like this: a Good College Team up against a GREAT NFL Team. (maybe that is a bit far fetched, but its all I could come up with)

I was upset for our team because I thought Josh would be upset. However, at the end of the game, I looked at him on the sidelines and I could tell he was fine. I know his looks and I know when he is mad, upset, confused and he was ok. Obviously there isn't a coach alive that is good with getting beat 56-0, but when you look at all the variables and who we were playing- he was ok and he was PROUD that they played and fought till the end. A lot of teams will just give up- and we never did, which counted for something to him.

3) We made some good plays. We took some hard hits. (By WE- I mean the players- sorry:)
We made some mistakes, but they were mistakes that Freshman and Sophomore make- that unfortunately, Junior/ Seniors do not make. Again, because they have more experience.

4) This isn't something that had to do with the game, but I have to say that Rockdale was wonderful. They take pride in their school, which was something I could tell right off the bat. They were nice to us- the opposing team. For the first time in a while, I walked into a field and no one knew that I was a coaches wife. So, I felt that their actions were genuine. They just thought I was another fan and they were nice to us. I felt good about that.
THEN, at the end of the game, watching both teams come together in a circle in the middle of the field and praying together gave me chills. I thought that was awesome.
AND to top it off- we went to hear our band play the Alma mater and Rockdale's team came to OUR SIDE OF THE FIELD and put their hands in the air and stood there, facing our crowd and listened to the Alma mater right behind our players. It was breath taking. In my 29 years of watching High School football games, I can honestly say that this was the ONLY time that I have ever seen this happen. I thought it showed class and respect for us and I really hope that the Raiders adopt this tradition. It was wonderful.

Raiders- I am sorry about our loss. I know it is hard, but we fought hard and we stuck with it until the very end and I am proud for all of us.
Now, lets put this game behind us and go beat up some Greyhound's!!!!!