Christian Short Stories

Web writes:  "Some prep memories are laughable"

'Twas late in the first half and the Aberdeen High School B Squad --  a ragtag bunch of Sophomores and a few juniors  --  was playing a mid-October football game with  Wishkah Valley High School at Wishkah, a timbered clearing some 12 miles north of Aberdeen.

Rain clouds had pealed away and sunshine, a rarity in that neck of the Olympic woods, bathed the field to where it  was now a semi-muddy pasture, as opposed to a mud stye.

The orange-and-black Loggers, who saw the game as a rare opportunity to embarrass the younger boys from much larger Aberdeen, had pulled out all stops and was leading, 26-7.

The game had stalled to where neither team was doing much in the way of advancing the ball.  It was 2nd down and Aberdeen had the ball near midfield.

Aberdeen's quarfterback of the day called a flaring pass pattern to the right to end Loren “Bugs” Williams.  Yawning observers wondered what A would do if the pass failed.  Probably run the ball into the middle of the Logger line and then punt (again).

However, that was not to be. 

Williams ran the pattern correctly, as the play had been designed.  He caught the ball near the out-of-bounds stripe, and headed up field.  He immediately ran headlong into the Wishkah High School building, an arm of which extended out almost onto the football playing area. Williams was knocked unconscious, and had a big gash in his head.  (His helmet had come off).

Officials, of course, has stopped the game.  Medical types came running over to Williams who was now prone on the ground, unconscious.

After considerable analysis, they decided to transport Williams to a hospital.  The nearest one, of course, was 12-13 miles away in Aberdeen.  The game resumed, but it was only another minute or two to halftime.

During halftime chats. Aberdeen players  –  voiced vociferously by halfback Buddy Pattison – vowed to “Win this one for 'Bugs'.”

And so it was.  Pattison, 150-pounds soaking wet with a suitcase in either hand, paced the effort.  He ran through players, sheded would-be tacklers, dodged pursuers, and out-ran Wishkah Loggers.  He was awesome.

When it was all over.  When the mud had cleared and the final gun had sounded, Aberdeen had won 27-26.

On the bus ride home to Aberdeen, Pattison was saying, “What did I do that for?  I don't care anything about Bugs...  I barely know him.”

However, in the back of the bus, a skinny, knock-kneed kid who was team manager, was saying a prayer… “Thank providence for Bugs' injury.  If he hadn't been hurt, we probably would have lost the game.”

(© 2015 Web Ruble – All rights reserved. Written material may not be duplicated without permission.)