VWBuck!
O-H.....
High School Football
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It’s the glow of the lights, that’s what I’ve always been told. The glow that
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attracts them, from miles upon miles away, in the old cornfields of West Central Ohio.
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It’s the way the air smells when the leaves have fallen. It’s the smell of the grass after a
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heavy rainfall. It may be about the old timers talking big about their young boys at the
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local gas station. It may just be about an undying admiration for those who come before
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you, and whom you know will come after.
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The reason kids put their bodies through hell 9 months of the year, for 10
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guaranteed weeks of play. I’ve heard that it’s about wearing the jersey, about being
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somebody in the town you grew up in. I’ve heard it’s about being the greatest team to
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ever live.
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It’s about having friends that you know are going to back you up in times of
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glory, but mostly in the times that aren’t your most stellar of days. It’s about running onto
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the field, when you’re on the Saturday Morning squad, and feeling like you’ve just found
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the meaning of life. It’s a love that only a football player can have. It’s an addiction, and
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obsession. It’s a small town phenomenon; it’s a community battling a community, with
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little repercussion, but so much on the line. It’s a heated rivalry, it’s a blowout game, it’s
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a shutout, it’s a goal line stand against cross county rivals. It's about delivering a blow
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that people talk about for months. It’s the feeling you have Saturday morning running the
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mile. It's about getting your first scouting report. It's about being on the scout d, vying for
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respect. It’s the bruises you know will “never go away”, it’s the broken bones you
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acquired, and played through. It’s senior tackle, and the way you felt when you gave your
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final speech. It’s being a freshman and not knowing what your coach means by “it goes
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by fast”. It’s being a sophomore, oh studly sophomore. It’s about going through your
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most awkward times of your life with more pride than anyone should have. It’s about
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bowing gracefully when you lose, and winning with class. It’s about the parties you’ll
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never forget, and the times you’ll always remember. It’s about finding yourself, and
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making who you are better. It’s about lifting weights for hours upon hours and then
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having enough energy left to squeeze out a game of 7 on 7. It’s waking up at 445 in the
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morning to lift before school. It’s about pride, it’s about love.
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But mostly, it’s the glow of the lights.
