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“The hardest thing in the world is being a Wake Forest football fan.”
I heard a perturbed grown man say this while walking out of the stadium less than five minutes after the Wake field goal bounced backward off the left upright with less than 15 seconds to play, cementing the team’s loss, the third in its first four games this season.
I thought about what the man said. It sounded like the kind of self-pitying anguish-riddled outburst I would have said is, like him, a Wake football fan and knowing all about the avalanche of close losses: surrendering a big fourth-quarter lead to Carolina two years ago at Kenan Stadium seems to be a rusty machete permanently stuck in my aorta.
But watching Wake play wasn’t hard.
Being born blind is harder. Not being able to get out of bed because your thoughts are so dark is harder. Your friend dying in a car accident is harder. Working for 35 years is harder. Living in poverty is harder. A million things in life are harder.
This is called having perspective which I so often can’t harness when I need to. But after what I saw during that game Saturday, it’s not hard – it’s easy to point out what grit we all saw from this Wake Forest football team.
In the first half lineman Luke Petitbon went down on the ground with an injury. Flat on his back, his game and season seemed over. Somehow, he came back into the game and played center blocking for the fourth-quarter drive that tied the game. That looked hard.
Later in the half, Demond Claiborne lay on the ground even longer after running the ball. We all assumed it was season-ending when they carted him off into the locker room. A hard truth for him and us.
But forget next year. Somehow, shockingly, he re-entered the game and busted a touchdown run of more than 50 yards. Bet that was hard. How much pain did he feel?
Then we witnessed – not that any of us wanted to – Taylor Morin stretching his arms out for an over-the-middle pass as a Louisiana defender launched his helmet at the Wake receiver’s head. Morin went down. Looked like a concussion hit – helmet to helmet. His girlfriend sitting near me turned away. She couldn’t look. But he got up. Signaled first down to the crowd knowing the hit would be a penalty.
Morin, who would be considered small on a high school football team, kept playing after being exploded on. Then hurt his leg later in the game. Didn’t play most of the second half. Then on the final drive, he was in there again to catch the key pass that put Wake in field goal range. A hard game Taylor Morin endured. An easy player to root for.
Then there was Walker Merrill, who caught a pass near the end zone in the fourth quarter knowing he would get crushed right afterward. Lay flat on the ground for more than five minutes before being helped off the field with his shoulder hanging abnormally. Catching that pass was hard. Took courage, young man. I’ll never forget you.
I don’t feel upset, frustrated, or short-changed this morning as a Wake football fan. I saw a group of young men toughing it out, giving all the energy they had, risking injuries, coming back from injuries, going back on the field, and being heroes. Louisiana probably had more talent, and this will be true in most of their games this season, but what matters is effort, and they gave all they had Saturday.
It was inspiring. We have a group of guys this year who showed they want to win and will do hard things in order to do so.
They didn’t win the game, but they won my heart and respect. I saw winning attitudes, toughness, and football players showing what they’re made of.
If for the rest of the season, they fight like they did yesterday, it will be easy to keep pulling for them.
Winning is important, but being tough and not quitting is more important.
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Sammy Sportface, a sports blogger, galvanizes, inspires, and amuses The Baby Boomer Brotherhood. And you can learn about his vision and join this group's Facebook page here:
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