Ethan's playoff game.

Sometimes while looking at football pictures it can be challenging to pick out who your looking for. Ethan is #78 in this game. He has ADAIR printed on his helmet and he has blue athletic tape around his wrists.

Last Wednesday Ethan's 7th grade B team played in their first and last playoff game. They decided to wear BLACK instead of their official jerseys. Last week they had a great game against the other American Fork B team, winning and sending them to the playoffs. Because it was AF against AF our team wore BLACK. I'm not sure is this is why they decided to wear BLACK again but if you ask me, I think they should have stuck with their RED! They kind of looked like the Bad News Bears if you ask me!

It's amazing how far these boys have come. Especially Ethan! He started off the season having had NEVER played a down of football before, and ended as a well polished player! He had great success on the offensive line. He played starting Right Guard and loved every second of it!

Ethan loves water! He always has. At every practice and every game he would guzzle it down! On his water jug we had a pouch attached to it for his inhaler. He found that if he took his inhaler before every practice and every game, his asthma would do just fine. We had a few scares throughout the season, but lesson learned!

Our first playoff game was against Pleasant Grove. David's cousin Joe Slade has a boy on the Pleasant Grove team. We had scrimmaged this team earlier in the season and knew that we could beat them! The boys battled hard on that muddy field!

It was a close game. It went back and forth, back and forth without any score!

Some of the calls were extremely questionable, but unfortunatly that's just part of the game!

The game ended 0-0 sending them into overtime!
It was intense!
We started with the ball on the 10 yard line and scored.
6-0!
Extra point..... No good!

Then they got the ball on the 10 yard line and scored.
6-6!
Extra point.... GOOD!

6-7 in overtime!
What a heartbreak!

Man that sucks!
The coaches gathered the boys together and told them how proud of them they were.

It was all Ethan could do to hold back tears!
I know just how that feels to give it everything you've got and yet still come up short!

But this is what it's all about! This is one of those beautiful life lessons we learn through sports. You win some and you lose some. It's not always fair and the calls don't always go our way. But it doesn't have to define you! You get up, dust to dirt off, and go after it again! There is always a next game or a next season!

The taste of victory is so sweet. And I wished that Ethan could have tasted it that night. But he HAS tasted it! It's been a GREAT year! They have done remarkable things and we couldn't be more proud of them!

Coach Marc Stevens, Ethan, and Coach Chase Smith.

These coaches did a great job with these boys. They aren't perfect but who is? Ethan had a fantastic first year experience and can't wait for next year to begin, so they must have done something right!
My favorite thing about Ethan playing football this year was how happy it made him. Ethan was happy win or lose. After they would lose a game I would ask him, "So are you happy?" He would always respond with a positive, "Yes!" I would say, "But Ethan, you just lost the game!" He would say, "I know! But I got to play and it was fun!" He always came away feeling like he played well and did his part. As a mother I just couldn't ask for a better attitude from my child!

So after the game we went over to the Pleasant Grove side of the field and joined their celebration party. Well, sort of! The Slades were there and Kathy had made baked potatoes, chilli and hot chocolate for the kids. It was cool to watch as several of the PG players came over to Ethan and told him what a good game he had played. That takes a lot of character! Kathy couldn't believe how good our team had become over the year. I think we took them by surprise! I told her that we knew that we could beat them. And looking at the video of the game, we did! But like I said, "That's just part of the game!"

Now we have switched gears and we are gearing up for the end of the year team party! Never a dull moment!

Here's to a great season Ethan!
You will always be #1 in our book!