7th Grade

So, I was coming to a new school, Oak Hall, for 7th grade. I was leaving an old school, a school that didn't have very many kids; so little that in my 6th grade class, we only had six kids. I had always loved the sport of Football, probably didn't necessarily know very much about the sport itself, like the rules or legendary, Hall of Fame players, and what-not, but I really just loved the sport a lot.
When I came to school, on the first day, I visited the Head Football Coach of the Middle School team, Eric Ringdahl. He seemed like a cool guy and eventually he would be one of my favorite teachers. When I first met him, I can remember walking in the gym to his office, explaining in a monotone voice, my embarrassed voice, how I wanted to be a Wide-Receiver because I always saw those guys like Randy Moss make big plays and win games for teams, and I also remember telling him I wasn't necessarily too excited about tackling people. In response, I remember him saying, "What if the quarterback throws an interception?" I didn't say anything.
The first three days of my practice were pretty easy, mainly because I wasn't wearing any pads. I watched the other players hit each other, some going at full speed and others going as slow as possible. It kind of encouraged me, but at the same time, when I saw the taller and bigger players, I was kind of afraid. At the beginning of practice, everyone went to do tackling drills while I stayed with another coach, Carter Johnson. He was the Wide-Receiver coach and he introduced himself to me very politely and made me feel comfortable with the team. He asked me to run a few routes and he would throw the ball to me. Meanwhile, I could see in the corner of my eye the other players doing a drill I would soon love and hate: Bull in the Ring. During the throwing and catching session I had with Coach Johnson, I probably caught only two out of seven passes... I can't remember exactly. Anyways, it didn't end up too good for me and in the end I didn't see too much playing time as a Wide-Receiver. Oh well...
But from then on, all I did was try harder and after over half of my 4th season of Football, I have probably only missed three practices total and one football game. I was dedicated and determined to get faster, stronger, and most importantly better. That was my goal.