Going to Mariemont
Similar to travel to a foreign country is driving into this part of our city. The houses change into Swiss or German style brown wood with beige stucco on the top, flower boxes and bricks on the bottom. Houses are all styled in a similar way, with large patches of grass and gardens. The one lane street has a large grassy median with large oak trees and old fashioned signs.
The fairly new well designed High School is built into a hill side. I notice the brick construction with several well placed parking lots to provide ample parking. Signs point us to the stadium, where the gates lead us to colorful artificial turf and seats all along one side.
We enter at the top of the seating, but the visiting team has benches at the opposite side.
"Wish they were sitting nearer!" one parent says.
"Look at the long line of advertisers they have!", as we note the entire fence line of the football field covered with signs. Restaurants, Insurance, Dealers, you name it, support the school.
A nice long lighted scoreboard faces us, and works. We see cinch bugs flying around, harmless but annoying.
Our cheerleaders do a good job, but parents do not join in. How to get the parents to join in, is tricky. I wonder what we could do. They just sit and watch the cheers, as if they feel it is entertaining, nothing more.
On the field a large group of burly blue young men, warming up. I believe we have our work cut out for us. They are bigger than we are, they are on their home field, and there are more of them.
They hand out a roster, showing us that their eighth grade team is as large as our entire combined team. And they play the eighth grade for the first part of the game. They push us around pretty good, making three touchdowns. Score, twenty to zero at the half.
The one good play Weslee makes is right before the end of the second quarter, he catches a long pass, and runs within the red zone. He gets tackled by about three huge guys, and I worry as he gets up slowly, but they continue play and do not score.
At the end of the third quarter the Mariemont team puts in their seventh graders, and we begin to score. Ryan, number twenty five catches two passes and makes two touchdowns. We get the conversions, for fourteen points total. With only seconds to go in the fourth quarter of the game, Ryan again catches a long pass, makes another touchdown. Final score is Mariemont 34 to Finneytown 20.
I know the players were disappointed losing this game, but they needed to learn how to face this kind of team. The quarterback was tiny, hidden by the huge line of defenders. His moves could not be seen, and the plays were over before our line caught the moves. Better we learn now than be surprised at a later time. All our play with receivers in the field were covered by two or three players, and picked off. Our blockers and line did not prevent their men from moving into those positions. They were left in the back looking at the coaches in red for instructions, instead of going after the guys in blue on the field. Our kids are more worried about what the coach will do or say, than what their "job" on the field is. I think that would come to them with more experience and watching some videos of games, where they could see the play from afar. After all each player needs to get the BIG picture, which the coaches see from the sidelines. Down in the melay, it is hard to get that bird's eye view.
Our Homecoming Parade is today, and the High School game tomorrow. I want the High School team to do well, play strong, feel good about their game.
Each game may the players be safe. May they play a good game, and let the officials do a fair job.
And Middle Schoolers, walk proud and throw that candy far!
The fairly new well designed High School is built into a hill side. I notice the brick construction with several well placed parking lots to provide ample parking. Signs point us to the stadium, where the gates lead us to colorful artificial turf and seats all along one side.
We enter at the top of the seating, but the visiting team has benches at the opposite side.
"Wish they were sitting nearer!" one parent says.
"Look at the long line of advertisers they have!", as we note the entire fence line of the football field covered with signs. Restaurants, Insurance, Dealers, you name it, support the school.
A nice long lighted scoreboard faces us, and works. We see cinch bugs flying around, harmless but annoying.
Our cheerleaders do a good job, but parents do not join in. How to get the parents to join in, is tricky. I wonder what we could do. They just sit and watch the cheers, as if they feel it is entertaining, nothing more.
On the field a large group of burly blue young men, warming up. I believe we have our work cut out for us. They are bigger than we are, they are on their home field, and there are more of them.
They hand out a roster, showing us that their eighth grade team is as large as our entire combined team. And they play the eighth grade for the first part of the game. They push us around pretty good, making three touchdowns. Score, twenty to zero at the half.
The one good play Weslee makes is right before the end of the second quarter, he catches a long pass, and runs within the red zone. He gets tackled by about three huge guys, and I worry as he gets up slowly, but they continue play and do not score.
At the end of the third quarter the Mariemont team puts in their seventh graders, and we begin to score. Ryan, number twenty five catches two passes and makes two touchdowns. We get the conversions, for fourteen points total. With only seconds to go in the fourth quarter of the game, Ryan again catches a long pass, makes another touchdown. Final score is Mariemont 34 to Finneytown 20.
I know the players were disappointed losing this game, but they needed to learn how to face this kind of team. The quarterback was tiny, hidden by the huge line of defenders. His moves could not be seen, and the plays were over before our line caught the moves. Better we learn now than be surprised at a later time. All our play with receivers in the field were covered by two or three players, and picked off. Our blockers and line did not prevent their men from moving into those positions. They were left in the back looking at the coaches in red for instructions, instead of going after the guys in blue on the field. Our kids are more worried about what the coach will do or say, than what their "job" on the field is. I think that would come to them with more experience and watching some videos of games, where they could see the play from afar. After all each player needs to get the BIG picture, which the coaches see from the sidelines. Down in the melay, it is hard to get that bird's eye view.
Our Homecoming Parade is today, and the High School game tomorrow. I want the High School team to do well, play strong, feel good about their game.
Each game may the players be safe. May they play a good game, and let the officials do a fair job.
And Middle Schoolers, walk proud and throw that candy far!
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