The 23-yard line
12 seconds remaining, fourth quarter
Time out
12 seconds remaining, fourth quarter
Time out
The players met in huddled conference. They'd used their last time out, and it was fourth down. The other team was up by four. Nothing for it - they couldn't tie with a field goal, and this was their last shot. They'd have to run it in. The fans in the stands fade out in the team's hearing, becoming a dull roar. The lights on the field become diffuse, a background pastel in contrast to the sharp, crisp vision of the players standing with them. The quarterback issues his orders, suggesting a backup plan for if - when - things went to Hell in a handbasket. The whole team puts their hands in to touch the game ball, getting their fingers on the tough, pebbled leather as they chanted their school's name. Tonight was a night they'd remember for the rest of their lives. For good or for ill, it all came down to this one last play. They break the huddle, and the players scatter out into their assigned positions.
The referee gives the signal, and the center snaps the ball back to quarterback Creature. As the pigskin hits his gloves, the screams of the crowd and the glare of the lights snap back into focus. No - he can't be distracted now. The other team is trying to break through to take him down and end the game. He looks left - no good, that receiver is dealing with a defensive cornerback. He looks right - there! Saudade, a receiver, breaks free of the man guarding him and is open! Creature throws a tight, perfect spiral to him, and Saudade catches it. He sprints to the endzone, but the safety is somehow there ready to force him out. Suddenly the tight end breaks free and calls Saudade's name. He turns and executes a lateral pass backward to Skitter30 just before being buried under a flying tackle. The defense never saw Skitter coming. She's at the fifteen...the ten...the five...touchdown! Townies win!
The referee gives the signal, and the center snaps the ball back to quarterback Creature. As the pigskin hits his gloves, the screams of the crowd and the glare of the lights snap back into focus. No - he can't be distracted now. The other team is trying to break through to take him down and end the game. He looks left - no good, that receiver is dealing with a defensive cornerback. He looks right - there! Saudade, a receiver, breaks free of the man guarding him and is open! Creature throws a tight, perfect spiral to him, and Saudade catches it. He sprints to the endzone, but the safety is somehow there ready to force him out. Suddenly the tight end breaks free and calls Saudade's name. He turns and executes a lateral pass backward to Skitter30 just before being buried under a flying tackle. The defense never saw Skitter coming. She's at the fifteen...the ten...the five...touchdown! Townies win!
