Free Kickoff! by Tiki Barber Page A

he was supposed to be covering.
    â€œNooo!” Ronde shouted, but it was way too late. The receiver reached out, grabbed the ball, and ran it easily into the end zone!
    The extra point was good, and the Mountaineers led the Eagles, 7–0.
    â€œHey! Hey!” Coach Spangler barked at the disappointed players coming off the field. “It happens sometimes. Don’tlet it get you down—good teams get behind, but they find a way to come back.”
    True, thought Ronde, but not if their quarterback has a stomach full of butterflies.
    On the Eagles’ next possession, starting on their own fifteen-yard line, they ran a couple of plays for Jesse Fowle, last season’s star running back. He managed a pair of short gains, mostly by going around end, because the Mountaineers defensive line was so humongous it was scary.
    Then, on third down, Cody Hansen dropped back to pass. But the Mountaineers were ready for it. They blitzed, and Cody, under pressure, threw up a lob pass that floated for what seemed like forever. It finally came down—right into the arms of a Mountaineer defensive back—a killer interception, right in the Eagles’ own red zone!
    Luckily, the Eagles’ defense held this time, allowing only a chip shot field goal. Still, the score was now 10–0, and it was only the first quarter!
    By the time halftime rolled around, things were looking up, at least a little. The Eagles’ defense had kept them in the game, holding the Mountaineers scoreless all through the second quarter.
    Still, the way the offense was playing, things didn’t look too good—especially after Jesse Fowle twisted his ankle late in the first half.
    He’d kept playing on it, but he obviously wasn’t thesame runner he’d been last season. Ronde remembered seeing him back then, juking and jiving his way to more than one touchdown.
    Not this year—not this game, anyway.
    The score was now 10–6. The only points the Eagles had in the first half were courtesy of Tiki’s and Ronde’s old pal Adam. Not only could he kick the ball a mile, but it turned out he could put it straight between the uprights, too!
    â€œSo far,” Ronde muttered, “he’s our MVP.”
    â€œI know,” Tiki agreed. “Unbelievable.”
    Neither boy would say it out loud, but it was hard having to sit on the bench while their team was getting creamed.
    Well, maybe not creamed, exactly. But they would have to come from behind in the second half to win.
    The Eagles had been behind only three times all of last season, and they’d managed to win one of those games. But then, that had been with Matt Clayton at quarterback and a healthy Jesse Fowle at running back.
    â€œListen up, team!” Coach Spangler told them in the locker room between halves. “We’re going to have the wind with us this quarter, and their D-line is really big—so I want us to change the game plan and go to the passing game, understand?”
    Everyone nodded, understanding the real reason—Jesse Fowle couldn’t run, and Coach didn’t trust his backups.
    â€œNow get out there and let’s get this game back!”
    With a fierce roar, the team headed for the tunnel that led back onto the field.
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    â€œMan, I hope they put somebody else in at running back,” Tiki muttered softly as the Mountaineers ran the opening kickoff all the way back to midfield—a bad start to the second half. “I don’t care who it is, me or John Berra. Just find somebody who can make a play!”
    Ronde felt the same way. He just knew that if he’d been in there back in the first quarter, the Mountaineers would never have completed that long touchdown pass. He was much faster than Justin Aiello, the Eagles’ cornerback who’d been beaten on the play. He just knew it.
    Ronde was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he wasn’t paying