HIS FIRST SCRIMMAGE

Helping Alexander get ready for his first football scrimmage yesterday afternoon, I was reminded of how quickly our son is growing up. When the boys were little, I secretly wondered if one day one of our boys would play football. It's a sport I have always enjoyed, thanks to my parents. When my sister and I were younger, I can remember rushing home from church on Sunday afternoon to watch the Cleveland Browns. Now, we're watching our son play football. I have a new respect for the amount of gear the guys wear--who knew? Alexander and I were laughing yesterday as we struggled to place one of his knee pads properly. The first time he put his gear on a couple weeks ago, he could barely bend to put his cleats on his feet. Thankfully he has mastered the gear and it doesn't seem to phase him. I could tell he was nervous before the scrimmage, but he handled eveything in stride. The team rode the bus to the scrimmage and I remember feeling a little "lost" on the way over to the field. The boys have always ridden with us to their matches and games and this is the first time that Alexander wasn't with us. The game started and Trey and I were so excited when we saw coach place Alexander on one of the first plays. However, his field time quickly ended when two of the refs walked him over to the coach. We later learned that Alexander's chin straps were too long and the refs were concerned that one of the boys might grab the chin strap in an attempt to tackle him. While we were disappointed that his initial time on the field was short, we were relieved and grateful for the ref's concern. Once the chin strap was fixed, Alexander spent a lot of time on the field. Trey and I noticed a couple of times, that he was surprised that he wasn't called off the field and remained playing for several plays. The coach placed him on defense and offense and he did a great job on both sides! His height is a definite advantage to him right now!! The boys' won their scrimmage 18-0. The rules are a little different for middle school ball: 1) the ball starts on the 20 yard line 2) there are no conversion points following a TD 3) there are no field goals. I'm sure there are other subtle differences, but those are the three that stand out. We look forward to an exciting football season! Number 47, we're VERY proud of you!!