The second half see-sawed back and forth. Neither team was able to mount an attack. And then, with only two minutes left in the game, the Warriors were on the march. Two quick passing plays from Keegan moved the ball to the Hurricanes’ forty-yard line. The Warriors were closing in for a score. A touchdown might win the game for them. Keegan called for a third pass in a row, but the Hurricanes wouldn’t be fooled again. Their defensive backs waited for the ball like a pack of hungry jackals.

  Keegan’s throw floated over the middle on its way to their big tight-end. The Warriors’ receiver looked like he was open, but the Hurricanes’ safety had read the play a mile away. He picked the pigskin out of the air, tucked it under his arm, and took off down the field. He galloped all the way to the Warriors’ ten-yard line before he was tackled.

  The Warriors’ defence trudged onto the field for the last time. There were just twelve seconds left. This was the final play. Colt raised his arm and called for a huddle. Bulldog, Jamal, Sanjay, and the rest of the team gathered around him.

  “This is it, boys,” Colt said, fiercely. “We have to stop the quarterback before he can make a play. And we have to do it without Gunner.”

  “I’ve got nothing left,” Bulldog said. “My legs are beat.”

  “Their receivers are too fast for us,” Sanjay said, shaking his head.

  Colt knew it was up to him. He was the captain and the coach.

  “I’ll handle it.”

  He lined up across from the four hulking Hurricane linemen. He locked eyes with the quarterback who crouched behind them, calling the signals. Travis took the snap and backpedalled into the pocket. He was going to pass! Colt charged across the line knowing he had to bring him down before he could throw.

  Colt rammed into the giant Hurricane player who blocked his path. He was the biggest player on the field. A human wrecking ball who must have weighed 220 pounds. The Hurricane knocked Colt down like a bowling pin. But Colt bounced back up. He kept driving forward. Nothing could stop him.

  Colt’s legs churned. His arms pumped. Using every last ounce of energy he had, he lowered his shoulder at the quarterback’s thighs. The hit was a lightning bolt. A thunderous crash like he was in the gauntlet. Colt had tackled the quarterback. But it wasn’t in time. As Travis fell backwards he was still able to throw the ball. It was a desperation pass. The pigskin wobbled through the air towards the end zone.

  Colt looked up from the ground. He could see Sanjay was waiting to intercept the ball. That would save the game. But then he saw another player in a red Hurricanes’ uniform flying across the field. The receiver leaped into the air and reached out his arms. Like a miracle, the ball landed on his outstretched fingertips. He pulled the leather into his chest and squeezed tight as he fell to the ground. The referee raced to his side to make sure he held on. Then he raised both arms straight up. Touchdown!

  The Hurricanes had scored on the last play. They had won the game. The rest of their team poured onto the turf to share the 21–14 victory. The Hurricane fans flooded after them. The field was a sea of red.

  All the attention was on the winning team. Almost no one noticed the fallen Warrior still on the field.

  “That was the greatest tackle I’ve ever seen,” Bulldog said, reaching down a hand.

  “You could have gone headhunting,” Jamal said. “You could have speared him and stopped the touchdown.”

  “But you didn’t,” Sanjay said.

  Bulldog pulled up his friend. “You hit him clean.”

  Colt’s body was battered and bruised. He had sacrificed for the team. He’d played the way he always wanted to play. He hadn’t been able to bring the Warriors to victory. But he had brought them something more. Pride.

  21

  The Last Stage

  The gym was packed. Principal Holly had called a special assembly. Attendance was mandatory for every Woodside student.

  Colt stood backstage with Bulldog, Gunner, and the rest of the team. The players had slipped on their Warrior jerseys and waited hidden from view. He had never been behind the curtain peering out into the crowd before. Not like Keegan.

  “Hey, Romeo!” Bulldog kidded the quarterback. “Where are your red tights, bro?”

  Principal Holly stepped up to the black microphone that stood in the middle of the stage. Some of the kids in the audience clapped while some whistled. Colt even heard a few boos. Being a principal must be a tough job, he thought.

  “Welcome, everyone,” the principal said. Her voice was loud and echoed through the gym. “It’s not very often you have a pep rally to celebrate the loss of a football game. But we are today, and for good reason.”

  Colt agreed. He recalled the exciting rally right here in the gym the day before the championship. Everyone got pumped up. There had been speeches, music from the school band, and the cheerleaders had made up a special song:

  Hurricanes, Hurricanes, blow, blow, blow!

  Warriors, Warriors, go, go, go!

  Colt couldn’t ever remember Woodside having a rally after a game, though.

  “The first order of business is to bring out your Warriors’ football team!” Principal Holly waved at Colt to come onstage. He led the players across the stage where they formed a long line. The crowd went crazy, cheering wildly.

  The principal addressed the audience in a more serious tone. “The last two weeks have been like a rollercoaster ride for the Warriors. First, they were up by winning the semi-final game against the Pembina Panthers. Then they were down when a Panther player was seriously hurt and the co-captain of our team was suspended. It was a tough time for all the players. But even more so for one in particular — Colt Taylor.”

  The crowd broke into applause and wouldn’t stop. Colt could feel goosebumps on his arms. He scanned the gym and saw one girl clapping a little harder than the rest. Andrea smiled up at him from her seat in the front row. Colt felt relieved that people knew the hit on Tyrone Hill wasn’t his fault. But he was embarrassed by all the attention. He raised both hands asking the crowd to quiet down.

  “Now, Mrs. Drago would like to say a few words to Colt.”

  Colt watched the Dragon Lady fly across the stage with her green dress flapping behind her like wings. He hadn’t handed in his book report yet and worried that she might ask him why it was late in front of the whole school.

  The Dragon Lady swept a hand over her spiky, red hair. “I know it’s hard to believe, but sometimes we teachers make mistakes.”

  “All the time!” a boy in the audience shouted.

  The crowd exploded in laughter. Mrs. Drago glared into the sea of student faces before speaking again.

  “I just want to personally apologize to Colt for judging him before I had all the facts. He’s not the dirty player I thought he was but a fine, upstanding young man.” Mrs. Drago turned and smiled at Colt. “Now, if he just handed in his homework on time he’d be a perfect student as well.”

  The Dragon Lady swooped off stage to more laughter and a few cheers. Principal Holly swooped back on. “The Warriors played their hearts out yesterday even though they didn’t have Coach Taylor. I asked Coach to say a few words today, but he said he wouldn’t be attending the rally. He said he didn’t want to take any attention away from the players.”

  Colt knew this was true. He wished everyone knew how sorry his dad was for the suspension he had received right before the big game.

  Principal Holly looked out over the crowd. “I don’t know exactly what Coach Taylor would have said, but I’m sure he would have sent his congratulations to the team.”

  “I know what he’d say.”

  The principal spun around to face the long line of players that stretched across the stage. “Who said that?”

  “I did,” Colt said, stepping forward.

  “Would you like to speak for Coach Taylor?”

  Colt nodded and walked to the microphone. He gazed at the crowd of students that was packed into every corner. He wondered what they were thinking. Would they cheer or boo? The room fell silent.

  Colt started slowly. “What would Coach Taylor say? What would my dad say? He’d say he shouldn’t have coached yesterday’s game. That he didn’t deserve to. That he knows what he did was wrong. And that he’s vowed to never let that happen again. He’d tell you that he watched the game just like you. And he’d tell you what he told me. That he saw a team play with more guts, more determination, and more heart than any he’s ever coached.”

  Colt looked over his shoulder. The players were hanging on every word just like they were in the locker room.

  “But what made Coach the most proud was that the team played fairly. They showed their school, their teammates, and themselves that you don’t have to win to hold your head high.” Colt looked out over the sea of faces one last time. “That’s what Coach would say.”

  He didn’t know how the crowd would react. But at least now they would know what kind of man Coach really was. The kind of man he was before all the headaches, all the forgetting, and all the outbursts. The kind of man they could all look up to.

  Colt didn’t have to wait long. After his final words there was no doubt how the audience would respond. A wave of pride swept across the gym. Every student and teacher stood and cheered.

  As the crowd rose to its feet, Colt raised his hand.

  “Let’s bring it in!” he called.

  Bulldog, Gunner, Keegan, Sanjay, Jamal, and the rest of the players rushed forward and huddled around Colt. One last huddle for the team. One last huddle for the season. One last huddle for Coach.

  Colt thrust his fist in the middle of the circle. The team did the same.

  “Warriors!” he shouted.

  “Warriors!” the players shouted.

  “Warriors!” the crowd shouted.

  The Lowdown on Concussions

  Concussions are common in sports, especially contact sports like football.

  What exactly are concussions?

  Concussions are brain injuries. Normally, the brain is cushioned from everyday bumps by the fluid that surrounds it. But sudden, strong movement can cause the brain to slide against the inner walls of the skull. Concussions can result.

  You do not need to be knocked out to get a concussion. Any blow to the head, face or neck — or even a hit to the body that shakes the head — could cause a concussion.

  Because concussions can happen in different ways, sometimes it is difficult to know when someone has one.

  Here are some common symptoms and signs of a concussion:

  Thinking Problems — general confusion (e.g. not knowing time, date, place, name of opposing team)

  Physical Symptoms — headache, dizziness, nausea, stomach pain, feeling dazed, seeing flashing lights, ringing in the ears, sleepiness, double/blurry vision or a loss of vision, poor balance

  Behavioural Symptoms — being slow to answer questions or follow directions, being easily distracted, poor concentration, inappropriate emotions or emotional response (e.g. laughing, crying or getting mad easily)

  Concussions are serious. For the most part, the symptoms are temporary and people recover fully. But sometimes the symptoms of a concussion can last for years.

  What should you do if you think a player has a concussion?

  The player should be taken out of the game right away, and his or her parents or guardians should be told. Even if the symptoms go away quickly, the player cannot return to play until being examined by a doctor.

  Learn more by visiting Parachute, a national organization dedicated to preventing injuries and saving lives, at http://horizon.parachutecanada.org/en/?s=concussion.

  Check Out These Other Football Stories From Lorimer’s Sports Stories Series:

  Red Zone Rivals

  by Eric Howling

  Quinn Brown has to prove to a new coach that he deserves to remain the Spartans’ starting quarterback. But Coach Miller’s style seems to be throwing Quinn off his game — and big-mouthed second-string Luke is gunning for Quinn’s position. To top it off, Quinn has been paired up with a peer tutor for math, and the tutor’s a new kid everyone’s making fun of. Who would have thought that the new kid would be exactly the kind of friend a struggling quarterback needs — both on and off the football field?

  Replay

  by Steven Sandor

  Growing up above his parents’ Chinese family restaurant in Sexsmith, Alberta, Warren Chen has always dreamed of being a football star. At 90 pounds and five feet tall, he’s not exactly built like a linebacker, but he is small, slippery, and no one can catch him. In their first game of the season, Warren reaches the end zone to score the game-winning touchdown — almost. But Warren celebrates anyway, and the referee buys it. Warren has to decide whether to come clean and cost his school the victory, or continue living the smalltown football dream.

  About the Author

  ERIC HOWLING is the author of the Lorimer Sports Stories novels Red Zone Rivals, Hoop Magic, Kayak Combat, and Drive. His books have been shortlisted for the Hackmatack Children’s Choice Book Award, named Resource Links Year’s Best, and picked as Canadian Children’s Book Centre Best Books selections. Eric lives in Calgary, Alberta.

  Copyright ©2015 by Eric Howling

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  James Lorimer & Company Ltd., Publishers acknowledges the support of the Ontario Arts Council. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund for our publishing activities. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts which last year invested $24.3 million in writing and publishing throughout Canada. We acknowledge the Government of Ontario through the Ontario Media Development Corporation’s Ontario Book Initiative.

  We acknowledge the [financial] support of the Government of Canada.

  Nous reconnaissons l’appui [financier] du gouvernement du Canada.

  Cover design: Meredith Bangay

  Cover image: iStock

  Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

  Howling, Eric, 1956-, author

  Head hunter / Eric Howling.

  (Sports stories)

  Issued in print and electronic formats.

  ISBN 978-1-4594-0967-5 (paperback).--ISBN 978-1-4594-0969-9 (epub)

  I. Title. II. Series: Sports stories (Toronto, Ont.)

  PS8615.O9485H43 2015 jC813’.6 C2015-903539-2

  C2015-903540-6

  Summary: Colt has to decide between the risk of concussions in helmet-to-helmet hits and winning at any cost.

  Ages 10-13, Reading Level 3.0

  This digital edition first published in 2015 as 978-1-4594-0969-9

  Originally published in 2015 as 978-1-4594-0967-5

  James Lorimer & Company Ltd., Publishers

  317 Adelaide Street West Suite 1002

  Toronto, Ontario

  M5V 1P9

  www.lorimer.ca

 

 

  Eric Howling, Head Hunter

 

 

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