by Shelley Bennett
Last Friday night, our Grizzly Football team hosted the Orland Trojans in the D-3 Northern Section semi-final play-off game. The night was clear and cold as the crowd waited in anticipation for game time.
It started out as usual, with Dathen Moore scoring in the first few minutes. It seemed like we were heading to another Grizzly victory and a section championship game.
We were up at halftime 16-7 as I went up to the booth to narrate the halftime show and start the music for the Drill Team. But something turned when Orland scored in the 3rd quarter.
The mood in the crowd changed. First it was protesting the controversial calls of the officials. As a coach’s wife, I am not allowed to blame the refs for a bad game so I’ll refrain from judging the many penalties against the home team.
I don’t really know the rules anyway and my brother Casey, who heads the chain gang, will give me his point of view over Thanksgiving dinner.
Then I heard someone yell, “you’re being out-coached!” I looked over my right shoulder in surprise to see who the angry fan was but all I saw were the worried, scared faces of the players’ friends and family members.
My first thoughts were, are you kidding me? Coach McMullen and his staff have been preparing their team for this game since last December, the day after the loss to American Canyon.
They’ve taken this team from dismal records in 2021 and 2022 to two section championship games, one lost and one won. The improvement in team morale has also dramatically changed for the better.
And then I remembered what it’s like to sit in the stands as a parent and watch your son play his last high school game. It doesn’t excuse the behavior, but it helps you understand where it’s coming from.
You start remembering the first time he picked up the ball as a toddler and you thought to yourself, “he’s a star.”
The memories begin playing in your head and you see him packing his uniform, getting on the field, and experiencing his first loss, his many wins. You remember the hours of practice, the team dinners, and family trips to tournaments instead of vacation spots.
Now you are dreading the after-the-game talk. What do you say? How do you soften the blow, help him with acceptance?
The truth is, I’ve had to figure this out many times as Jake and Landon went through their high school sports careers. I don’t think I’ve ever said the right thing. There were a few silent car rides back to Susanville when we all sat in our grief.
Many of these boys won’t be playing competitive football in the future. Next year, they’ll miss the camaraderie of being with their team, the roar of the crowd after a spectacular play, the pride drill at the end of every game, win or lose.
They will have their memories and their friendships and the skills they have developed will carry over into a college classroom, the work force, or military duty. To steal a line from my favorite musical movie, they have been “changed for the better…changed for good.”
Congratulations to Lassen’s varsity football team on a fantastic season! You’ve made us proud and re-established that Arnold Field is “Grizzly Territory.”
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