Page 96 of Hard to Score

My grin is my answer as I pull my helmet on and snap it into place.

The next minute goes by in a blur. Hobbs loses the ball in a turnover. He stares at me as he jogs off the field with a mixture of confusion and relief when he sees my helmet on talking to the coordinator.

Then I wait.

As our defense holds the line and prevents Georgia from advancing. As they force a punt into our hands.

It’s showtime.

When I jog onto the field, the only thing I can hear is my pulse pounding in my ears. Not the fans cheering. Not the guys arguing in the huddle. Just my pulse and the confidence that I can do this. That all those nights putting extra time on a darkened field beside the stadium are going to pay off right now. This is what I’ve worked for. This is my strength. I’m the goddamn QB1.

Get the job done, Bowman.

“We’ve got two minutes left. Plenty of time to score,” I say to the guys all looking at me in the huddle before reading off the play to them.

“Right out of the gate?” my tight end asks about my plan.

“Right out of the gate,” I say with a nod and a grin.

The ball is set.

The cadence is shouted.

The ball is snapped into my hands.

I dance back into the pocket, hoping the line holds to buy enough time for Nix to get downfield.

C’mon. C’mon. C’mon.

I see the first break on the right side as a Falcon pushes through. I take a few steps to the right as he’s yanked down by my lineman.

Get there. Get there. Get there.

Another breach on the right side.

But this time I don’t move away.

This time I pull back and let it fly.

The ball sails in the air and a moment later I’m struck, thrown through the air, and hit the ground with a grunt. The lineman is on top of me but my head is angled to our sidelines so I see the entire bench celebrate.

Arms raised. Fists pumping. Fingers pointing at me as they jump up and down.

As my running back and my Hail Mary cross into the end zone.

CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

BREXTON

I VIBRATE WITH ANTICIPATION AS I wait for him to get here.

Pride all but bursts in my chest as I relive the moment over and over. Drew’s unexpected substitution for Hobbs. My cheers of support in my empty apartment to a TV screen. The Hail Mary. Its gorgeous spiral forty yards downfield. The roar of the crowd when Nix caught it. The Raptors winning because of it.

I’ve been on a high ever since.

And not just for the Raptors’ win. For Drew. For him to touch the field and make a difference has to be a huge boost to his ego. To his pride. To his status on the team. And all of the above hopefully do a number on that self-confidence of his.

Drew fucking Bowman just showed the world that he is the real deal, and I couldn’t be more proud of him.