Guts vs Glory (24 page)

It didn’t take long for us to find
out our future.  A few weeks after the all-star game, I received a call from
the general manager.  He wanted to talk to me in his office as soon as possible. 
I figured the manager wanted to talk to me about my new contract because I had
clearly exceeded his expectations.  Mike and I happened to be out golfing at
the time, so after an embarrassing loss, he drove me to my meeting.

The general manager met me at his
office door and asked me to sit.  As we shook hands, something seemed
different.  The last time we met, he had really good news for me, which was
reflected in his tone of voice.  That time, however, his tone of voice didn’t
seem to reflect good news; I wasn’t really sure what it reflected.

He started the meeting
congratulating me on making it to the all-star game, and for my achievements
during the season.  He was proud of my success, and knew I would only get
better as a player.  After crunching some numbers, he was able to come up with
a contract that he knew I would enjoy, and one that would be a reflection of my
worth to the team.  Sadly, the contract was too pricy for the team, as they
already had a high-priced running back.

The obvious solution to me was to
reduce my salary.  I knew I was making quite a bit of money as it was, so I
wouldn’t notice the difference between a big raise and the really big raise I
expected.  Instead, the business man in him came out.  He had already made a
deal with another team.  He found a team in Wyoming that would accept me, and
my new contract, and would give him two players, as well as an additional pick
in the upcoming Selection Showcase, in return.  As he explained it, why have
one player when you can have two at the same price?

Although his reasoning was
justifiable, it was still devastating.  My parents lived in Michigan, my wife
had a steady job she loved, we had our own home, I was very comfortable with
the team, and I was playing football with my best friend.  All of a sudden, I
was penalized for an outstanding season and had to move to a new town without being
able to voice my opinion.  I was no longer a person on the team; I was a
contract on a desk.  Even if I willingly packed up everything, said goodbye to
my friends and family, and moved my wife and son to Wyoming, there would be no
guarantee that I wouldn’t be traded to another team the following season.

When I told Mike the news, he was
just as shocked as I was.  Not only was he upset for me, but he was also upset
that I would be leaving after spending so many years trying to earn the right
to play together.  He was so outraged that he went into the general manager’s
office to tell him off.  Mike reminded the manager that he was a big part of
the team and the team was nothing without him.  If they really did go through
with the trade, he would have no choice but to walk away from the team.  Other
teams would certainly want him.  Although it wasn’t his plan, Mike wanted the
Knights to know how important it was to him that I stayed.  The manager took a
few minutes to think about it, then gave him his decision.  The general manager
was surprisingly calm and stated, “Do you know how many players I could get for
the price of your contract?”

Mike was crushed.  He now felt what
I felt.  Even though he was their best athlete, in a matter of minutes, he was
just another contract on a desk.  Since they were willing to walk away from
him, he was more than happy to walk away from them.  He knew it wasn’t just our
team that treated players like numbers.  He knew all teams did it, so he didn’t
even make an effort to find another team.  In the heat of the moment, he
retired from professional football after playing for only five years.  After a
few days of cooling down and thinking about his decision, he didn’t regret it.

With Mike’s retirement being
official, and the threat of being shipped to Wyoming, I followed his lead. 
After discussing it with Christine, I also decided to retire.  After spending
two years in high school, four years in college, and four years in the pros, I
had enough.  I had to walk away from the sport that treated me so well, because
of a manager that treated me so poorly.  But there was no regret.  We set a
goal as juniors in high school, and we achieved the goal after much hard work
and dedication.  Collectively, we went through state championships, recruiting
trips, scout teams, Selection Showcases, practice squads, declaring early for
the pros, big contracts, little pay checks, injuries, and disappointment to
make it to where we were; suddenly we were retiring in our mid-thirties with
more money than we knew what to do with, and two-thirds of a lifetime ahead of
us.  No regrets.

Mike and I both continued to live
in Michigan.  We lived in homes that were fully paid for, and enjoyed our new
retired life.  For about a year, the two of us spent plenty of time together,
as we had plenty of time to spare, and had many conversations about our playing
days.  In those conversations, we never questioned our decision to leave.  We
left at the peak of our playing careers, and were idolized in the papers for
months after our decision.  After a year, though, we began to live different
lives.

We started getting bored at about
the same time.  There was only so much we could do with our free time and
eventually, there was nothing left to do.  I had a great wife and son, so at
least I had my family to spend my time with.  He wasn’t so lucky, though. 
Early in his professional career, he chose not to get seriously involved with
women because he simply didn’t trust them with his money.  Unfortunately, he
felt he was too old to start looking for a serious relationship, he was no
longer considered a sports hero, and he still felt that women only wanted him
for what money he had left.  His sports friends had quit coming by and soon,
Christine and I were the only real friends he had.

To make his life less isolated, he
moved his parents into his home.  They were getting older and he decided it was
his time to care for them.  He obviously had the money to support them, and he
had the room to house them.  Even with his parents there, though, his life
still felt empty.  He decided to use his talents find a job.  He never received
a college degree, and received poor grades in the three years he did spend in
college.  His only expertise was his knowledge of football.  One of the local
sports networks decided to pick him up as a sports analyst, but that job didn’t
pay very much money.  He did, however, love the job and stuck with it until he
was ready to retire a second time.

Meanwhile, I also wanted to find a
second career.  I enjoyed my time as a security guard, so I chose to get back
into the field.  With the money I had, plus my college education in business, I
was able to start my own security company.  After a few very successful years,
I was making more money from the business than I would have if I continued to
play football.  Once again, I had the wife of my dreams, a son that one could
only wish for, and a job that I loved doing.  Life was awesome.

I thought about our paths from time
to time, Mike’s and mine, and how different they were.  As a high school
player, Mike was one of the best.  He was popular, and was recruited by several
major colleges.  After three years as a college student, he was selected as the
number one pick by our favorite professional football team.  He made a lot of
money and, after only five years, was able to retire well.  Sadly, he still
felt empty and had to move his family in just for company.  He didn’t have much
education, and could only get a job based on who he was.

On the other hand, it took me a
long time to develop into a football player.  It took so long that I had to
play two years at the junior college level just to get noticed.  After a year
of backup duties, and a year of starting, I only had enough experience to make
the scout team at a major college.  I eventually made my way as a backup player
on a national championship winning team.  I went on to start the following
year, only to disappoint the fans with a losing season.  After only a year as a
college starter, I was able to fight my way onto a professional football team,
only to make the practice squad for two seasons.  I eventually became an
all-star, but only for a short time as I chose to walk away from football due
to team politics.  I walked right out of the challenging life of professional
football, and right into my considerably more rewarding life of marriage,
family, and business ownership.  Although I wouldn’t have changed a thing, and
was glad that I made the life choices I did, when I think about our two paths,
I still come to the same conclusion every time:  Linemen have all the guts, but
running backs still get all the glory.

I thought that when we retired from
football that day, we would be walking away from it completely.  However, after
going through all of the frustration and excitement of a career in professional
football, it was now fun watching James begin to walk in my footsteps.  It’s crazy
to watch him create the same memories that I shared with my best friend many
years ago.  Today, Mike and I both coach youth football.  And as much fun as I
had playing on the field with him, I am having even more fun coaching against
him.   Although we left the game as athletes, we will forever stay in the game
as fans.

This is a work of fiction. All characters,
organizations, and affiliations are completely fictitious. Any resemblance to
actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.  Processes explained
are intentionally inaccurate to maintain the simplicity of the story.