Catching A Concussion: The Opening Kickoff
There were :02 seconds left in the Championship game of my senior season and we were losing by 4 points. My entire career came down to this one final play. We huddled up and I looked into the eyes of our freshman quarterback. "Throw me the ball whether I'm open or not... I want the game in my hands!" I said without a doubt in my mind. The rest was history...
VIDEO OF MY GAME WINNING TOUCHDOWN CATCH:
It was the most incredible way to end a football career!
Too bad NONE of what I just told you about EVER happened and... well, at least NOT FOR ME..
My story actually played out a little different. But first, Rewind real fast to 1996 when I was only a little guy in Mrs. Stoffier's 1st grade class at William Penn Elementary. I knew what football was, but this particular year I noticed the sport on a new level. I was playing soccer and tee ball during this time and I honestly hated every minute of both sports. It wasn't that I was bad, I just genuinely didn't have any interest in them because it seemed like all anyone cared about was this little old team called the Pittsburgh Steelers. You see, the Steelers were in the Superbowl that season and playing against their rivals from past Super Bowls, the Dallas Cowboys. My family had a full on case of "YINZer" fever and was acting super weird. I remember the day of the big game like it was yesterday because of the energy that it gave the city and people I cared about. It was my first dose of "something bigger than me" and I wanted to be a part of it.
Also, the Steelers lost to the Cowboys in that game and from that day on I knew I didn't like Troy Aikman... (If you follow Lyndie and I on social media you may know why the feelings towards Troy are still present.
To be continued...
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