Football Take Two

Josh got better on his guitar throughout that year, and he even started a little band with his best buddies, but his sights were still set on sports. He was soon to be a freshman at Booker T. Washington High School, and he was working hard to regain his strength and speed after two knee surgeries six months apart. This was quite a feat considering how much atrophy he had in his leg muscles in addition to the residual pain. But football was what he knew and loved so he pressed on and started attending summer workouts at BTW.

At this time, Josh was not officially released by the doctor but he was able to do some strength and conditioning drills like sprints and weights, and he could practice passing the ball and learning the plays. His official release from the doctor just happened to come the day of the first 9th grade football game. I will never forget when he ran out on the field before the first play. My heart was pounding out of my chest because I couldn't see how his knee was going to hold up. It had been in such a fragile and protected state for an entire year; until he went out onto the field that first game I had not even seen him run since the Carver game a year before. It seemed to me as he jogged out to the huddle that his knee would just buckle beneath him.

Josh played quarterback in that first 9th grade football game and he did well, but it was miserable for me to watch. I'm sure I can speak for any parent that once your child gets hurt in sports you can never be completely at ease again. It did get better throughout the season, but I held my breath every time he went down until he got back up again. The season was uneventful and then football was put on the back burner until Spring.

The last two weeks of Josh's freshman year included spring football practice which culminated in an inter-squad scrimmage. As a rising sophomore, he was going to be able to go out for the Varsity team, and he was presented with an incredible opportunity. The two quarterbacks who led that year's team to a state championship were both graduating and there were no prospects in the class below them. The quarterback position was going to be filled by a sophomore.

Three rising sophomores were competing for quarterback and Todd and I were excited to go to the scrimmage on the last day of spring ball to see how Josh compared. The coach was rotating them out evenly and Josh did great whenever he was in. And then it happened. Again. Josh went down and did not get up. As his mother, I could tell from his body language that this was serious. I was wearing a light sweater that day because it was a little chilly, but I suddenly found myself breaking out into a cold sweat. As I took off my sweater I kept saying to myself, "We can't do this again. No, really. We can't do this again." Finally they hoisted Josh up and got him to the sidelines and I couldn't believe what I seeing.....it was his other knee.

At that moment I realized my son, who was so gifted athletically, would never play sports again.