25. Season Opener

CHAPTER 25

SEASON OPENER

AUSTIN TROOPERS VS OKLAHOMA COPPERHEADS

Lee thought he might throw up. He paced the bathroom, rubbing his stomach, and swallowing hard. Why now? He'd made it through all four preseason games with only the jitters. He'd felt "wired," antsy… Nothing like this.

"Matty? Fuck, man, you okay?" Yowie asked, his eyes narrowed as he took Lee in. "You gonna hurl?"

"Maybe." Lee sucked in a deep breath and blew it out long. "I'm all… I can't even describe it."

Yowie snorted. "Yeah. Ha. I remember that feeling. It's your first ride. Ignore the crowds and play your game. You'll do fine."

"I hope so."

"I know so. Come on. Cap's calling for everybody. You ain't the only rookie looking peaked." Yowie laughed. "Jakes already tossed his cookies."

"Ugh." Lee groaned. "Don't tell me that." He pushed Yowie ahead of him as they returned to the main locker room. He peered around until he spotted a pale-faced version of his fellow defensemen. Lee clapped Jacobs on the shoulder. "Right there with you, Jakes." He sat beside him, pressing their arms together, helping to prop Jacobs up.

Coach Oliveira levered himself off the wall and strode to the center of the room, tucking his fingers into his back pockets. "First game of the season. First home game, and our first this year against our division rivals: the Copperheads."

A chorus of boo s spread across the players. Lee joined in, the camaraderie and anticipation overriding his nervousness.

"You all performed well during preseason. The best of you are starting tonight. Mr. Vasquez, Mr. Fitz, and I believe you can win. What say you?"

"Yes!" Lee shouted right along with several others. "Hoo-rah!"

Their starting quarterback, Addison Kelly, joined Coach Oliveira, and when the veteran players stood, Lee followed, pulling Jacobs with him. "Take a knee, gentlemen." Their starting QB turned in a slow circle, meeting each of their gazes. "Like Coach said, we had a great preseason. Let's keep that momentum going. Hoo-rah!"

"Hoo-rah!" The team burst to their feet, bouncing around, slapping shoulders, backs, and asses, shouting encouragement to each other. They grabbed their helmets and filed out of the locker room. Team captains pushed to the front of the pack as they wound through the tunnel that would spill them onto the field.

Lee and Yowie stood on either side of Jakes, his cheeks now flushed. Considering the adrenaline rush Lee was experiencing, he figured he probably looked the same. He rocked on his heels and jumped a few times, shaking out his arms. The roar of the crowd as the Copperheads were announced flowed over him as his focus narrowed.

Game time, Lee. Eyes on the ball.

He curled and flexed his fingers, closed his eyes, and just breathed. Yowie grabbed Lee's hand, and he, in turn, grabbed Jakes. Following the veterans, they ran out on the field, the sound an overwhelming crash that thundered in Lee's ears. He thought he knew how loud a crowd could be when Rutgers played at the occasional larger universities, such as U. Michigan or Ohio State. Alcohol certainly made people crazy. Crazier.

Reaching the sideline, Lee scanned the family section. He spotted his mom and aunt waving like the maniacs they were, holding signs that read "The only one that MATTERS." Laughing, he flashed them a thumbs up and a broad smile before pointing them out to Jacobs, who rolled his eyes as he finger-gunned his family sitting two rows beneath Lee's, watching as they comically fell over dead, tongues-lolling.

The game announcer was calling for everyone's attention for the Star-Spangled Banner sung by Austin natives, The Watchsmiths. Lee lined up on the sideline, and with his hand over his heart, sang along. As fireworks exploded at the conclusion, he closed his eyes and thanked the big guy in the sky for blessing him, and maybe could he toss a little magic dust his way.

Jakes clapped Lee's shoulder and dragged him to the bench while the coin toss happened with the QB and the offensive and defensive line captains. They watched on the big screen, breaths held, waiting to find out which line would take the field after the kickoff. Regardless of which way the coin landed, Lee would take the field with special teams. He'd earned his spot.

He patted Jakes before he stepped back, drawing in long breaths and blowing them out in a steady steam, trying to slow his racing heart. Spotting his mom descending the stairs, he met her at the bottom, reaching up to clasp her hand.

"I'm so glad you're here, Mom."

"Wouldn't be anywhere else," she replied, giving him a squeeze and a smile.

"I've been informed that my presence is required post-game, so I won't be back until late."

"That's fine. Auntie and I can take care of ourselves. You have fun." She winked and laughed. "I'm sure you'll have a good time. Now get out there and give ‘em hell. Hoo-rah!"

"Hoo-rah!" Lee responded, along with half a dozen other family members of the team who were watching them.

He retreated to the sideline, joining the special teams unit. Following the commercial break, he jogged onto the field and into position. Once there, he ran in place, warming up his muscles while keeping an eye on the Copperhead's kicker. When the kicker raised his arm, Lee settled into his stance and was off like a shot the moment the ball was launched into the air.

Yowie had to settle Lee down more than once as the game went on. As their preseason continued, Lee had seen more and more time on the field, but unless the current game became a blowout, he'd play the entire time. He knew he should rein himself in, but his excitement knew no bounds.

In the first quarter, Lee had batted one pass down, gotten one tackle, and had so thoroughly covered Kowalski, the wide receiver he was paired with, that he could see the guy's frustration written all over his face. As a free safety, Lee's quickness and ability to read the plays foiled the Copperheads' quarterback again and again.

As the clock wound down toward half-time, the score tied at seven apiece, Lee was back on the field, slapping Anders' hand as he took over after a first-down run play by the Copperheads. He could almost taste the throw coming…

Lee set up ten yards back from the line of scrimmage. The QB called an audible, and Lee's gaze darted between the receiver and the quarterback, taking in the motion of the offensive line that shifted away from him, like a distraction. Seeing the ease with which the line moved, he immediately suspected it was a known play, and the audible was for show. He wasn't falling for it. No way, no how.

"Hike!"

Lee backpedaled and then ran alongside Kowalski. He'd kept the man to only one reception so far, and damn, he was determined to keep it that way. Seeing Kowalski turn his head back and then up, Lee knew the ball was coming. He narrowed the gap between them, and the moment the receiver slowed, lifting his arms, Lee dashed forward, spun, and jumped, the ball hitting him squarely in the chest, his hands cradling it like a baby.

When his feet hit the ground, Lee was running again, passing hash mark after hash mark, all the while bracing for impact. "Line!" he heard his coaches shout, so he changed directions and headed for the sideline. He got rocked by someone in the back and flew forward, over the sideline, and into the arms of his teammates. There were shouts in his ears, thumps to his head, shoulders, and back, but riding the high of an interception, Lee barely heard or felt them.

Someone herded him to the bench and pushed him down on it. In his arms, he still held the ball. No way was he giving it back. His first interception. Sure, he'd had a few in preseason, but those never officially counted. Now he had one, and fuck if he didn't plan on having a hell of a lot more.

With only twenty seconds left in the half, the Troopers failed to convert, but Lee didn't care. Couldn't care. He reluctantly turned the ball over to Eddy, who promptly placed it in a plastic bag with Lee's name on it, along with the date, time, and why, and promised him he'd get it back after the game.

In the locker room, everyone congratulated him, from the assistants to the equipment managers, the trainers, the team, and the coaches, all the way up to the GM and the owner. After the Troopers' owner, Antonio Vasquez, came and left, Lee was informed by the GM that "Tony" rarely made his way downstairs, and fuck, if that didn't give Lee another rush. The owner came to see him . To congratulate him . His mom and aunt were going to be so proud.

"Okay, okay," Coach Mike cut through the team surrounding Lee, looking serious. "Let's talk second half."

When Lee trotted out after halftime, he waved at his family, getting heart-shaped hands and blown kisses in return. He ran in place, keeping himself warmed up and limber on the sidelines while the Troopers kicked off, then he was back on the field as the Copperheads did their best to get a first down.

It seemed like everyone from the team to the fans had gotten an enthusiasm boost. The defense kept the Copperheads pinned deep while the Troopers' offense scored a field goal and a touchdown to put them up 17-7 by the end of the third quarter.

Lee got a brief reprieve on a long drive by Oklahoma with the commercial timeout at the turn into the fourth quarter. He listened as Coach Mike gave them encouragement and instructions as he sucked down Gatorade, cringing at the regular flavor. In disgust, he turned to hand it off to one of the water boys, who promptly apologized as he asked for water in its place.

"Matty? You with me?"

"Sorry, Coach. I only like the Frost flavors."

His teammates snickered. Coach stared. "If I promise you only Frosts from now on, you think you can shut this offense down?"

Lee grinned. "I sure can try."

"Excellent. Helmets on." Coach clapped, and with Yowie's call, they put their hands in, shouting, "Hoo-rah!"

Was it the few minutes of rest or the promise of his favorite sports drink that had Lee energized? Regardless, on the next play, Lee was focused and saw the pass play coming from a mile away. He shouted their code word to Yowie and flashed signs to Coop playing cornerback in front of him.

"Hoo-rah," Lee muttered, settling into position against Kowalski. In a near repeat of the third quarter, he watched the receiver and quarterback, saw the offense shift, heard the shouted, "Hike," and kept on the heels of Kowalski as he blew by him, going long.

Mine, mine, mine… He turned his head when Kowalski did. Tracking the ball, Lee could see the throw was offline and falling short. He cut to his right, noticed Anders fading his way, and waved him off. When the ball landed in Lee's arms, Anders led the way, getting in a solid block that opened a lane for Lee to get another 8 yards before being tackled. He curled tightly around the football as many hands tried to strip it away.

"Matty!" Yowie hauled Lee to his feet once the pile of Copperheads was pulled off by the refs. "Holy shit, you did it." The defensive line escorted him to the sideline where, again, he was pounded, patted, and congratulated.

Coach Oliviera even came over and gripped Lee's shoulder pad. "Nicely done. Now it's up to Addy and the offense to put this game away."

And they did. It was a rout that ended with the Troopers scoring another touchdown off his conversion and a second field goal. Final score: 27-7.

While many of the spectators had already departed, there were still huge swaths of yellow and gold filling the stands of ATEX. The cheers, the blaring music, all of it had Lee smiling a mile wide. He waved to his mom and aunt as she yelled, "Love you! Have fun!"

His mood remained jubilant in the locker room and only took a small nose-dive when the communications director told him to clean up fast because his presence was required by the media. He pushed off the reporters and cameras in the locker room, telling them he'd be in the conference room, grabbed his boxer briefs and towel, and hit the showers.

When he took a seat beside Addy, Coach Oliveira was in the middle of answering questions from various media stations. Lee glanced around, shocked by how full the room was with people, camera operators, photographers, and security personnel.

Addy patted his back and leaned closer. "First time is nerve-wracking, but it'll get easier, and damn man, you made my job a hell of a lot easier today."

Lee grinned wryly. He didn't think he made that much of a difference except for them getting the TD conversion in the fourth quarter. The offense still needed to perform, and they did… exceptionally well.

"Addison! Give us your thoughts on your team this year, especially after today's win."

Addy straightened and focused on the reporter. "I think we have a great team this year. We've got solid veterans and a handful of rookies and undrafted players who have not only performed well during preseason but stepped up big-time tonight."

"Addison, you're sharing Player of the Game with Lee Matters whose first of two interceptions seemed to kick the Troopers into high gear. Do you agree with that?"

Turning to look at the new reporter asking, Addy grinned, and a host of cameras flashed. Lee wasn't surprised. Addy was a handsome guy and already claimed. Not that Lee wasn't, too. Not officially, but when the season ended, he'd see where things lie with Drew and Mac.

"Absolutely. We went into the locker room at halftime fired up and came out the same way. Oklahoma was running our defense ragged at the end of the third, and I could feel the team getting worried about them closing the gap. Matters' second interception was perfect timing, pun intended." He bumped Lee with the side of his fist.

"Lee… Joe Jackson, Austin Times . You had a phenomenal game. Tell us about that first interception. It looked like you read that play…?"

Taking his cue from watching Addy, Lee focused on the reporter. "Hi Joe, and yeah…" Nervous, Lee's heart beat so fast he rubbed his chest. "Thanks. I suspect you'll all be looking up my stats at Rutgers—Go Knights!—but it was kinda my thing. I just get this feeling and sorry, but Kowalski was easy enough to keep up with, and he kinda telegraphed his moves."

"And the second time…" Joe fished.

Lee peered at Joe. "Seriously… they tried the same play." He shook his head. It had been unbelievable at the time, and he thought the same when they tried it again. The Copperheads' offensive coach was probably getting a tongue-lashing at that moment.

"Lee, Casey West, Football Fandom , after your stunning preseason play and now this—starting the season off with two interceptions—you've got the Fandom going wild. Do you think you can keep it up and keep the Troopers winning this season?"

Opening his mouth to answer, Lee paused as he took in the reporter dressed in a rainbow of colors, his accent, and the play on words. He'd have to check out this fandom media outlet. "Hi Casey, and thanks. I'm glad to give the fans something to talk about."

"I'll say," Casey muttered loudly, earning laughs from all around him.

"To answer your question, I hope so. We've got a solid defense if everyone stays healthy. Aiden Young and Coach Carlson have worked hard to strengthen our line. But, as you know, we're only half the team and only put up a few points during the season. See Addison for keeping us on the scoreboard." Lee pointed jauntily at Addy, who smacked his wiggling finger.

The team's Communication Director stepped in front of them then and cut off any more questions, thanking everyone for coming and explaining the Troopers needed to clear the room for Oklahoma's head coach.

Addy grabbed Lee's arm as they followed Coach Oliviera from the conference room. "We're heading to Hand Wing Brewery after the game. You're coming, right?"

"Yup, already planned on it, but I was wondering…"

"If you could invite a friend or two?" Addy's leer made Lee laugh. "Yes. Drew's already invited as part of the team, so it's fine to bring a plus one. I'm looking forward to meeting your other best friend."

Lee wasn't so sure about Mac meeting them, but it had been days since he'd hung out with his friends, so he focused on that instead.