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Mark Ordon Professor H September 16, 2013 Word Count: 1757 Overcoming Adversity High school football was an experience that I will never forget. It has changed my mentality, the way I think, and gave me lessons that I will continue to carry on throughout my life. It was not until my junior year in my first round playoff game playing Serra High School, the number one seed in all of California that I soon realized overcoming adversity is truly possible. As the last seed, I realized the potential each and every one of us have to succeed but its solely about overcoming adversity. Before the game I heard remarks such as, Good lucking beating the number one team in all of California, or I dont know how a team like Culver City High School could even get this far. Not only did I take these comments to heart, this also gave me even more determination to win. I was nervous before kickoff so I said my prayers and after I was ready to play my heart out. Kickoff tipped off and now it was our time to shine. Play after play, we were off to a rough start and that lasted throughout the first half. Our team played as if we were afraid and next thing we knew we were down by fourteen. Our team chemistry was not on point and we were out there on the field playing like we were ready to lose. Out of breath, I was playing my heart out, but I still felt my best wasnt good enough. Halftime came and our team went to the locker room. We kept our heads down, kneeling before our coaches and expecting them to yell at us. We had enough. Out of nowhere a euphoric moment came. One of my coaches said, This is the moment we prove everyone wrong. This is the reason why he practiced hard all spring, summer, and fall. We dont let up and we never will.

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This is the time to overcome adversity and beat the number one seed in all of California! I swore my heart lit up like fire and I was ready to get back on that field and show this team why we deserved to win. Those words from my coach gave us all the courage we needed to finally show the nation why we were the better football team on that field. We all felt something great at that moment: the determination to win. My heart was beating like a drum and the second half began with their possession. They did nothing with the ball and were forced to punt. Finally, I was back on the field with the desire to put some points on the scoreboard. Reception after reception, we slowly began driving down the field doing what we came to do. Exhausted but having the mentality not to quit, next thing we knew, touchdown! Finally, we got points on the board and it was fourteen to seven. We showed signs of a comeback and we continued to not let up. Next possession was theirs and it was another three and out, so the ball was now ours again. Being the leader of the offensive line, I knew I had to take control of the game so I told my squad, This is it. Now or never. Lets show them why we are the best and what Culver City Football is all about. I knew the other team was slowly getting frustrated because we were now in gear to drive down the field and score again. That is exactly what we did and with a 40-yard throw from my quarterback to our receiver, another touchdown! This was one of the craziest catches I had seen. He caught the ball flipping in the air due to the other player hitting him, causing him to land on his neck dangerously, but with Gods grace he was alright and we were blessed with another touchdown. Sweat dripped down all of our faces, our fast paced offense may have tired the both of us out, but it was all about who wanted it more. Celebrating but knowing the third quarter was about to end, we still had work to do. Muscles tensing up and sweat dripping down our backs, our team still had that fire to keep on

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pushing. The ball was theirs and our defense needed another stop. Our defense was a bit tired and it showed when the other team was slowly driving down the field. They were gasping for air, acting very lackadaisical, and showed as if they wanted to give up. Pass after pass they were reaching our side of the field ready to score. I was encouraging my team on the sideline yelling, Lets go defense! We need a stop! Surprisingly out of nowhere, their wide receiver and our corner back were running foot to foot for the thrown ball by their quarterback and skillfully our corner back caught the ball causing an interception! The crowd was cheering and everyone went wild! We now had the possession and it was our time to finally take the lead with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter. I was tired, out of breath in fact, but I still had the fire and determination to keep fighting. Our next play was about to start and we ran a play up the middle, but I needed to block the defender in front of me and drive him out of the middle so this play could succeed for a gain of yards. The defender was about a 240 pound man ready to make something happen to help out his team, but there was no way in hell I would let something happen; especially at a time like this. Still a bit nervous, I snapped the ball and I smacked the defender in front of me knocking him on the ground and the play went perfectly. We ended up having a 30 yard gain which was one of the key moments to reaching another touchdown to take the lead. Walking back to the ball, I was knocked to the ground by the same defender I smacked on the ground while a play was not even in session and words were exchanged at that moment. I was angry that this dumbass had the audacity to lay a hand on me. A penalty flag was thrown on their part and this put us at the twenty yard line closer to the inzone. Our offense knew what needed to be done and what we had to do to execute correctly. I tried keeping my composure and with the help of my teammates saying, Hes not worth it, I kept cool like the temperature and was ready to play ball. With time winding down and having the momentum in our favor, another

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touchdown was executed! Finally our lead and with a minute and a half to go, we were so close to beating the number one team in all of California. Serra High School was nowhere near ready for us. With a minute to go it was their ball and they were not about to bow down and let up. They played their hearts out and made our defense work to not let them score. With their next play they tried to surprise us with a run and I heard a loud smack. My good friend and teammate caused a fumble and our defense recovered the ball. The game was ours with a quarterback to kneel on the ground for the final seconds of the game and everyone stormed the field as soon as the clock went to zero. Announcers yelled, Culver City shocked the nation! They beat the number one team in all of Southern California! It was such a memorable moment. I ran to two of my best friends, Keishawn and Akili, and yelled We did it! With watery eyes and smiles of happiness, Culver City High School beat the number one seed in all of California and it was all over the newspapers and television. The determination my teammates and I shared paid off. The fire lit inside all of us not only helped us succeed and overcome adversity, but we surprised the nation. It may have not been a championship game, but it was a game to remember for the rest of our lives and it was a lesson worth learning from. The God of Cake, by Allie Brosh, shows similarities between the main character and myself. The connection between my narrative and the one I learned from is that you should never give up. No matter what the reason may be, always reach your goals and do not ever let anyone tell you that you cant succeed. Just like the main character from The God of Cake, she had the mentality of making sure she was going to eat that deliciously tasting cake. Even though times were tough and rough, she never gave up and when she saw the opening to eat the cake, she devoured it. Same for myself, being down by fourteen points and at the end of the first half my

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teammates and I bounced back to earn that win, and boy was the feeling amazing. Euphoric in fact, the main character from The God of Cake and I both achieved success with the determination to overcome adversity and never give up. This event has changed me as a person of who I am today because even though times may get tough, you always have to know that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. No matter what, if you try hard enough, you will ultimately succeed. This mentality I have obtained due to high school football has changed me for the better and has given me the mentality to reach perfection in anything I pursue. With the mentality of determination I have gained from high school football, I now apply this to many aspects of my life such as school and work. With school, I have the mentality to ace everything. The only thing I ever want to see on my graded papers or tests are perfect scores no matter what it takes. With work, perfection and dedication is all I plan to pursue. Because of high school football, this has encouraged me to strive for perfection. Although perfection is not reachable, who says we cant try to reach it?

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Works Cited Brosh, Allie. The God of Cake. Hyperbole and a Half. Blogger. October 2, 200. Web. September 5, 2013.