By Valor and Arms.

This is where to post any NFL or NCAA football franchises.

Topic author
Soapy
Posts: 7014
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 18:42

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Soapy » 18 Jan 2023, 13:39

Captain Canada wrote:
18 Jan 2023, 11:23
She gonna reveal the train that got ran on her at Thanksgiving? Sickening stuff.
nah that right there is a violation
User avatar

Agent
Posts: 6858
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 22:54

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Agent » 19 Jan 2023, 10:27

Caesar wrote:
12 Jan 2023, 05:53
You sure ya boy name is James Earl Little, Jr. and not DeShaun Watson or Antonio Brown with all this hitting on trainers just trying to do their job?
:dead:
User avatar

chosenone58
Posts: 3576
Joined: 28 Nov 2018, 19:06

By Valor and Arms.

Post by chosenone58 » 25 Jan 2023, 19:55

What is this gem of a story that I've stumbled upon? I'm only a few chapters in, but :bowdown:
Creator of Derek Baldwin da Gawd

Topic author
Soapy
Posts: 7014
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 18:42

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Soapy » 30 Jan 2023, 08:30

chosenone58 wrote:
25 Jan 2023, 19:55
What is this gem of a story that I've stumbled upon? I'm only a few chapters in, but :bowdown:
thanks brodie, welcome to the party. we byke next week, just haven't had the time to write

Topic author
Soapy
Posts: 7014
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 18:42

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Soapy » 06 Feb 2023, 08:27

Chapter Twenty Five: And A Time For Thanks

James rushed over to the kitchen sink, running the cold water on his hands as he sought for relief. It always amazed him how his mom had no problems mashing up the shredded chicken portion of the stuffing with her bare hands even though it was scaldingly hot. Even with gloves and letting the chicken cool down a bit -- much to the chagrin of his mother -- it was proving to be an arduous task for the young man.

"We just waiting on y'all," Leanne was quick to remind her sons as Elijah was adding some more sugar to the sweet tea while Joshua was putting the finishing touches on his patented garlic mashed potatoes while also keeping a watchful eye on his phone.

Leanne's words elicited James Sr. to emerge from the living room with the clicker still in his hand. Unlike most living rooms with the Detroit Lions game on, James Sr. had instead been watching film on Cleveland High School, their hated rivals who had also somehow ran the table since their earlier matchup in the season to make the final four. While the Trojans would be playing Biloxi this week, James Sr. was guilty of looking ahead to the potential state championship of both Cleveland teams.

East Side was the much better team, as demonstrated in their 28-3 drubbing of the Wildcats earlier in the year but over the years, James Sr. had learned the only thing harder than winning a football game was winning two football games against the same team in a calendar year.

"I'm ready to eat," James Sr. boasted as he took his seat at the head of the table.

"Of course you are,” Pearl playfully teased her father, “Ain’t never ready to cook though.”

“I’ll have you know that when your mother was pregnant with you,” he addressed her, “I did most of the cooking so I’ve done my part for a lifetime, baby girl.”

“Bless your heart,” Leanne laughed as she finished setting up the table with her oldest, summoning the rest of the family, “Let’s get it going now, I know y’all got tape to watch.”

A knock on the door disrupted the happenings, jolting Joshua out of his seat and towards the door. While the rest of the family looked on with confusion, Leanne had a big grin on her face.

“Joshua invited his friend,” she looked directly at James Sr. who couldn’t help but shake his head and scoff, “Now, we’re all going to be the great people that I know all of us to be.”

“I don’t know why you’re looking at me,” James Sr. shrugged as he shifted his eyes to the food in front of him, “Just let me know when to say grace so we can get to eating.”

Just as their conversation wrapped up, Joshua approached the table with the same young man that James had been reacquainted with a few weeks prior, “Hey everyone, this D’Ondre.”

“I think we met before,” James Sr. sprung out of his seat and shook his hands, “I’m Joshua’s father, James.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Nice to see you again,” Leanne hugged him while the rest of the siblings, including James, simply waved over to him.

The awkward silence lingered before James Sr. cleared his throat and began saying grace which took all of thirty seconds before digging into his food.

“Should be a good game this Friday,” Joshua tried to strike up a conversation that would grab the attention of the group, “I’m not going to lie, I’m going to be rooting for Cleveland too, that would be pretty special.”

“I hate to agree with you there but it would be,” James Sr. nodded, “Biloxi ain’t no walk over though, they’ll be tough.”

“How’s your ankle?” D’Ondre asked, evidence that he’d been paying attention to their games.

“It’ll be fine,” James shrugged, a response that had become automated at this point.

“I watched their game against Greenwood, their offense ain’t nothing special. I think y’all boys should handle them,” D’Ondre continued to flex his football knowledge.

“Greenwood got some dogs though,” James Sr. responded.

“I don’t know, it’s a playoff game so you never know but I like y’all in this matchup,” D’Ondre added.

“No argument from me there,” James Sr. laughed.

...

The modest walk was a welcomed addition to the night as James made his way to Anabelle’s, helping the digestion of the food he had just devoured.

If their own cooking wasn’t enough, a few neighbors and family members had stopped by with their desserts and the likes, all of which James didn’t have the willpower to refuse.

It also gave him a moment to not only be by himself for a while with his social meter running low but also an opportunity to test out his ankle. He was off the scooter and the few miles to Anabelle’s was putting just enough stress on his injured ankle for him to get a good stretch and feel for what tomorrow would feel like.

For Thanksgiving night, it was a pretty quiet household as he approached the door and knocked, taking a few steps back as he waited for it to open.

It didn’t take long for Anabelle to both open the door and spring herself onto him, hugging him tightly before leading him into the house.

“It’s so nice to see you,” she smiled before getting the attention of her parents, “Hey guys, James is here.”

“Sir,” her father simply nodded towards his general direction while her mom came over with a hug, even tighter than her daughter’s.

“You are a welcomed sight,” Cecille smiled, “How’s the family?”

“Everyone’s doing good,” James replied, “Pearl said hi, she’s home for the week.”

“I miss that voice,” Cecille nodded her head, “Tell her we all miss her at the choir.”

While James and Cecille’s conversation ensued, Anabelle had rushed off to the kitchen and finished wrapping up James’ plate. When she returned to James, she was quick to put an end to the conversation.

“I’m sure James’ family is waiting for him,” she pulled him away.

“She always wants you to herself,” Cecille joked, “It was nice to see you, honey, come back anytime.”

“Take care of yourself, young man,” Anabelle’s father added, always a man of few words.

Away from the ears and eyes of her parents, Anabelle took a notable sigh as they walked out of the house.

“They’re nice,” James laughed.

“I made the mistake of telling my mom,” she rolled her eyes, “Who probably even told my dad so here we are.”

“I didn’t tell mine but they probably figured it out,” James shrugged.

“So now I feel bad,” she scoffed, “Anyway, I see your ankle is getting better.”

“Yeah, treatment’s been kicking my ass but it’s definitely helping.”

“That’s good, still playing then?”

“I don’t really have a choice,” James laughed, “But yeah, I’m still playing.”

“Come on, you know you love being out there.”

“I do,” James reflected, “I don’t know, I think that’s probably why we’re here, like this at least.”

“I would agree there,” she added, “Obviously I’m really happy for you but it just....it changed things, which is fine, I mean, I don’t even know what I want to do and I don’t have colleges banging down my door.”

“Neither do I,” James corrected her, “It’s not really like that, at least not for me, it’s just a couple of schools interested.”

“Interested in paying for your college, that’s a big fucking deal babe and something you should be proud of.”

James’ face changed which helped Anabelle catch her slip up.

“Sorry for calling you that.”

“It’s fine,” James reassured her, “It’s hard for me not to say it too.”

“Even with your few weeks of freedom? You haven’t gone crazy?”

“I’m handicapped,” he joked, “But seriously, you know I’m not that guy, I’m a relationship guy.”

“I know you didn’t ask but neither did I, it wasn’t really about that for me, it just felt like we were in a rut, you know?”

“I was being distant,” James took blame, “It seemed like football was going to blow up our plans and I didn’t want to be to the one to acknowledge so I guess, I don’t know, I was hoping it would just resolve itself without me having to be the bad guy that ruined everything we’ve been talking about.”

“I don’t think it needs to be that, I don’t even know if I even want to go to Delta State or even anywhere in-state. I feel like we both boxed ourselves in and then got scared when there’s no reason for us to be in this box.”

“No disagreements with me there,” James nodded.

“It could all be so simple.”

“With a little communication,” James smiled as their lips met.
 
Last edited by Soapy on 27 Sep 2023, 07:41, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar

Captain Canada
Posts: 2158
Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Captain Canada » 06 Feb 2023, 11:33

No mention of the choo-choo? Lying ass...

Topic author
Soapy
Posts: 7014
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 18:42

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Soapy » 26 Apr 2023, 07:50

i gotta go to work

Topic author
Soapy
Posts: 7014
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 18:42

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Soapy » 01 Oct 2023, 20:26

Chapter Twenty Six: Congratulations, You Played Yourself

Nodding his head to the sounds emanating from the band, James could feel his confidence growing with every ball that he threw, each one having a little bit more zip than the previous.

He particularly focused on his throwing motion, trying to generate as much torque as he could with his upper body and not relying on his compromised right ankle to plant, pivot and fire.

It was an hour or so before kickoff but there was already a palpable buzz in the stadiums as fans had begun to trickle in and the band was in full force.

Satisfied with his warm up, James signaled to Ryan that he was finished with their throwing session and started walking back towards the locker room. It dawned on him that he hadn’t thought much about his ankle once they got going and worked up a sweat, a promising sign for the senior quarterback.

He reached the locker room and bumped a few fists as the non-specialists were still in there getting dressed and ready for the game.

“Warm up in ten!” coach Mitchell yelled to the group.

He made his way through the training room and was surprised to see it practically empty outside of a few freshmen -- who were likely not going to play -- getting their wrists taped up. James sat on one of the open tables and popped his headphones in as he shuffled through his iPod to find the right tunes.

Before he could land on one, he was startled by Jasmine who started moving his right ankle, testing its mobility and movement.

“Paging James,” Jasmine cracked a joke, “We need your head in this game, man.”

“You don’t give two shits about the game,” James laughed.

“I don’t,” she smiled as she took out a roll of tape, “But I also don’t want the season to be over.”

“I thought we were all nasty, women hating, crying babies that you couldn’t wait to no longer see?”

“You’re not all nasty,” she was pretty quick witted, especially for her age, which James appreciated.

“You probably tell your friends that you’re cool with us to score points,” James teased her. While she wasn’t unattractive, James felt she definitely leaned more towards the nerdy girl than the popular one. After all, he would know, given that he was dating the most popular of them all.
“You caught me there,” she held her hands up as if she was getting arrested.

They continued to chit chat, exclusively about nothing important, while Jasmine worked on his ankle, applying an extra layer of tape to stabilize it. Once completed, she did the same mobility movements from earlier and confirmed with James that he was pain free, as rather as pain free as it was going to be.

James hopped off the table, instantly regretting it as it caused a slight pain in his ankle but it quickly subdued, much to his relief.

“Don’t do that again,” she scoffed before leaning in, kissing him on the cheek, “Good luck out there.”

“Thanks,” he chuckled awkwardly, unsure how to process what had just happened.

“I wanted to give you a good luck kiss last time and then I didn’t and you sucked so...”

“Wow, I sucked?” James was more than happy to change the subject.

“You kind of did,” she shrugged, “But you’ll be fine tonight.”

James simply smiled and shook his head, popping his headphones back in and deciding to focus on more important matters at hand than deciphering what all of that was about.

...

“It’s a really popular tape right now.”

James Sr. did his best to hide his pride but it was written all over his face, “It really clicked for him this season, can’t put it any better than that.”

“We were trying to sneak in and make a play but ain’t no more sneaking or under the radar anymore,” the heavy set gentleman let out a big laugh, “You know the recruiting services are always late or way too early on a kid but every coach knows it by now, they’ll come calling.”

“He’s got a couple schools talking to him right now,” James Sr. chose to reveal, always careful whenever he’s speaking to a college coach, even when the prospect in question isn’t his son, “I think after the playoffs he’ll probably take his visits in January and try to make a decision once he’s done.”

“I’ll love to talk to him,” he nodded his head, “We’re going to take two, Koenning on board, the big boss is on board so it’s just a matter of who that other kid is. When I look at Junior’s film, he’s the perfect prospect to bring in as that number two quarterback because he knows he’s a project and you know football, you know what I’m saying?”

“Quarterbacks are tough,” James Sr. nodded in agreement, reminiscing to the many phone calls and conversations he would have with a quarterback’s father whenever they felt they weren’t being utilized properly, “Everybody thinks they understand the position and don’t know jack shit about it.”

“Exactly so, you know, I’d love to get in contact with him after the game, feel him out and get him and coach Koenning connected and then we go from there. But his tape, it’s an offerable tape, I’m telling you that right now and that’s before the playoffs.”

...

“Little fires across the middle and it’s a touchdown! The Tigers made it look easy on that drive, finishing up with a touchdown pass from James Earl Little Jr. to Geo Sarria to open up the scoring in the first quarter.”
....

James came off the field with a big smile on his face, surprised by how little resistance they faced on that first drive. It would soon come.

...

“The Indians finally get pressure, Little rolls out and he’s intercepted! Biloxi gets that big break they were looking for after allowing that touchdown on the first drive and failing to score any points on their first two drives. Just a poor decision and throw from Little on that one, he’ll want it back.”

...

“What are you looking at?” James Sr’s favorite phrase rang loudly as James came off the field, unsure himself at what he was trying to do there.

George had gotten open on the out route while Michael was turning his route to the flats upfield, as they were taught to do during the scramble drill. This resulted in multiple defenders converging in the same area and with a limited ankle and not a ton of arm talent to begin with, James’ pass floated in the air and was picked off by the defense.

...

The interception didn’t prove to be too costly as East Side would force a turnover on downs and were on another promising drive when James felt pressure coming in from his left side and panicked, throwing a deep ball to Thien who had beaten his defender for the go route but there was a safety playing over the top, who promptly intercepted the pass.

...

“What the fuck are you doing?!” James Sr. was more forceful this time, not waiting for his son to reach the sidelines and instead met him on the field.

“I thought I could hole shot it,” James mumbled as he took out his mouth piece, looking up at the scoreboard with 1:18 remaining in the first half and having scored just one touchdown.

You can’t make that throw,” James Sr. 's words stung but were also true.

“Got to be smarter there,” coach Harrison reminded his quarterback.

...

Coach Harrison opened the second half with a couple of easy throws to get James and the offense going, also going to their running game a little bit more than they had in the first half. The plan was coming together, entering the red area before a free rusher would again cause a drive to come to an abrupt end.

...

“Biloxi sends the blitz...Little fires across the middle and he’s intercepted! Jackson Gold is going to be tackled at the 43-yard line by Michael Weisbecker but it’s going to be a first down for Biloxi as they still have some life here in the third quarter!”

...

James ripped his helmet off as he walked over to the bench, ignoring the screaming from his father and the looks he was now receiving from his teammates and other coaches. They were thoroughly outplaying Biloxi on defense and even on offense, everyone seemed to be clicking on all cylinders except for the school’s record holder in nearly all passing categories.

...

“Biloxi gets pressure and Little just throws the ball into a crowd of defenders but they drop the interception! Three Biloxi defenders could have intercepted that pass but it’s going to be second and ten for the Tigers who escape with another bad decision from James Earl Little Jr.”

...

“I told you at the half,” James Sr. looked over to his offensive coordinator, “Ryan can’t be any worse.”

“He’ll settle down,” coach Harrison rebuffed James Sr.’s plea to replace James at quarterback, an idea that was first floated in the locker room.

Coach Harrison not only believed in James, he also thought it would be an unfair situation to put an unproven player like Ryan in.

...

James found himself not even processing the play that was being relayed in and had to snap himself out of his daze, taking a deep breath as he deciphered the play calling signals and went back to the huddle.

“Wake the fuck up,” George barked at his quarterback.

“For real,” Chris sucked his teeth, “Tighten the fuck up, nigga.”

“Come on,” Thien tried to rally the troops, “We’re good, we’re good.”

“No, the fuck we’re not. Get us the fucking ball,” Chris continued with the incoming play call the last thing on anyone’s mind.

“We got you 12,” Alex tapped James on the check who was quite frankly over the entire fucking situation and just wanted the game to end, whether they won or loss.

...

“Biloxi gets pressure again but Little Jr. completes it this time with a perfect pass to Geo Sarria, perhaps his best of the night.”

“When he’s throwing with anticipation and touch, you see why he’s the state’s leading passer by a mile.”

...

“This is a fucking touchdown if you give me time,” James told his offensive line as they got out of the huddle, growing a bit of frustrated with how often he was getting it, “Get on the fucking line.”

He surveyed the defense and was happy to see that they were in man coverage and based on the safety’s alignment, even if they were in a cover 2 shell over the top of it, he’d be too far inside to make a play on George’s outbreaking route.

“Black 30 trap! Black 30 trap! Zebra, we’re good! We’re good! Ready....set....hut!”

Even though he knew he wanted George on the out route the entire time, James worked the middle of the field first, eyeing down Michael’s crossing route before flashing quickly to Thien running a go on the short side of the field before flipping his hips and his head to the right and firing off a pass to George who caught it in stride as he was tackled in the endzone.

“Good shit,” Jarvis tapped him on the helmet but James ignored him and everyone else as he jogged off the field and sat down, just wishing the night was over already.

...

“14-0, a little over two minutes remaining and East Side is in the red zone again, trying to put this game away. Little drops back...rolls out to his left...he’s going to take off...no, he stops...throws....touchdown! What a play from the senior quarterback to completely confuse the defense and get the touchdown and that’s probably going to be it folks. East Side, Cleveland High School, it’s going to be a big time showdown between the two rivals for State!”

...

“It’s going to be a crazy game next week,” James Sr. admitted to a longtime coaching buddy of his who had come down to watch the game from East Central Community College.

James Sr. wasn’t too fond of sending his players to junior colleges but for the kids that absolutely needed it, his first call was always to Coach Gonzalez down in Decatur.

“I’m there for sure,” Coach Gonzalez shook his head in agreement, having previously coached at both schools and knowing the magnitude of not just the rivalry but the rivalry now playing out on such a big stage.

“We just can’t have what we had today,” James Sr. scoffed, “I damn near yanked him out of the game. Shit, if he didn’t have all those coaches out here tonight, I probably would have.”

“Yeah, I saw buddy from Mississippi State, he left at halftime so he didn’t even get to see nephew turn up for real. Fucking bastard.”

“Shit,” James Sr. spat at the ground, “That’s on him, James played himself tonight.”
User avatar

Captain Canada
Posts: 2158
Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Captain Canada » 03 Oct 2023, 11:13

Oh, we byke???

Topic author
Soapy
Posts: 7014
Joined: 27 Nov 2018, 18:42

By Valor and Arms.

Post by Soapy » 05 Oct 2023, 19:41

Captain Canada wrote:
03 Oct 2023, 11:13
Oh, we byke???
we live
Post Reply