War of the Roses: Redux Edition
Posted: 02 Feb 2023, 06:46
Grown Man Football
As he lined up across from a diminutive cornerback, donning Vanderbilt’s trademark black and gold, Caesar listened to the crowd’s chants of “cheater” interspersed with a chorus of booing. If it were in a bigger stadium with a more pronounced homefield advantage, they might actually have had a shot at throwing Tulane off as they settled in for the first snap from scrimmage of the game.
Caesar glanced at the safeties as they shifted to a single high look. He immediately looked back inside to Darren who gestured for him to change his route as he continued to make the necessary pre-snap adjustments.
The cornerback shifted his alignment and took a few steps back away from the line of scrimmage.
Darren called to the snap.
Caesar burst off the line with the corner looking to force him to the inside. Stabbing his left foot into the turf, he faked a cut. The cornerback bit on the fake, jumping the route. That allowed Caesar to get to the outside and he immediately threw his hand up for the ball.
Darren obliged him as he stepped and lofted a pass down the sideline that fell perfectly over Caesar’s shoulder.
The big gain would turn into a bigger one as the safety sprinted to cut off Caesar’s angle, but only found air as he dove at Caesar’s ankles. From there, it was a foot race and Caesar wasn’t going to lose it as he ran into the endzone.
He put his finger to his lips, shushing the crowd as he shuffled sideways, before turning around the celebrate with his teammates.
…
“And he’s back like he never left, ladies and gentlemen! Caesar Jenkins takes the first pass of the game 73 yards for a touchdown and the Green Wave are up early after a big play from their big play receiver on the outside.”
“You can see the kind of attention he commands when a player bites on a fake like Theron Keen does here. Once he does that, it was over for the Commodores’ defense. But I tell you what, I bet they don’t run too many more single high safety looks today!”
…
“Quentin Fleck throws that one well off after being hurried in the backfield by Mario Miles.”
…
“Another misfire from Fleck and that’ll bring up 3rd and 10.”
…
“Barrett is brought down in the backfield and that’s going to see Vanderbilt forced to punt on their opening drive."
...
“Reyes hands it off to Frazier and he can scoot! Fifteen on the play before being pushed out of bounds.”
…
“Nigel Conrad gets in on the action with a reception for 10 yards.”
…
“Jenkins makes the catch and moves the chains. Gain of 11.”
…
“Jericho Armstrong gets into the backfield and flushes Reyes out but he flips it to Dallas over the middle for a gain of 5. Reyes is rushing the Green Wave back to the line, going with some tempo! He snaps it quickly and calls his own number! Another big gain of 17 before he slides down!”
“The Commodores might need a timeout to settle down after that because they’re looking flustered out there already.”
…
“Frazier powers it over the line and that’s a touchdown for the Green Wave!”
…
Devin swung his arm under the receiver’s ripping through his attempt to block him at the line of scrimmage. He kept a hold of Devin’s jersey for a few seconds before Devin was able to use his momentum to toss him aside.
The back got caught up on the pulling guard as he tried to make it to the outside with olive jerseys crashing down to meet the play.
Devin closed the distance preparing to make an attempt at the tackle. Before he could, Mario dove at the running back’s legs and tripped him up, allowing Devin to simply come in and shove the ball carrier over for an easy stop in the backfield.
He helped the big defensive end up to his feet and smacked him on the top of his helmet in thanks for making the tackle easier.
…
“That’s going to bring up third and five. Vanderbilt needs to convert here to get into the redzone and have a shot at stemming some of this Tulane momentum with a touchdown. Fleck’s in the shotgun…”
…
Devin got some depth as he dropped back into his zone assignment, giving the receiver a bit of a shove to throw off the timing of his route as he ran in front of him. Vandy’s quarterback was almost immediately under pressure as Blair ran straight through the A gap on a blitz.
The quarterback dumped it off the tight end just as he was getting hit.
Devin broke toward the play. Wrapping his arms around the tight end’s waist, he used his momentum to spin him to the ground just short of the first down marker.
…
“Back to back stops by Devin King and the Commodores are going to have to attempt a long field goal here!”
…
“It’s up and it squeaks inside the uprights. Vanderbilt is on the board. Tulane 14, Commodores 3.”
…
“That’s another catch for Caesar Jenkins…”
…
“Thibodeaux fights for the first down…”
…
“…Greer hauls it in on the post and that’s going to be a touchdown for the Green Wave!”
…
“Kerby Greer with the big hit in the backfield!”
…
“Batted down by Vaughn.”
…
“Volken makes the play despite being held by a pair of Vandy receivers!”
…
“Huge gain from Frazier…”
…
“Reyes flips it out to Jenkins for a short pickup…”
…
“Stanson brings it in and Tulane is moving the ball at will!”
…
“Frazier is brought down after a short gain of 2, but the Green Wave are inside the 10 and that’ll be a first down!”
…
Darren lifted his foot and motioned for Caesar to shift to the opposite side of the formation. As he did, both the corner and one of the safeties followed him.
Once he was set, the safety came all the way up to the line of scrimmage alongside the corner who was also set to press him at the line. It looked more like something you’d see on a punt than on a first and goal.
Caesar caught Darren’s attention and pointed up, but the quarterback shook his head and continued to make his pre-snap adjustments. Caesar repeated the gesture as Darren stepped back from the line, but he didn’t make any indication back the second time.
The junior clapped twice and called for the snap.
Caesar shuffled to the left and then burst to the right, getting to the outside of the corner. He positioned his body between the two players and the shrinking corner of the endzone.
Darren was flushed out of the pocket but didn’t have anywhere to run. Falling back just as he was getting hit, he threw the ball in Caesar’s direction.
Caesar leapt into the air – as did the two defensive backs – and threw an arm back to catch the ball. Contorting his body in the air, he tapped the heels of both feet in the tiniest shreds of colored turf before falling out of bounds.
…
“Oh! My! Days! That’s going to be reviewed but that’s a catch of the year contender if there ever was one!”
“Get off me, youngster! That’s a grown man out there! A lot of people say that Caesar Jenkins is the closest thing we’ve had to Calvin Johnson since Johnson retired and if that’s the kind of thing he can do then I think he deserves that comparison!”
“And the review confirms it! Touchdown Tulane! Wow!”
…
“Picked off! Fleck threw it deep and that might be termed an arm punt as Marcus Freebird catches it!”
…
“…first down, Green Wave.”
…
“…first down, Green Wave.”
…
“…first down, Green Wave. There’s some pushing and shoving down there. The referees might want to get a handle on this before it gets out of hand.”
“Caesar Jenkins made that catch. That’s one of the things you get from with this kid. Let’s just say he divides opinion on the field.”
…
“Reyes takes it himself and Tulane is running riot! Touchdown! It’s going to be 35-3 heading into the half.”
…
“Vandy actually moving the ball here on the opening drive of the third quarter. First down after a 5 yard gain by Barrett.”
…
“The Commodores can’t catch a break as that holding penalty will kill their momentum.”
…
“Alvarez makes the stop and Vanderbilt will be facing another long third down attempt!”
…
Devin shoved his hands into the receiver’s chest as he tried to get of the line of scrimmage. The two of them fought for position as the wideout tried to get free.
He managed to get Devin’s arms outside of his body and immediately cut to the inside, his eyes darting into the backfield.
Devin stumbled as his feet got tangled with the receiver’s, gaining his opponent a step on him and he could only watch as the quarterback opted for the quick pass over the middle. The receiver made De’Anthony miss and turned up field but slowed down as his blockers got in front of him.
Putting his head down, Devin ran full speed toward the receiver and swung his fist down over his shoulder to punch at the ball. With a loose grip on the ball, the receiver lost it and the ball hit the turf.
A pile of Green Wave defenders were the first to react to the ball before the Vandy offensive linemen jumped into the scrum. Devin made the business decision to stay out of it as the bigger players fought for the ball under the mess of bodies.
The referees took some time detangling everyone before Kendrick crawled out from the bottom of everyone, jumped to his feet and took off toward the Tulane sideline with the ball held over his head.
…
“Big play from the freshman corner Devin King to force the ball out and it’s Green Wave ball!”
“Mark, this Tulane squad has playmakers all over the field on both sides of the ball and that’s another example of that right there.”
…
“Vanderbilt actually makes a stop and Tulane will punt for the first time today.”
…
“The Commodores bog down in the redzone and will settle for the field goal. Aguayo to kick. It’s up and it’s good. 35-6.”
…
“He’s wide open! Caesar Jenkins walks in for the 24 yard touchdown reception and that’s surely the dagger as he stares down the crowd! The Commodores aren’t happy with themselves for allowing that touchdown!”
“You don’t want to see your secondary getting lost against any receiver, but when you’re losing a guy who already had two touchdowns today, it’s not a good look.”
“I don’t know if you all noticed this at home, but the Green Wave’s backup quarterback Michael Hammond was warming up that entire drive. It looks like Denver Shuman is calling off the dogs and sending in his backups.”
“There is still time left in the third quarter.”
“You’d almost be forgiven for forgetting that this Vanderbilt team beat Tulane’s hated in-state rivals LSU earlier this year.”
“Well, let’s remember LSU has only won 3 games this year so far. That’s not a vintage Tigers team.”
…
Caesar walked toward the locker room, ignoring the handful of Vanderbilt players who passed by him and attempted to shake his hand after the game – one in which the Commodores suffered a 54-6 beating that saw the second teamers get a full quarter of run and actually put points on the board against SEC opposition.
A woman wearing press credentials and tailed by a cameraman ran over to him, stopping him for an interview.
Much to the woman’s visible chagrin, an SID appeared out of nowhere and stood beside Caesar.
“Caesar, how does it feel to get back out onto the field after missing a few games? It looks like you didn’t miss a beat from how well you were playing earlier this season?” the reporter asked.
“They couldn’t figure out how to beat me on the field so they decided that they would come up with some shit that I was somehow cheating. All I gotta say is that it’s going to be a long day for whoever we gotta play.”
“12 receptions for 194 yards and 3 touchdowns. Do you think that the Commodores maybe though you’d start slow after not practicing for the better part of a month?”
Caesar shrugged. “I think their coach needs to think about pulling some scholarships.”
The SID leaned into the conversation, holding up one finger to indicate they only had more question to ask.
“Next week, you all travel to Alabama for a primetime game against the Crimson Tide. Shad Rawlings is one of the best corners in the nation and a Thorpe contender. Do you think that you can replicate this performance against a top defender like Shad Rawlings?”
“I hope he plans on wearing his nice panties if he’s going to let himself get fuc—”
The SID quickly stepped between Caesar and the reporter and shepherded him away before he could finish that line.
“I don’t think we’re going to be able to use that,” the cameraman said.
“My ass I’m not,” the woman said before turning to scan the field to grab another player for an interview before the post-game press gaggles formed around them.
As he lined up across from a diminutive cornerback, donning Vanderbilt’s trademark black and gold, Caesar listened to the crowd’s chants of “cheater” interspersed with a chorus of booing. If it were in a bigger stadium with a more pronounced homefield advantage, they might actually have had a shot at throwing Tulane off as they settled in for the first snap from scrimmage of the game.
Caesar glanced at the safeties as they shifted to a single high look. He immediately looked back inside to Darren who gestured for him to change his route as he continued to make the necessary pre-snap adjustments.
The cornerback shifted his alignment and took a few steps back away from the line of scrimmage.
Darren called to the snap.
Caesar burst off the line with the corner looking to force him to the inside. Stabbing his left foot into the turf, he faked a cut. The cornerback bit on the fake, jumping the route. That allowed Caesar to get to the outside and he immediately threw his hand up for the ball.
Darren obliged him as he stepped and lofted a pass down the sideline that fell perfectly over Caesar’s shoulder.
The big gain would turn into a bigger one as the safety sprinted to cut off Caesar’s angle, but only found air as he dove at Caesar’s ankles. From there, it was a foot race and Caesar wasn’t going to lose it as he ran into the endzone.
He put his finger to his lips, shushing the crowd as he shuffled sideways, before turning around the celebrate with his teammates.
…
“And he’s back like he never left, ladies and gentlemen! Caesar Jenkins takes the first pass of the game 73 yards for a touchdown and the Green Wave are up early after a big play from their big play receiver on the outside.”
“You can see the kind of attention he commands when a player bites on a fake like Theron Keen does here. Once he does that, it was over for the Commodores’ defense. But I tell you what, I bet they don’t run too many more single high safety looks today!”
…
“Quentin Fleck throws that one well off after being hurried in the backfield by Mario Miles.”
…
“Another misfire from Fleck and that’ll bring up 3rd and 10.”
…
“Barrett is brought down in the backfield and that’s going to see Vanderbilt forced to punt on their opening drive."
...
“Reyes hands it off to Frazier and he can scoot! Fifteen on the play before being pushed out of bounds.”
…
“Nigel Conrad gets in on the action with a reception for 10 yards.”
…
“Jenkins makes the catch and moves the chains. Gain of 11.”
…
“Jericho Armstrong gets into the backfield and flushes Reyes out but he flips it to Dallas over the middle for a gain of 5. Reyes is rushing the Green Wave back to the line, going with some tempo! He snaps it quickly and calls his own number! Another big gain of 17 before he slides down!”
“The Commodores might need a timeout to settle down after that because they’re looking flustered out there already.”
…
“Frazier powers it over the line and that’s a touchdown for the Green Wave!”
…
Devin swung his arm under the receiver’s ripping through his attempt to block him at the line of scrimmage. He kept a hold of Devin’s jersey for a few seconds before Devin was able to use his momentum to toss him aside.
The back got caught up on the pulling guard as he tried to make it to the outside with olive jerseys crashing down to meet the play.
Devin closed the distance preparing to make an attempt at the tackle. Before he could, Mario dove at the running back’s legs and tripped him up, allowing Devin to simply come in and shove the ball carrier over for an easy stop in the backfield.
He helped the big defensive end up to his feet and smacked him on the top of his helmet in thanks for making the tackle easier.
…
“That’s going to bring up third and five. Vanderbilt needs to convert here to get into the redzone and have a shot at stemming some of this Tulane momentum with a touchdown. Fleck’s in the shotgun…”
…
Devin got some depth as he dropped back into his zone assignment, giving the receiver a bit of a shove to throw off the timing of his route as he ran in front of him. Vandy’s quarterback was almost immediately under pressure as Blair ran straight through the A gap on a blitz.
The quarterback dumped it off the tight end just as he was getting hit.
Devin broke toward the play. Wrapping his arms around the tight end’s waist, he used his momentum to spin him to the ground just short of the first down marker.
…
“Back to back stops by Devin King and the Commodores are going to have to attempt a long field goal here!”
…
“It’s up and it squeaks inside the uprights. Vanderbilt is on the board. Tulane 14, Commodores 3.”
…
“That’s another catch for Caesar Jenkins…”
…
“Thibodeaux fights for the first down…”
…
“…Greer hauls it in on the post and that’s going to be a touchdown for the Green Wave!”
…
“Kerby Greer with the big hit in the backfield!”
…
“Batted down by Vaughn.”
…
“Volken makes the play despite being held by a pair of Vandy receivers!”
…
“Huge gain from Frazier…”
…
“Reyes flips it out to Jenkins for a short pickup…”
…
“Stanson brings it in and Tulane is moving the ball at will!”
…
“Frazier is brought down after a short gain of 2, but the Green Wave are inside the 10 and that’ll be a first down!”
…
Darren lifted his foot and motioned for Caesar to shift to the opposite side of the formation. As he did, both the corner and one of the safeties followed him.
Once he was set, the safety came all the way up to the line of scrimmage alongside the corner who was also set to press him at the line. It looked more like something you’d see on a punt than on a first and goal.
Caesar caught Darren’s attention and pointed up, but the quarterback shook his head and continued to make his pre-snap adjustments. Caesar repeated the gesture as Darren stepped back from the line, but he didn’t make any indication back the second time.
The junior clapped twice and called for the snap.
Caesar shuffled to the left and then burst to the right, getting to the outside of the corner. He positioned his body between the two players and the shrinking corner of the endzone.
Darren was flushed out of the pocket but didn’t have anywhere to run. Falling back just as he was getting hit, he threw the ball in Caesar’s direction.
Caesar leapt into the air – as did the two defensive backs – and threw an arm back to catch the ball. Contorting his body in the air, he tapped the heels of both feet in the tiniest shreds of colored turf before falling out of bounds.
…
“Oh! My! Days! That’s going to be reviewed but that’s a catch of the year contender if there ever was one!”
“Get off me, youngster! That’s a grown man out there! A lot of people say that Caesar Jenkins is the closest thing we’ve had to Calvin Johnson since Johnson retired and if that’s the kind of thing he can do then I think he deserves that comparison!”
“And the review confirms it! Touchdown Tulane! Wow!”
…
“Picked off! Fleck threw it deep and that might be termed an arm punt as Marcus Freebird catches it!”
…
“…first down, Green Wave.”
…
“…first down, Green Wave.”
…
“…first down, Green Wave. There’s some pushing and shoving down there. The referees might want to get a handle on this before it gets out of hand.”
“Caesar Jenkins made that catch. That’s one of the things you get from with this kid. Let’s just say he divides opinion on the field.”
…
“Reyes takes it himself and Tulane is running riot! Touchdown! It’s going to be 35-3 heading into the half.”
…
“Vandy actually moving the ball here on the opening drive of the third quarter. First down after a 5 yard gain by Barrett.”
…
“The Commodores can’t catch a break as that holding penalty will kill their momentum.”
…
“Alvarez makes the stop and Vanderbilt will be facing another long third down attempt!”
…
Devin shoved his hands into the receiver’s chest as he tried to get of the line of scrimmage. The two of them fought for position as the wideout tried to get free.
He managed to get Devin’s arms outside of his body and immediately cut to the inside, his eyes darting into the backfield.
Devin stumbled as his feet got tangled with the receiver’s, gaining his opponent a step on him and he could only watch as the quarterback opted for the quick pass over the middle. The receiver made De’Anthony miss and turned up field but slowed down as his blockers got in front of him.
Putting his head down, Devin ran full speed toward the receiver and swung his fist down over his shoulder to punch at the ball. With a loose grip on the ball, the receiver lost it and the ball hit the turf.
A pile of Green Wave defenders were the first to react to the ball before the Vandy offensive linemen jumped into the scrum. Devin made the business decision to stay out of it as the bigger players fought for the ball under the mess of bodies.
The referees took some time detangling everyone before Kendrick crawled out from the bottom of everyone, jumped to his feet and took off toward the Tulane sideline with the ball held over his head.
…
“Big play from the freshman corner Devin King to force the ball out and it’s Green Wave ball!”
“Mark, this Tulane squad has playmakers all over the field on both sides of the ball and that’s another example of that right there.”
…
“Vanderbilt actually makes a stop and Tulane will punt for the first time today.”
…
“The Commodores bog down in the redzone and will settle for the field goal. Aguayo to kick. It’s up and it’s good. 35-6.”
…
“He’s wide open! Caesar Jenkins walks in for the 24 yard touchdown reception and that’s surely the dagger as he stares down the crowd! The Commodores aren’t happy with themselves for allowing that touchdown!”
“You don’t want to see your secondary getting lost against any receiver, but when you’re losing a guy who already had two touchdowns today, it’s not a good look.”
“I don’t know if you all noticed this at home, but the Green Wave’s backup quarterback Michael Hammond was warming up that entire drive. It looks like Denver Shuman is calling off the dogs and sending in his backups.”
“There is still time left in the third quarter.”
“You’d almost be forgiven for forgetting that this Vanderbilt team beat Tulane’s hated in-state rivals LSU earlier this year.”
“Well, let’s remember LSU has only won 3 games this year so far. That’s not a vintage Tigers team.”
…
Caesar walked toward the locker room, ignoring the handful of Vanderbilt players who passed by him and attempted to shake his hand after the game – one in which the Commodores suffered a 54-6 beating that saw the second teamers get a full quarter of run and actually put points on the board against SEC opposition.
A woman wearing press credentials and tailed by a cameraman ran over to him, stopping him for an interview.
Much to the woman’s visible chagrin, an SID appeared out of nowhere and stood beside Caesar.
“Caesar, how does it feel to get back out onto the field after missing a few games? It looks like you didn’t miss a beat from how well you were playing earlier this season?” the reporter asked.
“They couldn’t figure out how to beat me on the field so they decided that they would come up with some shit that I was somehow cheating. All I gotta say is that it’s going to be a long day for whoever we gotta play.”
“12 receptions for 194 yards and 3 touchdowns. Do you think that the Commodores maybe though you’d start slow after not practicing for the better part of a month?”
Caesar shrugged. “I think their coach needs to think about pulling some scholarships.”
The SID leaned into the conversation, holding up one finger to indicate they only had more question to ask.
“Next week, you all travel to Alabama for a primetime game against the Crimson Tide. Shad Rawlings is one of the best corners in the nation and a Thorpe contender. Do you think that you can replicate this performance against a top defender like Shad Rawlings?”
“I hope he plans on wearing his nice panties if he’s going to let himself get fuc—”
The SID quickly stepped between Caesar and the reporter and shepherded him away before he could finish that line.
“I don’t think we’re going to be able to use that,” the cameraman said.
“My ass I’m not,” the woman said before turning to scan the field to grab another player for an interview before the post-game press gaggles formed around them.