High School Football Is Back!

Whether you like rapper Eminem or not, I think we're all familiar with one of his most famous hits. Lose Yourself, from the sound track of his semi-autobiographical movie 8-Mile. When you hear the faint scratch of one pick rip across the strings of a guitar, you instantly know what's coming. You can feel it in every fiber of your being. It starts to build up inside, slowly at first, but then the momentum builds and your heart rate increases. Eminem definitely has a flair for the dramatic. There's a raw, inexplicable gut feeling that something big is about to happen. Something very special.

One rip is all it takes, to raise the level of suspense, and make goosebumps pop on your arms. A shiver runs down the back of your neck, and before you know it, a sense of urgency surrounds you. The moment you have worked and prepared for, even dreamed about, has finally arrived. Whatever it is, a huge moment is happening right now, and there's no looking back. Nothing can stop it. It's "Go time." Next, you hear what I feel are some of the most poignant words ever spoken:

"Look, if you had, one shot, or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted - one moment
Would you capture it? Or just let it slip?

Yo..."

There is no time for excuses. It's time to show the world what you're made of, and you've got to fight through the fear and uncertainty, if you're going to have success. You've spent your whole life wondering if you've got what it takes to be the best, and finally it's your time to shine in the spotlight. "Will you capture it? Or just let it slip?"

That is the essence of opening night in high school football. It all boils down to one incredible moment in time. Every player has something to prove to his coaches and teammates. Seniors will begin to feel a sense of finality, as they step out onto the field for the last few times, as leaders of men. Juniors know they have to make things happen, or risk letting down the upper class-men who are counting on them to help make their final season, their best season. Sophomores & freshmen who are lucky enough, or gifted enough, to get playing time on Friday nights, know they are one mistake away from being back on the sidelines watching, and possibly waiting another year for their next shot.

Every player has something to prove. Perhaps to his parents, or even an older brother that he watched on Fridays when he was younger. It could be an aunt, uncle, a cousin, or a grandparent sitting in the stands beaming, as the team rushes onto the field to the roars of the crowd. Maybe it's a buddy on the other team, who grew up on the same block, but went to the rival high school. There could be a loved one who can't be there to see this moment happen, but their love and memory lives and flows within. Maybe it's just the school they get the privilege to represent, when they pull that jersey over those pads, and strap on the helmet that bears their school logo. It doesn't matter who or what it is, every player has something to prove when that clock starts ticking, and the game begins.

Ultimately, each player has the most to prove, to the guy looking back at him in the mirror. He will soon learn if all the blood, sweat, and tears were worth the effort. If the countless hours in the weight room, and on the practice field running sprints and conditioning, are going to pay off. If he learned anything from those extra workouts with Dad in the back yard.

A new chapter will be written on Friday Aug. 30, 2013 in St. Louis Mo, as the high school football season kicks off across the area. Mother Nature will have her say, as she brings the kind of heat that has compelled some high school officials to delay start times, only adding to the butterflies flapping in the bellies of these young athletes who simply want to get it on. Patience gentlemen, patience. It's going to happen, and if you've earned it, you're going to have your chance. Only one question remains unanswered, "Will you capture it? Or just let it slip?"

Good luck and God's speed to every high school athlete living out this sheer excitement today, including one very special young man who I love with all my heart. I know without a doubt, his heart is pounding out of his chest today, and his feet are barely touching the ground. I know this because I'm feeling it too. That young man is my son, #79 Connor Eldridge. He will get his chance to experience every ounce of high school football tonight. He takes the field with the weight of defending a 5A State Championship on his shoulders, and on those of his teammates. I have tried to explain it to him, but there are really no words to prepare him for it. He has to live it for himself. I would give anything to share every second inside the helmet with him, but I know my time has passed. This is his shot, and his opportunity, to seize everything he's ever wanted. Capture it son! I Love You, and I love high school football. Now Go Hit Somebody!!

SPz Y