American Football: King of the Bay Area

”Game Quest:

Complete your first pass in the practice game. Requirement: None. Reward: +1 Basic Attribute Point.

Score your first Touchdown in the practice game. Requirement: None. Reward: +1 Basic Attribute Point.

Win the practice game. Requirement: None. Reward: +1 Basic Attribute Point.”

Just as Lu Ke expected, the daily training quests focused on honing fundamentals, while the rapid accumulation of Basic Attribute Points had to be done through game quests and special quests. Although he didn’t know what the special quests were yet, the game quests had already confirmed his theory. This was just a practice game, yet it offered three Basic Attribute Points—in the past ten days of daily training, he had only earned a total of three.

However, completing game quests wouldn’t be so easy. Because football isn’t a one-man sport.

Setting the game quests aside for now, Lu Ke pulled up his character attributes. After a quick look, he added the Basic Attribute Point he had just earned to his Short Pass Accuracy, bringing the stat up to sixty-four. His stats weren’t going to change drastically in a short amount of time, so he needed to focus his efforts on improving the most important ability for a quarterback: passing.

His Long Pass Accuracy was already over eighty. For a practice squad player, or even a backup, that stat was more than enough—outstanding, even. So, after weighing his options, Lu Ke put the point into Short Pass Accuracy, an ability he desperately needed to improve.

TWEET! The whistle blew. Lu Ke looked up and saw the practice squad’s Defense Team cheering. A closer look revealed the third-string offense looking dejected. Kevin, standing in the middle, looked particularly frustrated, grinding his teeth viciously.

After being away from the action for so long, it seemed Kevin had forgotten how to pass. All three of their downs ended in failure, unable to advance the ball ten yards. If they had gone for it on fourth down and still failed to gain ten yards, the ball would have been turned over to the opponent. The other team would have started their offense from the spot of the ball—the twenty-yard line, right in front of their own End Zone.

That was practically like handing the opponent a scoring opportunity. Even if they couldn’t get a Touchdown, they could at least kick a field goal, which would give the practice squad a 3-0 lead.

This was unacceptable to the third-stringers.

So, they gave up their fourth down opportunity. The special teams unit came onto the field to punt.

A punt is when the kicking team’s punter kicks the ball away. The receiving team’s special teams unit is on the other side of the field, ready to catch it. After the receiving player catches the ball, they can run forward with it, which is called a return. The kicking team’s special teams must stop the returner, because the spot where he is tackled becomes the starting point for the opposing offense.

The best possible punt pins the opponent’s starting position on their own one-yard line. This way, even though possession has changed, the other team is in a terrible spot to start their offense. The worst possible punt is letting the returner break free and run all the way into the End Zone for a Touchdown.

It’s a bit like a goalkeeper’s goal kick in soccer. The best-case scenario is the keeper boots it into the opponent’s penalty area, preventing them from immediately launching an attack. The worst-case scenario is the keeper clears it right to the feet of the other team’s star player, who then weaves through the defense and comes back to score.

During a punt, there’s also a standard outcome: the punter kicks the ball and it goes directly out of bounds, or it flies past the back of the opponent’s End Zone, or it’s downed within their End Zone. All of these result in a touchback: the opposing offense will start their drive on their own twenty-yard line.

Kevin walked off the field, dejected, as the special teams units for both sides came on for the punt. This time, however, the third-stringers didn’t make a mistake. They didn’t give the practice squad’s returner any chance, kicking the ball straight out the back of the end zone. Then, it was Lu Ke’s turn to take the field.

The sound of Kevin cursing on the sideline reached him, but Lu Ke paid it no mind. Instead, he led his teammates as they jogged onto the field, lining up on their own twenty-yard line. Everything felt so strange, yet so familiar, as if he were back in high school. But that was three years ago. A full three years.

The wistfulness was fleeting. Lu Ke called his teammates into a huddle. ”They’ve never taken us seriously. Because we’re the practice squad, just the practice squad, not even good enough to be backups. But they’ve forgotten that every single day, we go through the same training, we face the same opposition, and we shed just as much sweat and blood as they do. Anything they can do, we can do too! I want to win this practice game. Who’s with me?”

Lu Ke was the first to extend his right hand. He looked up, scanning his teammates. His shocking words had left everyone a bit stunned, but after the initial surprise, their eyes began to light up.

The practice squad was like an invisible entity. They were part of the team, but they never received the corresponding recognition. No one even acknowledged them as an indispensable part of the team. Ignored, discriminated against, disdained, and belittled—this was what they always had to endure. They couldn’t even tell their families, ”I’m on the team,” because they never appeared on the field, on the bench, or even on the roster.

John was the first to put his hand in, placing it on top of Lu Ke’s. Running back Derek Bryant was second, then the third, and the fourth. In the blink of an eye, all eleven hands were stacked together.

Lu Ke broke into a huge grin. ”Alright, guys, let’s go get some Touchdowns!” The simple phrase made everyone laugh. They raised their hands in unison and cheered loudly.

In a game, the offense, defense, and special teams each have eleven players on the field. For the offense, a common formation generally consists of one quarterback, one running back, two Wide Receivers, one Tight End, and five members of the Offense Line (OL for short). The final position changes based on tactical needs; it could be an additional Wide Receiver or Tight End to create another offensive threat, or another running back to block on a running play.

Among the five members of the Offense Line, the one in the very middle is the center, who is responsible for snapping the ball to the quarterback. On either side of him are the left guard, right guard, left tackle, and right tackle.

In the 2010 movie ”The Blind Side,” based on a true story, the main character, Michael Oher, started out as a left tackle. This side is also known as the quarterback’s ”blind side.” For a right-handed quarterback, his left side is a blind spot. He can see defensive players coming from the right and evade them, but he can’t see those coming from the left. This makes the roles of the left guard and left tackle critically important; they must do everything in their power to protect the quarterback.

Typically, the left tackle protecting a right-handed quarterback is the strongest player on the entire offense, and he needs to have exceptional skills. If the quarterback is left-handed, then it’s the right tackle who holds this role.

However, for the practice squad, these positions didn’t have much practical meaning. It could be simply summarized as: attack, protect the attack, advance the attack, and score a Touchdown after the attack.

Lu Ke scanned his teammates, ready to call the play. Their biggest weakness was chemistry. After all, he had never practiced as a quarterback with his Offense Line, nor had he worked with his Wide Receivers and Tight End. His gaze finally landed on John, his only reliable option. ”I’ll bet you anything they think our first play is a run.”

Forget the opponents; he could tell just by looking at his own teammates. No one believed in his passing ability, and no one believed in the chemistry between him and his receivers.

Lu Ke didn’t bother explaining. ”But we’re going to pass, and it’s going to be a long one.” The play was already forming in his mind. ”Alright guys, we’re going to motion to the left. Derek, you’ll come up to take the handoff. I’m going to fake the handoff to you, then you start running forward. Meanwhile, John, get ready for the ball. Everyone else, pretend it’s a running play. Do everything you can to clear a path for Derek. Don’t worry about me.”

A play-action pass. It was a very common offensive tactic: pretend to hand the ball off to the running back for a run, but actually throw a pass instead. The keys were deception, the quarterback’s passing accuracy, and the receiver’s ability to catch the ball.

”...” Everyone’s jaws dropped, their faces a mixture of shock and disbelief. Not only were they going to pass, but it was going to be a long pass—a play-action long pass? That was just too bold.

Derek shrugged. ”I guess we don’t have any other choice. Let’s do it!” The others nodded in agreement, chuckling. ”As long as your first pass isn’t an interception, why not?”

Every offensive series had four downs. They could absolutely use the first one to give it a try and see how their chemistry was. The only condition was that Lu Ke’s pass didn’t get intercepted.

As everyone broke from the huddle, Lu Ke stopped John. ”Hey, man. Run straight ahead. Use all your strength and run for their thirty-yard line.”

’Their thirty-yard line?’ They were starting the drive on their own twenty. That meant Lu Ke was going to throw a fifty-yard bomb.

John was completely stunned. His eyes went wide as he stared at Lu Ke in disbelief, but Lu ke just nodded. ”I’m sure. Remember, the forty-yard line, then run the route we’re most used to. After you break through the defensive line, run along the right side. I’ll be watching for you.” Lu Ke clapped John on the shoulder. ”Man, I’ll get it to you. Trust me.”

John gave a slight shake of his head, then turned and ran out to his position.

Lu Ke turned back to Derek. ”Now, I think we need to practice this play-action. The fake handoff can’t look too fake. We may not be Oscar-level actors, but I think we can give it a shot. Who knows, maybe we have a hidden talent?”

Derek, a cheerful black sophomore a year younger than Lu Ke, grinned brightly. ”I’ll show you the performance of a lifetime.”