American Football: King of the Bay Area

The greatest charm of sports lies in the unexpected—the moments that derail expectations. An underdog victory, a dark horse rising to the top, a champion defending their title, history being made, miracles being written—these are all ”unexpected” events. They are impossible to predict or rehearse. No one knows when they will happen, what form they will take, or which side they will favor.

But one thing is certain: when the unexpected happens, it brings joy to some and sorrow to others. Tonight, the Trojans were the ”lucky” ones—but that luck was merely the beginning of their descent into the abyss.

After the Trojans Team took the field, Matt Barkley launched a steady, methodical drive. Their tactics leaned conservative, focusing on running plays to bleed the clock. But the Brown Bear Team’s defense was airtight. The run game was completely shut down, unable to gain ten yards for a first down or achieve their goal of running out the time. So, they had to mix in some passes.

On their first series, Matt converted on third down to gain ten yards, moving his team to their own thirty-yard line. On the next series, the Trojans Team ran into a wall of resistance from the Brown Bear Team. The first two downs gained only three yards. On third down, Matt had no choice but to pass.

And just like that, the nightmare began.

Raheem successfully intercepted Matt’s thirteen-yard pass over the middle at the forty-five-yard line. A sudden turnover, and possession flipped directly to the Brown Bear Team. The only silver lining for the Trojans Team was that Raheem couldn’t manage a return; he immediately took a knee after the interception. This meant the Brown Bear Team’s offense would start their drive at the Trojans Team’s forty-five-yard line.

Forty-five yards was too far for a field goal attempt. If the Brown Bear Team wanted to take the lead, they had to attack! They had to advance! And as long as the Brown Bear Team was on offense, it meant the Trojans Team still had a chance—a chance for an interception, a chance to counter, a chance to seize back control of the game.

If the unexpected could happen once, it could happen again. Hope was not yet lost.

Even so, the Rose Bowl was a stadium divided, a world of fire and ice. On the side where the University of Southern California fans gathered, groans of anguish filled the air. Everyone clutched their heads, unable to believe what they were seeing. But on the side where the UCLA fans gathered, a roar erupted. The stands were electric, with everyone jumping and celebrating until the entire Rose Bowl began to shake.

Lu Ke glanced at the game clock. The Trojans Team had burned a good chunk of it. Now, only a mere thirty-three seconds remained. The play clock was forty seconds, meaning they didn’t even have enough time for a single normal play. But this was their chance. This was their chance to kill the game!

No overtime. They had a chance to end it, right here and now!

The players from the Defense Team jogged off the field. Raheem stopped in front of Lu Ke, panting and grinning from ear to ear. ”Man, I set the stage for you. Now it’s your show!”

”Then the show is about to begin!” Lu Ke met Raheem’s gaze and gave him a thumbs-up. He grabbed his helmet, motioned to his offensive teammates, and prepared to take the field once more.

Thirty-three seconds. What was the call? The Brown Bear Team still had two timeouts. This meant if they went for a field goal, Lu Ke could use one timeout to get two pass attempts in, moving the team into range. The second timeout would be for the kick itself. If they went for the Touchdown, he could use both timeouts to get three passing opportunities.

’Countless tactical permutations flooded his mind. The Wujushang offense would be useless now. They needed tactics, a strategy, a plan—they needed to utilize every single second with precision. What should I do? What should we do? What’s the right choice?’

Lu Ke turned to look at the coaching staff. Rick and the others had already finished their discussion. They began making hand signals, relaying the play call to Lu Ke. Lu Ke then gathered his teammates to pass on the coaches’ instructions. There was no more time to hesitate. They immediately got into formation, ready for the snap.

It was a tense, an extremely tense moment, yet Lu Ke’s mind was free of panic. Instead, he grew even calmer, as if a three-dimensional map of the entire field was laid out in his head. He could see the position of every defensive player, every one of his offensive teammates. Even the cornerback patrolling the far edge of his vision was perfectly clear.

His breathing steady, Lu Ke slowly bent under center. His mind was racing. He subconsciously rolled his fingers together, feeling the hot, coarse sweat on their tips. Without a second thought, he started the cadence. After the center snapped the ball, he cradled the football tightly in his hands. The familiar texture gradually slowed his heartbeat, and all his movements became methodical and precise.

Drop back. A quick drop back. He lifted his head high, his vision spreading across the field, searching for his receivers while sizing up the defense. Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Three receivers and one Tight End—all four of his targets were blanketed. The man-to-man coverage was so tight that none of them could get separation. Even their routes were being jammed at the line.

TICK, TOCK.

Time was slipping away. Lu Ke didn’t panic. He widened his scan, looking for Marcus, but it was too late. When the familiar figure of Malik Jackson appeared in his line of sight, Lu Ke realized he had been too slow.

A single second of hesitation, a moment’s delay, was magnified tenfold on the field. The pass rusher was already closing in. There was no time for regret. With decisive action, Lu Ke tucked the football and scrambled, sprinting in long strides toward the left sideline.

’Faster, feet, faster!’ He needed to evade Malik’s tackle. Footwork and agility had never been his strengths; to be blunt, they were his greatest weaknesses. But in that moment, he was utterly focused. There were no thoughts of strengths or weaknesses, only a single-minded, concentrated sprint, his eyes constantly scanning the field, observing the players’ positions.

It wasn’t easy. It felt as if the whole world had been tossed into a hamster’s cage, and he was the hyperactive hamster, running for its life.

Still not fast enough. His feet weren’t moving fast enough. Lu Ke felt he had hit his limit, but he gritted his teeth and pushed on. One long stride, then another, sprinting toward the left sideline. Even so, in his periphery, he caught a glimpse of Malik’s face, twisted like a Demon’s. And it wasn’t just Malik. Another defender was closing in from the front. The pocket was collapsing around him; he was completely surrounded.

He had to throw the ball.

His eyes scanned the field one last time and found a sliver of hope. It was just a tiny window, one that would vanish in an instant. Lu Ke didn’t hesitate. It was a clean, decisive motion, but also a massive gamble. He swung his arm, instantly channeling all his power into the throw. With an explosive crack like a firecracker, the football shot out from his hand.

One moment, the ball was in the air; the next, Malik was driving Lu Ke into the turf.

It was a close shave! Lu Ke had gotten the throw off just in the nick of time! Not just Malik, two other defenders arrived a moment later. Seeing Lu Ke already on the ground, they didn’t pile on, instead looking up to track the ball’s trajectory. A bullet pass. It was a bullet pass, not a Rainbow Pass!

The football flew in a low, tight spiral, slicing through the air. It wobbled at first; you could tell the throw, made on the run and under pressure from Malik, was slightly off-target. But the speed and power were still at their maximum. In the blink of an eye, the ball was streaking toward the Trojans Team’s End Zone. Who was there?

John Ward!

John Ward had a defender shadowing him closely, but the moment he saw Lu Ke’s throwing motion, he hit the accelerator. Speed was John’s forte, whereas the defender on him was built more for strength. With a sudden burst, John created separation. The defender reached out, trying to grab him and commit a penalty to stop the play, but he was half a beat too slow.

Maybe, deep down, subconsciously, everyone had assumed Logan was still Lu Ke’s primary target, not John. No one had expected Lu Ke to be this audacious—to go for the End Zone on the very first play! To go for the Touchdown!

John felt an endless well of energy bursting forth inside him. The past five months of training—training harder than he ever had before—brought back the freedom of his high school days, a time when he felt like he could fly. He was still accelerating, running with a selfless, focused abandon, completely ignoring the defender behind him. His eyes were locked on the football. There was only the football, soaring through the air!

The football began to wobble badly, its velocity dropping as the arc became erratic. The pass was dying, its accuracy fading. It was falling short of John’s projected path, but his mind was clear of all distractions. His eyes were glued to the ball. He stretched his hands out, his arms fully extended, his body reaching its absolute limit. Then, like an arrow released from a bow, he kicked off the ground and launched his entire body into the air.

Closer, closer... He caught it! He caught it! His hands clamped down on the football, pulling it into his chest as he landed on his shoulder, tucking into a forward roll and coming to a smooth stop!

The entire stadium held its breath. Then, the referee’s whistle pierced the sky. ”TWEET! Touchdown!”