Without experiencing failure, you can never break through. Without believing in yourself, you can never overcome failure. This is an ironclad rule of life, and it's especially true for Lu Ke. From the very first day he chose to play football, no one was optimistic about his future. Everyone was waiting for him to fail and give up. Lu Zhengze and Jiang Younin were his only supporters. Perhaps now you could add Logan, Marcus, and a large group of fans to that list.
But Lu Ke was never afraid. He never backed down from failure, he was never timid in the face of setbacks, and he never hesitated in the face of difficulty. This was true before, and it was true now. What's more, this latest failure had proven this in a tangible way: you must break down to rebuild.
After that day's run, where he pushed himself to the limit, his personal attributes had actually increased! First, his willpower increased by two points, from 81 to 83. At the same time, his mental fortitude increased by one point, from 84 to 85. Finally, his stamina also improved, reaching 82, an increase of two points from before.
Undoubtedly, these three attributes were already Lu Ke's strengths, which meant that improving them through a natural process, without adding points, was incredibly difficult. But this time, after experiencing a failure and a challenge that pushed him to his limits, all three attributes saw a significant increase. He had gained a total of five points! This level of improvement was comparable to the effect of a concentrated training session over a long period of time, which was truly astonishing. While the previous cumulative training had undoubtedly played a part in reaching this critical point and bringing about the qualitative change, it was still hard to believe when it actually happened.
Sure enough, this proved once again that you can only reach greater heights by continuously pushing yourself in the face of extreme challenges. This is especially true for athletes. Behind every world record and breakthrough, there is not only relentless hard work but also continuous effort and challenge in the face of adversity. The frustration of failure is a necessary hurdle to becoming a better version of yourself. The two-game losing streak would not be a stumbling block in Lu Ke's career but a stepping stone to reach new heights.
That night, Lu Ke didn't go home but stayed at his parents' house. Lu Zhengze was at work but remained distracted. Even though Jiang Younin had texted him that Lu Ke seemed to be fine, he couldn't help but worry. As soon as he got off work, he rushed home. When he saw Lu Ke studying game footage, he sat down solemnly and encouraged him, cheering him on. His simple, even clumsy, words were Lu Zhengze's most sincere thoughts. Lu Ke didn't interrupt his father and listened attentively. Later, he brought up the NBA, which was in a lockout crisis this year, and his friendship with Stephen Curry, as well as the possibility of going to Staples Center to watch a game in the future. Lu Zhengze enthusiastically talked with Lu Ke.
The atmosphere in the house became lighthearted again. Life can be very complicated, but it can also be very simple. Sometimes, happiness is just a word of care and a greeting in the midst of difficulty. Early the next morning, Lu Ke, following his biological clock, woke up early and started his training as usual. The loss had become a thing of the past. It wasn't forgotten in a corner of his memory, but it was no longer a wound he couldn't look at.
In fact, the helpless loss against the Baltimore Ravens shouldn't be forgotten. It should be etched even more deeply into his memory. He watched the game footage over and over again, looking for his weaknesses, looking for his opponents' weaknesses, and finding the key to winning again. Only then could the outcome be reversed in the next matchup. A new day, a new beginning.
Early in the morning, Mike Iupati drove to the training facility. It wasn't even six o'clock yet. The entire facility was quiet. Even the chirping of the birds sounded distant and empty. He could faintly hear the roar of the sea breeze, as if he were the only person in the world, enjoying this peace to the fullest. For every San Francisco 49ers offensive lineman, the loss that ended on Thursday was a game that would forever be a mark of shame. Nine sacks. Even without looking at the historical records, they knew this was one of the worst games in history and would become a laughingstock for all offensive linemen. As offensive linemen, their job was to protect the quarterback and clear a path for the running back. Nine sacks was, without a doubt, a terrible result. It was a blatant mockery of their dereliction of duty and their pitiful performance. Even if a fan pointed at them and cursed them out, they wouldn't have the courage to talk back.
Iupati hated this kind of failure. In the past few weeks, the offensive line's excellent performance had made them complacent. The Ravens gave them a harsh reality check, making them realize that they were still too green on the NFL field. They had a long way to go before they could establish themselves, let alone become famous or make it into the Hall of Fame. He didn't know what to do, so he just practiced more and more.
Today was Saturday, a day off. Yesterday, after a full day of sleep, Iupati woke up early, left early, and arrived at the training facility early, ready to do some extra practice in silence. But as he walked past the training field on his way to the locker room, Iupati caught a glimpse of a figure on the field. He stopped and looked through the fence. He saw Lu Ke doing some passing drills. It was no secret in the team that Lu Ke was a training fanatic. Everyone knew that to play on the field as an undrafted rookie, Lu Ke had put in an unimaginable amount of effort. Even the security guards knew that Lu Ke's training intensity and quality were impressive. Lu Ke had already started passing drills, which meant that he had already completed his daily 10,000-meter variable-speed run. Looking at his watch, Iupati couldn't imagine when Lu Ke had started his training today.
His eyes fell on Lu Ke. He was doing lateral footwork drills and throwing long passes. A pass to the end zone from left to right, a corner pass from right to left, a sideline pass from left to right, and another end zone pass from right to left. The training was incredibly monotonous and repetitive, but every movement was meticulous, with no sign of slacking off. Steam was rising from his body, and his jersey was soaked with sweat, as if he had just stepped out of a hot spring. It was late November in San Francisco, cold and brisk, highlighting Lu Ke's unwavering determination.
Iupati took two steps forward but then stopped. He wanted to apologize. As Lu Ke's blindside protector, nine sacks in the last game was just too much. It was his fault—even though not all nine sacks came from the blindside, as a member of the offensive line, he was undeniably responsible for the porous pocket protection. The apology had been on his mind countless times, but he didn't know how to express it. He had never been good with words. Even a simple "thank you" was awkward for him, let alone "I'm sorry."
After a lot of hesitation, Iupati turned and walked toward the locker room. After changing into his practice clothes, he returned to the training field and strode toward Lu Ke. The countless apologies he had rehearsed in his mind completely vanished when he got to Lu Ke. He couldn't remember a single word or make a sound. He just stood there, staring at Lu Ke, scratching his head awkwardly like an idiot. Lu Ke noticed Iupati's presence right away, but seeing him standing there like a big dummy, not saying a word, scratching his head and ears, Lu Ke paused for a moment after completing another pass and greeted him, "Morning."
"Morning," Iupati responded reflexively.
"Training?" Lu Ke asked, raising his voice and looking at him. Iupati nodded his head in confirmation. Lu Ke didn't say anything else. He just smiled, said "Keep it up," and then started moving his feet and throwing passes again. The two ball carts on either side were almost empty. Iupati took a deep breath, clenched his fist, and blurted out a nonsensical "I'm sorry" to Lu Ke. Then, without waiting for a response, he turned around and started jogging to warm up. His heavy figure looked like a lovable grizzly bear, jogging with a comical bounce, which made you want to laugh.
Lu Ke paused for a moment, looked at Iupati's figure, and then, after realizing what had happened, he chuckled helplessly and went back to training.
"Huh, you two are here so early? I thought I was the first one, seriously." Suddenly, Logan Newman's noisy voice echoed across the training field, full of life and cheer. "This is my one chance to come early and get first place, but you guys were even earlier. Well, at least third place is a personal record for my career. Lu Ke, you're a given, but Mike, what's with you? Isn't today a day off? Didn't you sleep in?"
While he was shouting, he started to jog to warm up. With Logan's arrival, the training facility slowly started to wake up. The sleeping sun, the green trees, the birds, the breeze, and the waves all started to get noisy. The San Francisco 49ers, who had just experienced a painful loss, were revitalized. For a young team, instability is a hidden danger, but the fearless spirit of not being afraid of failure is a good thing. They had to break down to rebuild, and now was the time to break through.
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