September 19, 2013
Raleigh, North Carolina
Carter-Finley Stadium
The atmosphere inside the stadium was bursting at the seams while the fans of the Wolfpack team were celebrating, as a stretcher entered the field and a player was carried off the gridiron.
If one looked closely, they could realize that the person on top of the stretcher wore a white uniform, while the number 10 on the jersey also looked stained as he was carried away from the field and probably to the nearest hospital for a thorough evaluation.
"And as we can see on screen, Tajh Boyd was taken off the field after ending up injured following an attempt to break through the entire line of scrimmage head-on by brute force," the game commentator told the viewers while on the screen the camera continued pointing at the stretcher where Tajh was lying.
On the other side, on the Tigers' team bench, Coach Dabo was frantically running his hands through his hair. "I warned him not to make that play several times," he muttered slightly irritated, while his gaze couldn't help but recall the conversation he had weeks ago.
Flashback
The players along with the coaching staff were in the film room reviewing the recordings of the game they had a few days ago against the Georgia Bulldogs, in which Dabo had cut certain shots where he saw areas that could be improved.
"Sammy, on this occasion you overflowed too much, preventing Tajh from being able to give you the pass as planned," Dabo said while the screen showed the play in question that the coach was talking about.
In it, Tajh had just received the ball from the center and dropped back a few steps to attempt a deep pass just as the play called for, but looking up he saw how Sammy had broken outside more than necessary and now he was covered by the Georgia team's safety.
Knowing that a long-distance pass in that situation would be very risky, and without thinking of any other viable option, Tajh immediately ran straight forward, seeking to break through the entire line of scrimmage based on brute force.
That decision took both the Georgia defense and the Clemson offensive line by surprise, who upon seeing that reacted quickly, seeking to open even a minimal space through which Tajh could cross the line of scrimmage safely.
Lowering his head slightly, Tajh launched himself like a battering ram, breaking through the line of scrimmage but ending up being brought down by the linebackers, who were alert upon seeing how Tajh crossed the line of scrimmage.
Pausing the recording after that, Dabo turned around looking at the players while paying special attention to Tajh. "I've told you several times, Boyd, don't attempt those penetrations; next time wait a moment longer to launch a pass," Dabo told him.
Tajh was not a dual-threat quarterback per se, but rather a powerful pocket passer, but his problem was that when he didn't find the pass according to the play, he tried to run for the yards himself instead of improvising.
If Wyatt had been in that situation, he would have tried to look for a pass toward one of the other receivers or the tight end, but running would have been his last option since the Bulldogs' defensive positioning was already very compact in itself; it was a miracle that Tajh had been able to cross the line of scrimmage without an injury.
"Did you understand, Tajh?" Dabo asked, looking seriously at Tajh, who nodded in response. "Understood, Coach," was the last thing he said.
After that, the coach began to evaluate the next team they were going to face in a few days, this being South Carolina State.
That game, the Clemson team secured a comfortable 52-13 victory since the South Carolina team was not a team known for being strong, but the next opponent would be the NC State Wolfpack, who were a team known for their tough defense.
Which was why it was no surprise that when Tajh returned to his old habit of trying to break through the line of scrimmage, he ended up buried by the Wolfpack defense players, ending up injured in the process.
End of Flashback
"Sterling!" Coach Dabo called, causing Wyatt in response to head in his direction with his helmet in his hand, ready to listen to the instructions the coach would have for him. "You're going in for Boyd," was the only thing Dabo said, while Wyatt, without saying a word, placed the helmet over his head and entered the field.
"And it seems that head coach Dabo Swinney has replaced his starting quarterback Tajh Boyd with freshman quarterback Wyatt Sterling," the commentator told all the viewers while the screen pointed directly at Wyatt, who adjusted his helmet to join the team's offense.
"Let's remember that he had a good debut in the game against Georgia, and even though he didn't play the game against South Carolina, despite that, people still remember him, and let's hope that in this game he is up to the task."
3-7 was the score seen on the screen, with the Wolfpack team up by a touchdown, which was why now the pressure fell upon the Clemson team and Wyatt, who had to take over the offense right where Tajh had left it.
3rd and 6 were the yards needed to get a new first down, and being 28 yards away from the end zone, therefore the situation was not as desperate as one might think.
Once gathered with the rest of the players in the huddle, Wyatt began to speak. "Alright guys, we must win this no matter what," Wyatt said seriously while looking at each of the players, who nodded in response. "Let's go see Tajh with the news that we beat these bastards," Wyatt finished saying while clapping and breaking the huddle so the players could get into positions.
On the other side, in the Wolfpack team's stands, the university team's most fanatical student group, the Packnation, began to shout and curse in Wyatt's direction, hoping to throw him off focus or get inside his head.
"Get ready to die, kid!" shouted one of the most staunch members of the Packnation, who was completely bare-chested, painted in red, and with the letter K painted in white in the center.
Next to him, his friends did not stay behind. "Go back home to your mommy before you end up like your friend!" another shouted, bringing his hands to his mouth, hoping to throw the Clemson quarterback off focus.
Under those boos stood Wyatt while he concentrated more on the people in front of him, where he could also notice how one of the Wolfpack team's defensive tackles brought a finger and moved it around his neck, seeking to torment Wyatt.
"Set... Hut!" Wyatt shouted, receiving the ball and quickly dropping back to have a complete view of the field of play, while the offensive line did everything possible to keep the Wolfpack defense at bay, giving Wyatt a few valuable seconds to analyze the field.
Looking closely, Wyatt noticed how Sammy had run straight to the back again while the safety positioned himself next to him, but this time Sammy, as soon as he saw the safety at his side, broke in the opposite direction, seeking to get rid of him.
Wyatt, mentally calculating the point where Sammy could reach, launched a medium-distance pass that flew over the field, heading toward the left side where Sammy was located, who upon seeing how the ball was heading toward where he was, did not hesitate to accelerate his pace, seeking to position himself at the optimal point to catch the ball while the safety remained behind him, also following the ball with his gaze.
Seeing that he had reached the designated spot, Sammy jumped along with the safety, who was seeking by all means to prevent Sammy from capturing the ball, which was why he put his arms around the latter's body.
Despite the clear foul committed by the safety, Sammy with all his strength managed to secure the ball against his chest while both fell and the safety still fought with Sammy, seeking to make him drop the ball and have a fumble declared.
"Get off me, asshole!" Sammy grunted while protecting the ball against his body from the subject in front of him.
Seeing all that, the line referee blew his whistle while separating both players, and the head referee stepped in while giving a warning to both so that the conflict wouldn't escalate more than necessary.
"And it seems that a penalty was committed by the Wolfpack's safety, Hakim Jones," the commentator said while the referees were seen discussing among themselves until the head referee placed himself in the center of the camera while activating the microphone on his headset.
"Wolfpack, illegal holding, 5-yard penalty!!" the referee shouted in a sharp manner while indicating to the Tigers to advance 5 more yards, causing them to be just 8 yards away from the end zone.
"Boo!!" shouted the fans and spectators in the stadium, who in their majority were Wolfpack fans and considered that the referee's decision was erroneous.
But the referee, already used to this kind of scene, did not let himself be intimidated while waiting for the players to take their positions and the game to restart as soon as possible.
"Following the referee's decision to grant 5 extra yards to the Tigers team, it can be seen how the atmosphere inside the stadium became wild," the commentator quickly added while the stadium cameras began to pan to the stadium stands and both benches, where both teams had different reactions after the penalty by the referee.
Positioning himself on the 8-yard line, Wyatt waited for the Wolfpack team's defense to get into position, which they did, but even so, this time the looks they directed at all the players with the Clemson uniform were deadly, since they didn't expect to receive a penalty that put them in a very critical situation.
The person most upset with the referee's decision was none other than Hakim, who had been the cause of this foul, which was why he hoped to redeem himself by preventing the Tigers team from continuing to advance.
"Set... Hut!" Upon Wyatt's shout and receiving the ball, this time Wyatt did not attempt a pass, opting to advance by ground and handing the ball to his running back, who ran in a diagonal line seeking to penetrate through the weak side, not wanting to run straight into the line of scrimmage.
Even so, despite his best efforts, he only managed to advance two yards before ending up buried by the opposing team's players, with 6 yards remaining for the touchdown.
Before they began the second down, Wyatt made a discrete sign to Sammy, who seemed to understand the message since he simply threw him a wink while they returned to their positions.
On the second down, Wyatt received the snap and quickly threw it without even giving anyone time to react except Sammy, who had already run to the edge of the end zone and caught Wyatt's pass, planting both feet firmly on the boundary of the end zone.
"Touchdown!!!" shouted the commentator into the microphone while the Clemson bench celebrated and the fans in the stadium booed.
"And just when you thought Wyatt Sterling would succumb to the pressure, he answers you with a touchdown, putting the score at 9-7," the commentator finished saying excitedly, while Wyatt received the congratulations of the entire Clemson offense as they returned to their bench and gave entry to the Clemson special teams.
Once inside the field and without any complication, the Clemson special teams managed to convert the extra point, putting the score at 10-7 in favor of Clemson.
After that, the defense entered, and they managed to hold off the Wolfpack offense until the time reached zero and halftime officially began, causing both teams to return to their locker rooms.
Authors thought's
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