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With the high school football season kicking off Friday, we have entered full sports cliché season. Some of them are so ubiquitous that we don’t even notice them anymore.

There is a good chance you will read some of these in quotes from coaches and players over the course of the next three months or so, but we will take it one game at a time.

In order to identify those clichés, I will work hard and be the first one in the building and the last one out in order to bring my “A” game.

However, we have to acknowledge preparation isn’t the end all, be all. Yes, hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard, but sometimes, the other team just wants it more.

Always remember the other team is well coached and the team played to win, even if the other team lost by 40. They probably only lost by that much because they thought football was a game of inches, while the other team put up 400 yards of offense. It also didn’t help that the team was marching down the field when they should’ve been running.

Teams also often lose a game by losing the war in the trenches on the gridiron.

Football is also known for bone-rattling collisions. This often happens for one of three reasons. The first is when someone is run over by a freight train. If the runner is hit hard it is because he ran into a brick wall.

If the freight train and brick wall meet, we will find out what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immoveable object. It seems like that should be an easy win for the freight train, but that is why you play the game.

If a player does not give a great initial effort, he may have a chance to give a second effort.

When a team gets within 20 yards of the end zone, they are in the red zone, but it is the same color as the rest of the field.

A defensive player can have blanket coverage on a receiver, which one would think is against the rules to have bedding on the field, although it is a nice sentiment. A referee can have laundry on the field if it is a yellow handkerchief.

A missed extra point can be costly unless the other team also makes a costly turnover. I assume the high prices are why everyone is trying to get the quarterback.

The winning team might take a knee to secure a victory. Actually, that might be why they won if the other players are walking around with one knee.

I hope you are able to better enjoy your Friday night lights after I poured my blood, sweat and tears into this.

 

Chris Moore is the sports editor for Port Arthur Newsmedia. He can be reached at chris.moore@panews.com.