Nicholas Ayers was gearing up for his next matchup, busy with sorting jerseys, getting a quick bite to eat in, and whatnot, his usual routine before he needs to get going when he gets a call from his old high school coach from 10 years ago.
"Odd," he thought, "Why is he calling me?" Of course, he kept his contact around in case of unpredicted manners, but today was the day he got his call.
"Hey, Nick... It's Coach from Desert Ridge High School. I knew I was getting old and decrepit, but I didn't know that it would hit me like a truck, that I wasn't able to keep coaching. We just had our worst season in 10 years, and I have resigned. I can't trust my assistants to do this sort of crap, but I thought maybe you could help us out." He paused, waiting for Ayers's response.
"Coach," Ayers said, "I may be busy with Honolulu, but I can certainly help you out. Let me know what I can do."
They talked for a while about possible coaching avenues, and Ayers said that he would do it. After the season ended, he made his way back to Arizona to help out with his old stomping grounds. He, with his assistants, redesigned the playbook and the schemes, recruited new kids to join the squad, created a conditioning team in partnership with the sports medicine class, and eventually, they thought that they were a force to be reckoned with amongst the other 6A schools in the region, with Skyline High, their rival, on the upswing and various other schools continuing to dominate. Ayers knew that he had work to do, and he needed to do it well.
The first game was a home game against Red Mountain High School, a school that always beat them, and a classic rivalry between the schools. Ayers knew that he had to get the statement win to start his coaching career off well, and fortunately he was fairly confident in the team he had assembled. He had to get them excited to play football, and he had to get the most stomping win out of them. Mere minutes before the game, he did his best to completely hype up the team, to great success. Everyone had felt the energy and was feeding off of each other. As soon as they stepped on the field, EVERYONE knew that this team was different from the rest. It was gonna be a good game.
Fast forward to the end, and they managed to squeak out the win against Red Mountain, a statement that has the whole state talking. Ayers was seen talking with the team, motivating them to keep moving forward and push on to the next school, forgetting who it is and just playing good football. This mindset led to win, after win, after win, and on and on. They ended the season at the top of the Central Division and made a successful push through the playoffs. Of course, they had to lose eventually, and they did in the semifinals against their old foe, Red Mountain, but it was the greatest turnaround this school had seen. Ayers wanted to stay, the kids wanted him to stay, and the school wanted him to stay. He did stay, and he would stay for a very long time.
"Odd," he thought, "Why is he calling me?" Of course, he kept his contact around in case of unpredicted manners, but today was the day he got his call.
"Hey, Nick... It's Coach from Desert Ridge High School. I knew I was getting old and decrepit, but I didn't know that it would hit me like a truck, that I wasn't able to keep coaching. We just had our worst season in 10 years, and I have resigned. I can't trust my assistants to do this sort of crap, but I thought maybe you could help us out." He paused, waiting for Ayers's response.
"Coach," Ayers said, "I may be busy with Honolulu, but I can certainly help you out. Let me know what I can do."
They talked for a while about possible coaching avenues, and Ayers said that he would do it. After the season ended, he made his way back to Arizona to help out with his old stomping grounds. He, with his assistants, redesigned the playbook and the schemes, recruited new kids to join the squad, created a conditioning team in partnership with the sports medicine class, and eventually, they thought that they were a force to be reckoned with amongst the other 6A schools in the region, with Skyline High, their rival, on the upswing and various other schools continuing to dominate. Ayers knew that he had work to do, and he needed to do it well.
The first game was a home game against Red Mountain High School, a school that always beat them, and a classic rivalry between the schools. Ayers knew that he had to get the statement win to start his coaching career off well, and fortunately he was fairly confident in the team he had assembled. He had to get them excited to play football, and he had to get the most stomping win out of them. Mere minutes before the game, he did his best to completely hype up the team, to great success. Everyone had felt the energy and was feeding off of each other. As soon as they stepped on the field, EVERYONE knew that this team was different from the rest. It was gonna be a good game.
Fast forward to the end, and they managed to squeak out the win against Red Mountain, a statement that has the whole state talking. Ayers was seen talking with the team, motivating them to keep moving forward and push on to the next school, forgetting who it is and just playing good football. This mindset led to win, after win, after win, and on and on. They ended the season at the top of the Central Division and made a successful push through the playoffs. Of course, they had to lose eventually, and they did in the semifinals against their old foe, Red Mountain, but it was the greatest turnaround this school had seen. Ayers wanted to stay, the kids wanted him to stay, and the school wanted him to stay. He did stay, and he would stay for a very long time.