02-09-2024, 08:10 PM
(This post was last modified: 02-20-2024, 09:41 AM by lemonoppy. Edited 1 time in total.)
AND THAT CONCLUDES THE DSFL DRAFT! THANK YOU ALL FOR TUNING IN, AND GET READY FOR AN AMAZING SEA-
*click*
Brandon Johnson could not believe it. He sat in his studio apartment and stared at his reflection in the now turned off television screen in front of him, still emitting a bit of warmth from just being turned off, not a sound in the apartment apart from the slight whir of the air conditioning going off beside of him.
Nine rounds. 67 names. And his was not called.
Brandon did not bother to attend the draft coverage show live, knowing he was not going be a top prospect invited to the green room. He attended a smaller program in Toronto, who were more known for getting scouts to coach peewee leagues, not ones from the DSFL. Sure Brandon was an athletic freak for his school, but the level of competition was not worth sending any scouts out to watch him.
But undrafted? Surely it had been a mistake, surely he must have misheard or been in the bathroom when a team called his name at the podium. But Brandon knew the truth plain as day before him. He was not selected to join the prestigious DSFL.
Shocked, confused, angry all the emotions came swirling towards Brandon in his studio. He stood up and began pacing back and forth in his apartment, attempting to rationalize the teams decision to not call his name, even in the later rounds of the draft.
That's when the dread started to set in, and then the panic. Brandon already waived his ability to play at the collegiate level in low of heading to the draft, so there was no returning back to school for another year. He could pursue the completion of his degree, but Brandon knew he was only a Sports Hydration major because it was the easiest for him so he could focus on preparing for each game on Saturday, and besides who would hire someone with such a niche degree. There was always the pursuit of becoming a chef in the area. Brandon was known to be pretty handy in the kitchen, and who knows maybe he could turn this into his future.
Brandon looked down at his phone and saw a missed call from Joe, the owner of Joes Gym that Brandon would train at.
"Hey man I just saw the news. Look all this is right now is a minor setback for a MAJOR comeup. Take the day to process your emotions, but then tomorrow its back in the gym for some more conditioning and some film study. Just think about how great this story will be when ya gotta write your memoirs some day! Dont forget about your old pal Joe either! Take care Brandon, and I'll see ya tomorrow!"
And so it was that the very next day Brandon put in his application for Brasserie au bord de la Rivière in downtown Toronto as a lowly entry level cook, still fostering dreams of playing in the big leagues. Each week, when he was not extremely swamped with orders coming in through Toronto, Brandon could be found studying game film from around the DSFL. When he was not working, Brandon could be found at Joes Gym, a family owned business across the street from where Brandon stayed. Training day in and day out to continue to stay in shape, in the hope's that one day he would receive a phone call from a member of some team in the DSFL.
Brandon also marketed himself on X, Tik Tok and Instagram, showing himself running drills and playing in local scrimmages in the Toronto area. He started to develop quite a following, even attending one of Deestroying's events in Canada. Comments would all vary, from the stereotypical "They ain't gonna sign ya little bro" to some more encouraging fans reaching out and tagging DSFL teams directly to give Brandon a shot.
Fast forward to Week 3 of the DSFL season. Brandon received a phone call from REDACTED to come in for a tryout to see if he could find a part on the team. Excited behind belief Brandon could not say yes fast enough and was on the next flight to REDACTED. Getting off the plane, Brandon was immediately whisked away to the teams practice facility, miles ahead that of the one's he used at Joes. The tryout was simple enough at first, a few warm up drills to get ready which would ultimately lead to a scrimmage session. Brandon noticed a few other tryouts there to compete for spots, and go right to stretching.
Now maybe it was the nerves, the jet lag from the plane flight or maybe he just was not good enough but one thing was for sure in the tryouts: Brandon sucked. Brandon could not find a whole if it was the size of the grand canyon, block if the guy sat down in front of him or even hold on to the ball. And it was not just in his head, the other players and more importantly management knew it too. Brandon could tell from the smirks from the other players as well as the look of disappointment in the coaches eyes that this was not going well. To put the cherry on top, another running back competing for a spot shined, even ripping off a 80 yard rush right before scrimmaged ended. When Brandon boarded the flight back to Toronto, he had a feeling he was leaving his dreams of playing in the DSFL behind him.
"Youre giving up?!?!" Joe shouted at Brandon in his return. "You have one bad practice and you're done?!?!"
"You dont understand Joe, you werent there. You dont know how bad it truly was," Brandon responded.
"You get knocked down every single time you run the ball kid, you just gotta make sure you get yourself back up. You've got heart the only person who cant see that right now is you. So you messed up with those guys, theres still 7 other teams in the league."
Joe had been there for Brandon every step of the way and maybe he was right. Brandon slogged through the rest of his workout, then headed home for a shower before going to sleep. As he entered his door, his phone started ringing.
"Joe listen man I dont wanna talk-" Brandon was cut off before he could finish.
"Brandon Johnson?"
Brandon had no clue who was on the other line, but one thing for sure is he knew it was not Joe. Joe had a warm soothing voice, as if he were serving you a nice cup of soup with every last drop. This voice was more serious and of that of a businesslike venture.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" the voice cried out through Brandons speaker.
"Yes hi this is Brandon" Brandon quickly responded.
"Hello Brandon. I'm a representative with the Tijuana Luchadores, and if I may I'd like to have a quick conversation with you..."
*click*
Brandon Johnson could not believe it. He sat in his studio apartment and stared at his reflection in the now turned off television screen in front of him, still emitting a bit of warmth from just being turned off, not a sound in the apartment apart from the slight whir of the air conditioning going off beside of him.
Nine rounds. 67 names. And his was not called.
Brandon did not bother to attend the draft coverage show live, knowing he was not going be a top prospect invited to the green room. He attended a smaller program in Toronto, who were more known for getting scouts to coach peewee leagues, not ones from the DSFL. Sure Brandon was an athletic freak for his school, but the level of competition was not worth sending any scouts out to watch him.
But undrafted? Surely it had been a mistake, surely he must have misheard or been in the bathroom when a team called his name at the podium. But Brandon knew the truth plain as day before him. He was not selected to join the prestigious DSFL.
Shocked, confused, angry all the emotions came swirling towards Brandon in his studio. He stood up and began pacing back and forth in his apartment, attempting to rationalize the teams decision to not call his name, even in the later rounds of the draft.
That's when the dread started to set in, and then the panic. Brandon already waived his ability to play at the collegiate level in low of heading to the draft, so there was no returning back to school for another year. He could pursue the completion of his degree, but Brandon knew he was only a Sports Hydration major because it was the easiest for him so he could focus on preparing for each game on Saturday, and besides who would hire someone with such a niche degree. There was always the pursuit of becoming a chef in the area. Brandon was known to be pretty handy in the kitchen, and who knows maybe he could turn this into his future.
Brandon looked down at his phone and saw a missed call from Joe, the owner of Joes Gym that Brandon would train at.
"Hey man I just saw the news. Look all this is right now is a minor setback for a MAJOR comeup. Take the day to process your emotions, but then tomorrow its back in the gym for some more conditioning and some film study. Just think about how great this story will be when ya gotta write your memoirs some day! Dont forget about your old pal Joe either! Take care Brandon, and I'll see ya tomorrow!"
And so it was that the very next day Brandon put in his application for Brasserie au bord de la Rivière in downtown Toronto as a lowly entry level cook, still fostering dreams of playing in the big leagues. Each week, when he was not extremely swamped with orders coming in through Toronto, Brandon could be found studying game film from around the DSFL. When he was not working, Brandon could be found at Joes Gym, a family owned business across the street from where Brandon stayed. Training day in and day out to continue to stay in shape, in the hope's that one day he would receive a phone call from a member of some team in the DSFL.
Brandon also marketed himself on X, Tik Tok and Instagram, showing himself running drills and playing in local scrimmages in the Toronto area. He started to develop quite a following, even attending one of Deestroying's events in Canada. Comments would all vary, from the stereotypical "They ain't gonna sign ya little bro" to some more encouraging fans reaching out and tagging DSFL teams directly to give Brandon a shot.
Fast forward to Week 3 of the DSFL season. Brandon received a phone call from REDACTED to come in for a tryout to see if he could find a part on the team. Excited behind belief Brandon could not say yes fast enough and was on the next flight to REDACTED. Getting off the plane, Brandon was immediately whisked away to the teams practice facility, miles ahead that of the one's he used at Joes. The tryout was simple enough at first, a few warm up drills to get ready which would ultimately lead to a scrimmage session. Brandon noticed a few other tryouts there to compete for spots, and go right to stretching.
Now maybe it was the nerves, the jet lag from the plane flight or maybe he just was not good enough but one thing was for sure in the tryouts: Brandon sucked. Brandon could not find a whole if it was the size of the grand canyon, block if the guy sat down in front of him or even hold on to the ball. And it was not just in his head, the other players and more importantly management knew it too. Brandon could tell from the smirks from the other players as well as the look of disappointment in the coaches eyes that this was not going well. To put the cherry on top, another running back competing for a spot shined, even ripping off a 80 yard rush right before scrimmaged ended. When Brandon boarded the flight back to Toronto, he had a feeling he was leaving his dreams of playing in the DSFL behind him.
"Youre giving up?!?!" Joe shouted at Brandon in his return. "You have one bad practice and you're done?!?!"
"You dont understand Joe, you werent there. You dont know how bad it truly was," Brandon responded.
"You get knocked down every single time you run the ball kid, you just gotta make sure you get yourself back up. You've got heart the only person who cant see that right now is you. So you messed up with those guys, theres still 7 other teams in the league."
Joe had been there for Brandon every step of the way and maybe he was right. Brandon slogged through the rest of his workout, then headed home for a shower before going to sleep. As he entered his door, his phone started ringing.
"Joe listen man I dont wanna talk-" Brandon was cut off before he could finish.
"Brandon Johnson?"
Brandon had no clue who was on the other line, but one thing for sure is he knew it was not Joe. Joe had a warm soothing voice, as if he were serving you a nice cup of soup with every last drop. This voice was more serious and of that of a businesslike venture.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" the voice cried out through Brandons speaker.
"Yes hi this is Brandon" Brandon quickly responded.
"Hello Brandon. I'm a representative with the Tijuana Luchadores, and if I may I'd like to have a quick conversation with you..."