Chapter 60

I collected the term papers that Scott's U. S. History students had been working on for the past three weeks on Monday morning. Each paper was three to five pages. The stack of papers from first period alone was a few inches high. Scott asked me to browse through the papers while he did his lecture. The papers were much simpler than I was used to, but that was to be expected. I was almost twenty-one and taking advanced undergrad courses in history. The ninth graders were fourteen years old.

Scott Henderson reviewed the AP European History quiz I made up last Friday night. He approved it with minor tweaks. I would give the quiz on Tuesday fourth period before my lecture on the peace arrangements made at the Congress of Vienna after Napoleon's fall from power.

The stack of term papers grew during third period. Scott was going to have quite a job grading the ninety some papers from his three U. S. History sections over his Easter "vacation." People have the misconception that teaching is an "easy" job since you only work from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm. I estimated that Scott would need fifteen hours to go through the stack if he took as little as ten minutes to read and review each term paper. I suspected he would need more time than that to read and correct each paper.

Scott had announced as he was collecting the term papers that he would have them graded and returned next Monday when everyone returned from their vacation. The Bellefonte Area School District had school Monday and Tuesday this week. Wednesday the kids had off while the teachers (and student teachers) had an in-service day. The schools gave everyone Thursday and Friday off for Easter vacation.

That was great news for me too. I had Thursday and Friday mornings free. I would use one to polish my final two lectures to Scott's classes. The other morning would be devoted to more video study of next year's opponents.

The AP European History students seemed much more relaxed on Tuesday morning as they worked on the quiz I gave them to start fourth period. Scott collected the quizzes and reviewed them while I began my lecture on the reshaping of Europe accomplished at the Congress of Vienna in 1815.

Scott and I had a minute to talk at the end of my lecture. He complimented me on the good job I had done. He also said the quiz results looked much better than the last time. He sent them home with me. I was to mark them up and be prepared to review the quizzes on Monday at the start of fourth period.

Wednesday's in-service day began in the high school auditorium with all faculty, student teachers and pre-service teachers assembled together to listen to the superintendent's talk about upcoming events and plans in the school district.

I sat with the other pre-service teachers during the assembly. There were eight of us in the school district – four in the four elementary schools, two in the middle school and Nicole and me in the high school. Chelsea Walters, my friend and some-time date from freshman year, was working at the Pleasant Gap Elementary this semester. She and I had a nice talk before the superintendent delivered his discourse.

Scott and I attended two teaching workshops in the morning. The first workshop wasn't that interesting. It seemed to be a rehash of the things I was learning in C I 412W. The second workshop was better. A retired history teacher spoke to all the social studies and history teachers in the middle and high school about curriculum changes, textbooks and some things coming down from the Department of Education in Harrisburg. It was an interesting talk.

Everyone seemed very familiar with the retired teacher. He began speaking without introduction. I caught that his name was Geoff, but I didn't know who he was until after the workshop.

"You're a Civil War buff, Kyle," Scott said as the participants were heading out for lunch. "I should introduce you to Geoff. I'm sure you've heard of some of his books."

"I'm not sure," I said. "I didn't catch his name." I followed Scott to the front of the room. The two men greeted each other warmly, like two old and close friends.

"Kyle, I would like to introduce you to my mentor and good friend, Geoffrey Wentz," Scott said as he stepped aside to let me greet his friend. The light bulb clicked on as soon as Scott said the name "Wentz."

"Mr. Wentz, it's so good to meet you," I gushed. "I've read some of your books. You did the bio on Custer, a couple books on Gettysburg, and one on the Gray Ghost. I loved them. They're great books."

"I'm guilty," Mr. Wentz replied. "I dabble in writing." The man was being much too modest. He wrote books on the Civil War that were well researched, thoughtful and were good stories that kept a reader interested from the first page to the last page.

"Geoff, I'd like to introduce you to Kyle Martin," Scott said. The two of us shook hands. Mr. Wentz smiled for a moment after we shook and appraised me.

"You play football, don't you?" Mr. Wentz asked.

"I do," I agreed.

"It's my turn to fawn," Mr. Wentz said. "I'm a season ticket holder. You've done some amazing things on the football field in the past three seasons. What are our team's prospects this fall?"

"Our team's slogan this year says it all," I replied. "'On to Phoenix.' We plan to play for the national championship next January. We're going to get there too."

Mr. Wentz, Scott and I talked for about ten minutes. I told Geoff some inside information about my experiences playing football for the Nittany Lions. I learned more about Geoff's interesting career. He taught in the Bellefonte School system for thirty-four years, before retiring two years ago. He was a life-long student of the Civil War. He took up writing in his spare time about fifteen years ago. It took him five years to write his first book, one about the cavalry fighting at Gettysburg.

Geoff had ended his education career as head of the history department for the Bellefonte Schools. Geoff had mentored Scott when Scott was a young teacher just arriving at the district.

Geoff questioned me about the courses I was taking at Penn State. It turned out he was good friends with two of my professors – Katherine Brennan and Bill Barnes. Geoff helped out on tours of Civil War battlefields that Dr. Brennan and Dr. Barnes gave during the year.

I loved meeting a writer I enjoyed and admired. Geoff seemed to enjoy meeting "the best damn receiver he's ever seen," as he described me. If time would have permitted, I would have invited Scott and Geoff to go to lunch with me. Unfortunately my Adolescent Development course started at 12:15 pm, back on campus. I thanked Scott for introducing us and I thanked Geoff for all the excellent books he authored.

Football practices were going well in the afternoons. Coach Caffrey used me as his "demonstrator" as he taught techniques to our younger receivers. I would run through what he was teaching a couple times so they could see it and then Coach would have the other guys practice the technique. Coach Caffrey had Christian, Tanner and me help him critique and instruct the younger guys.

Two guys stood out on offense – Brian Henson and Bob Smith. Brian had improved his game considerably, thanks to now having a complete grasp of the playbook. The freshmen and sophomores on the second team couldn't stop him from making big plays. Bob did well with both first and second teams catching passes from Chip and Jon. We knew he was good at that. Bob impressed me, and I presume the coaches, with his blocking.

One play on Tuesday afternoon Bob was stuck blocking Trevor when Trevor stunted to the outside on a passing play. Bob caught Trevor low and knocked him on his ass. The time since spring break that Bob spent on pass catching with Chip and on blocking with Damian was paying off. The Big Ten was going to have to worry about our tight ends again, like they did before Evan Foster graduated. That could only help us in our quest for a national championship.

The week went by quickly. Coach Burton didn't have practice on Friday afternoon, one small concession the university made for Good Friday. Otherwise the Holy Day was noted for the lack of observance on campus. Classes continued per the normal schedule. Few people seemed to take notice of the holiday otherwise.

I had one big dilemma. I needed to get something for Penny's birthday on the fourteenth. It needed to be nice but couldn't be too personal or extravagant. I had gotten Penny clothing and jewelry when we were a couple in high school and that had been appropriate then. If I spent too much it would seem like I'm pushing her too hard for us to become a couple again. If it wasn't enough, it would seem like I really didn't care about Penny that much, that she wasn't important to me. It took a few days but I eventually found a balance between my two conflicting needs.

I had asked Shawn Byrd to talk with his friend Dave Hanson, down at Penn, to find out what kind of beer or wine was Penny's favorite. After Shawn reported back to me, I called my brother Will and asked him to pick up a case of her favorite and deliver it to her on Saturday. I also went on-line and ordered a dozen red roses to be delivered on Saturday with my birthday greetings to Penny. Certain things are classic and are always in good taste.

Trevor, Steph, Chip, Claire, Christian and Bev invited me to go bowling with them on Friday night. I invited Molly to go along as my companion, rather than as my date. She was willing for the sake of friendship. All eight of us had a good time.

I drove Molly back to her apartment. I ended the evening with a good night kiss on the cheek and a hug, as was appropriate between two friends. I was glad Molly was willing to stay friends now that I was pursuing a relationship with Penny. I enjoyed spending time with Molly.

Chip was smoking hot at Saturday morning's scrimmage. Our Blue team took the ball first. Chip drove us down the field crisply. It didn't hurt that Chip was wearing a red, "do-not-touch" jersey. Trevor and the other linemen were frustrated, trying to corral someone they couldn't bend, fold or mutilate like normal.

Coach Burton kept Christian and me on the field for the whole drive. Brian and Tanner split time at the third receiver spot. Coach Burton shifted the three of us around to different wide receiver slots each play, keeping our defense off balance and also preparing us the coming season when we would do the same thing to our opponents.

I caught one pass on a slant across the middle from the slot, taking a big hit from Tony King on the play. Wide receivers don't get to wear the red jerseys. We ran a well balanced attack, running five times and passing on five more. I out-jumped Shawn and G. J. on the tenth play, catching a twenty yard lob to the corner of the end zone.

Coach Caffrey informed me when I came off the field that I was done for the day. Brian took my spot on the field full time. The coaches continued switching Brian around, trying him at split end, slot and flanker positions during the scrimmage. I think I understood the coaches' plan too. They wanted to know if Brian had learned our offense well enough for a shot at starting next fall.

I wasn't being conceited when I considered myself as the best wide receiver on the team. I held just about every receiving record in the Penn State record book to prove that I deserved the number one slot on the team. The two, three and four slots were much closer. Personally I rated Christian as number two. Third and fourth position on the depth chart was pretty much a tossup between Tanner and Brian. The gap in performance between Christian and Brian and Tanner was small and shrinking rapidly. I was glad I didn't have to choose which two of the three would start.

Brian scored two touchdowns during the scrimmage. Charlie Taylor broke a couple tackles and sprinted for a long touchdown run too. Blue bested White 31-24. Trevor was in a crappy mood in the locker room and on the way back to our apartment. He HATED to lose.

I lifeguarded at the Natatorium Saturday afternoon. Joe Ricci, Charlie Taylor, Brian Henson and Chris Richardson, all unattached at the moment, invited me to go downtown with them for supper before the team's party back at my apartment. My dinner-mates came back to help me set up for the party when we got back.

I gave Penny a call as soon as I got back to my apartment. It was around seven o'clock.

"Hi, Kyle," Penny said as she answered her cell.

"Hi honey, I hope you're having a good birthday," I replied.

"It's been great," Penny responded. "Thank you for roses. They are lovely. That was a very thoughtful present."

"I'm glad you like them," I said. "Has Will stopped by with the other half of your present?" I gave her a quick chuckle. "It's something I'm not allowed to buy yet. I hope you enjoy it."

"Will? No, he hasn't gotten here yet," Penny said. "He and Abby are taking me and some of my friends out to an English style pub he's fond of. Will agreed to act as the designated driver for my first night out on the town."

"That's nice of him," I said. "Have fun tonight. I'm looking forward to seeing you next weekend."

"Thanks, Kyle," Penny replied. "I'm looking forward to spending the weekend with you too. I love you, Kyle."

"I love you too," I said before ending the call. I hoped the information I had gotten from Dave Hanson was correct. Will picked up a case of Pale Ale brewed by Dock Street Brewery, a small brewer in West Philly. Dave said Penny loved this ale.

Saturday evening's party went well. Fewer girl hit on me this weekend than earlier. I believe they realized that I truly was NOT available. Shawn Byrd's girlfriend Jada Owens invited her roommate's best friend, Alyssa Edwards. Alyssa was a striking looking blue eyed blond standing at around 5'-8". The slender woman might have weighed 125 pounds, accentuating her chest. Mmmm ... boy, if I wasn't trying to win back Penny ... well, I'd have been hitting on that girl all night.

As it was, Alyssa and I talked for thirty or forty minutes during the party. She was a great conversationalist and had a wonderful sense of humor. If I wasn't trying to get back with Penny ... oh well, I was. I certainly would remember her in case I couldn't work things out with Penny this summer. Alyssa would be hearing from me next fall.

She ended up spending quite a bit of time with G. J. DeLuca. The two of them left together, though I'm sure G. J., the good Catholic, did not take her back to his apartment for the evening. He probably escorted her home and got a good night kiss for his trouble. Lucky guy!

I received an excited e-mail from Penny Sunday afternoon. She loved the case of pale ale Will delivered for me. She described her evening at the pub with Will, Abby and her other friends. She had a good time and managed not to get totally inebriated. She said it felt good to finally be legal. I wouldn't know for another two and a half months.

I graded the AP European History quizzes later in the afternoon. I must have done much better creating this test. The lowest score was a 71%. Most of the class was bunched in the high seventies to the mid-eighties. Half a dozen kids scored over ninety and one scored perfect. This was a smart class full of highly motivated kids. I thought the grade distribution made sense.

Penny and I had a long talk later in the afternoon. It was hard to believe the Blue and White game was only seven days away. Penny had made plans two weeks ago to stay over at Stephanie's apartment Friday night. I knew the coaches frowned on players entertaining girlfriends or having sex the night before a game. I let Penny know that I would purchase a Blue and White Luncheon ticket for her so she could attend with me. The football seniors were required to take part in this brunch for the alumni.

Scott Henderson was pleased Monday second period when I gave him the graded quizzes and the results. I placed copies of the quiz and the grade distribution in my portfolio. I had to turn it in on Tuesday afternoon at my last C I 495C seminar. Scott reviewed my notes and plans for my lecture the next day on the Revolution of 1848. He approved everything. We talked about my final lecture on Friday – The Roosevelt vs. Hoover election in 1932 and the start of the New Deal.

Monday afternoon at practice Coach Burton announced we would have a meeting Tuesday evening at 7:00pm. We would choose our captains for the coming year. For better or worse, I knew who one of the captains would be. Between the leadership group railroading me into chairing the group and from comments made by a lot of my younger teammates, I knew I had no chance of dodging responsibility for leading the team next seasons. My nickname might change from "Coach" to "Cap" or "Captain".

The team assembled in the auditorium at seven o'clock Tuesday night. I knew how the process would work. Coach Burton asked team members to nominate potential captains last week. Personally I had recommended Trevor, Josh, Shawn and Damian for the jobs. We found the ballots included me, Trevor, Damian, Josh, Shawn, Christian, Greg Nowicki and Bill Daugherty.

Coach allowed us to vote for up to four persons. The top three or four vote getters would be our captains. The team needed about fifteen minutes to pass out ballots, vote and collect them again. We hung out and talked while the coaches counted votes down in front. Coach Burton called for quiet after a couple minutes.

"I'm pleased to announce the team captains for the next season," Coach Burton announced. "Kyle 'Coach' Martin, Trevor Conwell and Damian Thompson will lead the team next season. I won't put our captains on the spot tonight by asking them to speak. I'm sure they will have plenty to say in the future."

"I think our captains deserve three cheers," Chip said as he jumped up from his seat. "C'mon captains, stand up! Three cheers for Coach, Trevor and Damian!"

We stood as our teammates shouted "Hip hip hooray!" three times.

Shawn Byrd stood and shouted, "Where are we going next January?"

"On to Phoenix!" the crowd replied. Shawn repeated the chant two more times, the team answering louder "On to Phoenix!" each time. Almost every member of the team came by to congratulate Trevor, Damian and me as they filed out of the auditorium.

Chip, Trevor, Damian and I were the last ones to leave the Lasch Building. Trevor asked, "Hey Damian, did you expect to be a captain?"

"Not in my wildest dreams," Damian answered. "I was a walk-on hoping to stick here three years ago." He lowered his voice. "Who'd a thought a queer, black kid from Erie would end up a captain on the Nittany Lions?"

"The team chose correctly," I said. "I'm the flash on this team, prancing around in the open. When we get in trouble we know what to do. Hand the ball off to you. You'll bull your way ahead and get us out of the jam – time and time again."

"Coach has that right," Chip agreed.

"I never imagined in a million years when I started here that I would be a captain of this team," I said.

"Yeah! Rrright..." Trevor responded. "You were the coach's favorite from the first day you stepped on the field and ran a 4.3 second forty."

"I thought I would lose my scholarship after they benched me for my screw-ups against Ohio State in freshman year," I countered. "With my screw-ups and flunking calculus I was sure I was going home for good at Christmas."

"We've come a long way since those days," Trevor said. "We have got to make this year special."

"We do," I agreed. "Did Billy get that poster ready yet?"

"I'll give him a call," Damian said. "I think it should be done."

"We're going to have to figure out how we're going to use this poster to motivate the team," I suggested. "Are you guys busy? Maybe we could kick around some ideas tonight."

We roommates agreed. We headed back to our apartment, grabbed a beer for each of us and sat down to talk through how to motivate our teammates. Chip heard what we were talking about and joined our conversation.

Damian called Billy Robinson while we were discussing ideas. Billy reported that he had finished the poster last night but hadn't had time to go down to the print center to print it out. He promised to have it ready for us tomorrow.

We kicked around ideas for about an hour before we came up with a plan that we thought would truly motivate our teammates to put out the extraordinary effort we needed to take us to the national championship game. We would unveil our plan on Friday. We would call a team-only meeting before our normal practice time.

Trevor, Damian and I found a surprise in our lockers on Wednesday afternoon when we arrived to dress for our final practice. Coach had the equipment people sew a "C" on all our jerseys that day – our practice jerseys as well as our game day jerseys. The coaches also supplied each of us with half a dozen blue polo shirts with our name and "Team Captain" embroidered below the Penn State logo. They embroidered "Kyle 'Coach' Martin" on my shirts.

Trevor, Damian and I received quite few congratulations from our teammates as we took the field for our team's final spring practice. The three of us tried to keep an eye on the enthusiasm level of the team and to pump up anyone not giving their best efforts. Our vigilance wasn't required. Everyone wanted to use this last day to impress the coaches and to get a leg up on the competition on the depth chart for next summer.

Coach Burton announced that the team assignments for the Blue and White game were posted inside in our locker room. Coach mixed up starters and second string players together on the two teams for the Blue and White game. I assumed he did this to make things more competitive and to entertain our fans.

I scanned down the list after I got inside, expecting to find my name with the Blue team, like the previous Blue and White games. My name wasn't on that list. I scanned down the White team's roster. My name wasn't there either. I made a beeline for Coach Burton's office.

"Hey Coach, do you have a minute?" I asked as I poked my head inside his door. He looked up from the papers on his desk.

"What's up, Coach?" Coach Burton asked.

"I checked the list of players for both teams," I said. "I didn't see my name on either team. I guess that means I'm riding the bench. How do you want me to dress for the game?"

"You need to check the lists a little closer, Coach," Coach Burton said. "You're on the Blue Team. Check the bottom of the list. As far as dress, wear black sneakers, white or tan khakis and a blue polo shirt for the game." Coach gave me a wink. "Your coach's visor is optional."

I thanked Coach Burton and headed back to the locker room. I thought I knew what Coach was hinting at. Sure enough, I found my name on the Blue team's roster, at the bottom, listed with the coaching staff. The next to last line for the Blue team said, "Special Teams Coach – Anders Voight" The last line was, "Ass't. Special Teams Coach – Kyle Martin."

I tracked down Anders after I found out we would be coaching together on Saturday. Our plan was that Anders would coach the kickoff, punt and field goal units. I would be responsible for the kickoff return and punt return units.

Damian invited Billy Robinson over for dinner with Trevor, Chip and me that evening. Billy came bearing a gift – the "On to Phoenix" poster he made for us. It looked fantastic.

Billy explained that he had found a photo of the Michigan team lined up in the tunnel before the Fiesta Bowl in January. He cut a photo of our team standing in the tunnel in Beaver Stadium and placed us against the Phoenix Stadium background. Billy had clipped a "We are ... Penn State" banner from another photo and had it "hanging" from the railing near the tunnel. He added the Nittany Lion to one side of the photo, cheering to the crowd.

The effect that really made the photo look real was the fans. About half of the fans were Texas Longhorn fans. Texas had beaten Michigan at the Fiesta Bowl last winter. The other half of the fans were dressed in blue and white, like Penn Staters. Billy explained that he had changed all the blue and maize on Michigan's fans to blue and white.

The others agreed I would take the poster downtown to the frame shop on College Avenue tomorrow after I finished in Bellefonte and get the poster mounted and framed. Trevor, Damian and I would get permission from Coach Burton to hang the poster after practice tomorrow.

I gave Penny a call after dinner to give her my news about the game on Saturday.

"I have good news and I have bad news," I began when Penny answered my call. "My bad news is that you won't get to see me play on Saturday."

"That doesn't surprise me," Penny replied. "You told me how little practice time your coaches have been giving you this spring. I guess you'll be standing on the sideline and holding your helmet at the game."

"Actually, that is part of the good news I have," I explained. "I will be holding a clip board. Coach Burton asked me to help one of the grad assistants coach the special teams."

"That is excellent news, Kyle," Penny said. "I'm sure you'll enjoy coaching."

"That is only part of the good news," I added. "Coach Burton doesn't want the football players sleeping with girls the night before a game. I'm pretty sure most of the coaches will be sleeping with women the night before the game. Would you like to spend Friday night here with me instead of staying with Steph?"

"Hmmmm ... that is interesting," Penny said. "Are you sure it's OK if I spent Friday night with you?"

"I'll confirm it, but I don't see why not," I said. "It's not like it would matter if you were to tire me out Friday night. How much energy does it take to stand on the sidelines and talk with the team?"

"Will you let Steph know or should I?" Penny asked.

"I'll have Trevor warn Steph," I said. "I'm sure he will be talking to her later this evening."

"I'm looking forward to this weekend," Penny said. "I expect to get to State College around 6:00 or 6:30."

"We'll go downtown for dinner as soon as you get here," I said. "Don't snack too much on the drive up here. I want to take you to somewhere nice."

"OK, I'll see you Friday," Penny said. "I love you."

"I love you too," I agreed before we ended our call.

It wasn't more than five minutes before my phone rang again. My cell announced it was Matt Sauder calling.

"Hey Matt, what's up?" I asked.

"Hey, Coach. I wanted to let you know Cody, Dave, Josh and I were coming up for the Blue and White game on Saturday," Matt said. "I want to cheer on my team."

"That's great, Matt," I responded.

"I was wondering if you could do me a huge favor," Matt said. "Could we crash at your apartment Saturday night? Our parents would be a lot happier if I didn't have to drive home in the dark after a long day."

"Four of you?" I said. "I don't know if I have room for four guys..."

"No, it's just Cody and me," Matt said, interrupting me. "Dave and Josh are crashing at Josh's brother's apartment Saturday night."

"Just you and Cody?" I said. "I guess so. You may need to sleep on the living room floor, so come prepared."

"That's cool, Coach," Matt said. "I'm looking forward to watching you play and also to meeting some of the other guys considering Penn State. I've been talking with some of the guys that www.rivals.com shows as being interested in Penn State. I know you and the coaches can't talk to juniors but I can. I want to convince the best guys to join me at Penn State next year."

"Who have you been talking too?" I asked.

"Joe Radziwill, the linebacker from Lititz, Jake Meyer from down in Chester County, Jeremy Carter, the receiver from Reading, and of course, Devin Kerr," Matt said.

"I know Jake," I said. "I remember him from his unofficial visit last fall. He impressed me with his pass catching out of the backfield. I don't know Radziwill or Carter."

"They both play in Quad-A," Matt said. "Our team doesn't play them. Rivals rates both guys four stars. If I can help convince them to put Penn State at the top of their lists, Penn State will be a stronger team when I get there."

"That's an admirable goal, Matt," I said. "I'll be pretty busy Saturday morning with commitments. Give me a buzz after the game. You have my cell number. You and the guys can meet up with me and Penny."

"Penny?" Matt said. "I heard rumors you were trying to get back together with Penny Edwards. I guess they're true."

"The rumors are true," I agreed.

"I am starting to understand where you are coming from, Coach," Matt said. "Annie and I are facing the same thing. She's leaning towards Drexel, Penn or Carnegie-Mellon. She wants to go into architectural engineering. I plan to go to Penn State."

"They have a good architectural engineering program here," I replied. "Annie could come to Penn State too."

"Don't you think I've told her that?" Matt said. "She thinks State College is too rural. She wants to experience a big city while she's in college. I don't know what the two of us will do next January when I come here."