Chapter 78

Max Solomon arrived for my family's Sunday evening dinner a few minutes ahead of schedule. Noah, Connor and Hunter were fascinated by our guest. They showed Max how they liked to play football, which was their term for rough housing. Uncle Dave stayed for dinner too. We would need him when I sat down to negotiate the agreement with Max for him to serve as my agent.

Mom usually made a nice supper on Sundays. This week we had pot roast, pan roasted potatoes and peas. Mom broke out the ice cream for our dessert. Max was a convivial dinner companion. He engaged everyone in conversation over dinner.

I teased Andy. "You know you will have to report this contact with an agent to your compliance office. You don't want to get declared ineligible by the NCAA."

"Your brother is quite right, Andrew," Max added. "You don't want to cut short your collegiate career." Max was well versed in Andy's exploits at Delaware. He certainly came prepared.

Noah, Connor and Hunter politely asked to be excused when they finished their ice cream. "Andrew, Dan and Sharon ... you are raising absolutely delightful children," Max said as the boys left. "This meal was wonderful. Thank you for inviting me to dine with your family tonight."

"Do you want to retire to the living room?" Dad asked. "We still have important business to do this evening and Kyle and Penny have to drive back to Philadelphia tonight."

"Yes, let us get to work," Max agreed. Dad, Uncle Dave, Penny, Max and I found comfortable seats in the living room. Mom brought coffee for everyone. Liz was delegated to watch the kids while she caught up on her homework. Andy took off for Newark and his dorm.

"I guess the first order of business is to make the deal official," Max began. "David, are you acting as Kyle's counselor? Shall I send you a copy of my standard representation agreement for your review?"

"No, I'm not Kyle's attorney," Uncle Dave replied. "I'm acting as his uncle in this matter. We will be engaging Blake, Taylor and Mays as our attorneys. They have experience in sports law. I do not."

"They are an excellent firm," Max replied. "I've worked with them with other clients. They are familiar with my standard agreement. We shouldn't have any trouble at all finalizing the agreement."

"There are a couple things in the NFLPA SRA that I would like to discuss, Max," Uncle Dave said. "Kyle is fairly sure to go in the first round in the draft. Typically teams want to sign their high picks to long contracts – say five, six or seven years."

"Correct," Max replied. I saw Max tense a little as Uncle Dave talked.

"The SRA is set up so that you get paid over the entire life of the contract, regardless of whether you are still my nephew's agent," Uncle Dave said. "There isn't a lot of incentive for you to be zealous in representing Kyle once the long term contract is signed. The money will roll in for you regardless of how much work you do for Kyle at the back end of the contract. I would like to make sure an incentive is in place for you over the entire length of the contract."

"You are forgetting something, David," Max countered. "I do 90% of my work for my clients up front. I have large expenses for travel and training my athlete for the combine that I pay long before I see one penny from their contract."

"I don't expect you to pay for travel and expenses for Kyle," Dad added. "My family is fully capable of bearing those expenses."

Things went back and forth between Max, Dad and Uncle Dave for about ten minutes. Uncle Dave wanted to make Max's compensation dependent entirely on his remaining my agent. Max wanted to keep his standard compensation. We agreed in the end that Max would get the maximum agent's compensation of 3% for his work on my contract. We would guarantee him the first three years of the contract. He would continue to get the 3% after that for the remainder of the contract, as long as he was still my agent.

"The next topic we need to talk about, Kyle, is getting you maximum exposure to the NFL teams," Max said. "Are you planning on playing in the Senior Bowl?"

"I plan to," I answered.

"Are you 100% healthy?" Max asked. "You will spend a week under close scrutiny by all the NFL teams. I want you to shine when they get their first close look at you. Are there any lingering strains, aches or pains from your last game?"

"The last game was relatively pain free for me," I replied. "Mike Johanson is a cover cornerback. He knew better than to get physical with me. I out-weigh him by twenty pounds. I am ready and anxious to play against the best seniors in the country."

"Excellent," Max said. "That settles the first issue. The next is your training. I need to get you into a pro gym where you can learn exactly how to do the NFL Combine's tests. It is critical that you learn the correct techniques. I took the liberty of speaking with Steven Sanderson at the Pro Train Institute. He is willing to work with you at their Cherry Hill, New Jersey center. That should be convenient for you on weekends."

"Pro Train? Is that the same people who have a center over in Millersville?" I asked. "Isn't that the one that Zack used two years ago?"

"Yes, it is the same company," Max confirmed.

"If I'm working out over the weekend, I think I would prefer to work out here in Lancaster County," I replied. "What do you think, Penny? How does a few weekends at home sound?"

"I'd like that," Penny agreed. "Our moms will like it too. We've got lots of planning to do for the wedding."

"Mark July 6th down on your calendar, Max," I said. "You and your wife are invited to our wedding."

"Excellent, I will do that right now," Max responded. "How does your schedule look after the Senior Bowl, Kyle? We need to get you into Steven's gym as often as possible between now and the end of February."

"I have nothing on Super Bowl weekend," I answered. Chuckling, I added, " ... except watching the Super Bowl. The weekend after that Penny and I have to fly down to Florida for the Biletnikoff dinner. We do the Thon at Penn State the weekend after that."

"I will contact Steven and arrange for him to meet you at his Millersville gym the weekend after the Senior Bowl. Are you available to start work on Friday evening or should I arrange it for Saturday morning, Kyle?"

"Friday evening will work," I agreed. "What do you think, honey? We could do that weekend like we did this weekend."

"I could take the train out to Daylesford and meet you after school," Penny answered. "It worked out fine this weekend."

"I will arrange for you to meet Steven at Pro Train on February 2nd," Max said. "It would be beneficial if you did a few evenings over in Cherry Hill. The more practice you have, the more confidence you will have doing the drills. You report to the Combine on February 21st."

"OK, I guess I can squeeze a few evenings in," I replied. "I figured I would need the 21st off from school for travel to Indianapolis."

"When is Penn State's Pro Day?" Max asked. "I assume you are planning on attending."

"It's March 16th, I think," I replied. "I assumed I should be there."

"You should, even if you don't work out for the scouts," Max said. "Most NFL teams place great stock on their interviews with you. You should do interviews with as many teams as possible."

"That's fine," I agreed.

"We need to do some practice interviews with you, Kyle," Max said. "There is an art to giving a good interview. I want you to present yourself in the best possible light to teams that may draft you."

"That's fine," I agreed.

"You will start doing interviews with teams at the Senior Bowl," Max said. "Do you have any free nights later this week? I could meet with you at your apartment to practice."

"That's fine," I agreed. "Do you want to join Penny and me for dinner? We'd be happy to feed you before we get to work."

"No, why don't I treat the two of you to dinner instead?" Max suggested. "You're poor college students. I know budgets are always a little tight at your age."

"That would be wonderful," I agreed. Penny liked the idea of dinner out too. We arranged a time for Max to meet us and gave him the address of our apartment building. That wrapped up the business end of the meeting. Uncle Dave headed back to York. Dad, Mom, Penny and I talked with Max for a while. Max asked about Penny's classes and career plans. We talked about my student teaching. Max got to know my family better before he left, soon after Noah, Connor and Hunter went to bed around eight o'clock. Penny and I headed back to Philly when Max left.

--oooOooo--

John Waters had me assist him in preparing an exam for the honors economics class during our fourth period work time on Monday. He also let me know I would be giving my first lecture on Friday for the third period European History class. My topic was the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon. The topic was tailor made for me. I had given the same lecture last spring to Scott's AP European History class.

I took Lancaster Avenue back to Philly after school on Monday. I stopped off at the big computer store in St. Davids to pick up a wireless router so I could use my laptop anywhere in our apartment instead of staying tethered to a cable in the living room.

Mondays were a light days for Penny. She was home, deep in study of her comparative anatomy textbook when I got home. I volunteered to make dinner, since I wasn't busy. We ate at six o'clock, as was becoming our custom. I headed over to Temple after finishing the dishes to do my daily work out.

Edberg-Olson's weight room was pretty empty when I went in. I noticed one big, and I do mean big, guy on the weight machine. He had to rival Mike Pollard from Penn State in size. I got to work on my routine. About ten minutes later, after he finished his routine, he stopped by.

"You're the guy Coach told us about," he said. "You're Kyle Martin, aren't you?"

"I am," I answered.

"I'm Jamaal Anderson," he answered.

"Jamaal ... yes, I should have recognized you," I said. He was Temple's excellent guard. He made the second-string All-American team. "I looked at a lot of video since our teams played last summer."

"I understand," Jamaal responded. "I have watched a lot of tape since our teams played each other. I doubt you spent a lot of time watching offensive line play anyway. I guess we'll be flying out to the Senior Bowl together."

"Are we?" I responded. "I haven't heard anything about flight arrangements yet."

"I got an e-mail confirming it just before I came over here," Jamaal said.

"I'll find it when I get home, I'm sure," I responded. "It's good to meet you, Jamaal." The two of us talked for a while about our football experiences. Jamaal seemed like a nice guy. He was going to make a decent traveling companion.

Sure enough, I found e-mail from the Senior Bowl confirming my travel information to Mobile. Someone somewhere made a goof. They had me flying out of State College with two stops, one in Philly and the other in Charlotte. I sent an e-mail back warning them to drop the flight from State College to Philadelphia. I had no intention of driving to State College to catch a plane that would return me to the city where I lived.

I learned one other important piece of information that evening. The NFL named the two coaching staffs for the Senior Bowl. The Denver Broncos staff would coach the North Team. The Oakland Raiders would coach the South Team. I would be playing for Coach Jeff Baldwin, the Broncos head coach. I went on-line and found the bios on the other coaches I probably would be working with – Craig Holt, the offensive coordinator, Chris Frank, the wide receivers coach and Brian Kovacevic, the special teams coordinator. Coach Kovacevic's bio was interesting. He graduated from Penn State. He played there in the mid-nineties as a defensive back.

--oooOooo--

John and I monitored a study hall fourth period on Tuesdays and Fridays. Four guys went up front and talked with John, who they called 'Coach Waters', for a minute before coming back to my table in the back.

"Mr. Martin, Coach Waters says we can talk with you if you're willing and we talk quietly," one of the guys asked in a low voice. "Would you be willing to talk about your old high school team and how they beat Strath Haven?"

"Sure, if it's all right with Mr. Waters," I responded. John had been watching the exchange. He smiled and nodded his head yes. "Have a seat guys." They did introductions. They were Dean, Tyler, Mike and Bill. All played in the Pioneers defense. Dean O'Connell was the starting middle linebacker, Tyler Flynn a free safety, while Mike Durning and Bill Walsh were defensive linemen.

"We watched your old high school's game on the PCN last month," Dean said. "We were amazed at what your old team did. We know through Coach that you were at the game helping out. Could you tell us a little about how they managed to shut down Strath Haven?"

"These guys come in and dominate us nearly every year," Mike added. "We're sick and tired of losing to them."

"Sure, I'll do my best to answer your questions," I agreed.

"How did the middle linebacker know what plays were coming?" Dean asked. "It was spooky, almost like he was reading their minds."

"He was on the spot, making tackle after tackle," Bill added. "It was like he wasn't human. He was inside the Panther's coach's head."

"No, Nate isn't clairvoyant," I said. "Our team had a tendencies chart that told us the kind of plays they ran in any given situation. Nate was making educated guesses and reading his keys."

"Cool!" Mike asked. "That explains a lot."

"He was like a beast tackling," Dean said. "How did he get so good?"

"He had a lot of help," I responded. "Do you know who Jeremy North is?"

"Of course!" Dean snapped back. "He's just the best linebacker in college."

"He's also Nate's future brother-in-law," I said. "Jeremy has been dating Nate's older sister for the past seven years. Jeremy spent the last two or three summers teaching Nate how to play middle linebacker."

"That explains a lot," Tyler said. "Having an All-American tutoring you, that must be nice. I guess we aren't going to be able to duplicate what your old school did. We don't have anybody like that to teach us."

"You don't need an All-American to learn to play football well," I replied. "Jeremy didn't have an All-American to tutor him when he started out. What do you guys do to prepare for the season during the off season?"

"We have weight lifting sessions twice a week during the winter," Tyler said.

"Do you do any film study off season?" I asked. "How about drills on the field in the spring?"

"We can't," Dean said. "Our coaches are limited in how much time they have to work with us. Does your old team do all those things?"

"You're right, your coaches can't instruct you in the winter and spring," I agreed. "No one says you guys on the team can't get together and work on your own. My old team meets weekly, starting after New Year's, and spend an hour and a half to two hours a week studying game film from last season. By the time it gets warm in the spring, we have studied every bit of film we have on us and our opponents. When it gets warm, we head outside and do drills."

"All of this without the coaches' help?" Bill asked skeptically.

"Look where it took me and my friends," I countered. "It's a lot of work but it was worth it. What record did you have doing things the way you always do?"

"We were 6-4 last year," Dean acknowledged.

"My old high school team was 15-0 and won a state championship," I said. "Which way, your team's way or my team's way is going to get you further?"

"Your team's way," all four guys agreed.

"Could you help us organize, Mr. Martin?" Mike asked. "I'm not real sure where we need to start."

"Would that violate any rules?" Tyler added.

"I don't think so," I responded. "I'm not officially a faculty member. I haven't been hired by the school district to work with the team. I don't think I would fall under the PIAA prohibitions on coaching activities. I will talk to Mr. Waters and Coach Werley and find out if they mind if I help you guys."

"There's one other thing, Mr. Martin," Dean said. "Do you think your old team would be willing to share that tendencies chart? It sure would help us on defense next season."

"I don't need to ask," I explained. "I created the chart from information Mr. Waters gave me. It belongs to me as much as it belongs to my old team. I will speak with the coach over there, but I'm sure they won't mind sharing information. They would have had a much harder time winning without help from your team."

"Anything you can do to help us would be great, Mr. Martin," Dean said. The other three agreed.

--oooOooo--

The economics class took their exam on Tuesday fifth period. I scanned the exams as John lectured during sixth and seventh periods. I was impressed; the students did very well on the test. I probably shouldn't have been. My research into Conestoga High School before this semester noted that the students were top academic achievers.

After the students cleared out after the last period, a tall man in his early forties popped his head in the room.

"Hey, John ... do you and Kyle have a minute?" he asked.

"Yeah, Dan. What's up?" John replied. Dan walked into the room and I got a better look at the man. He was slim but muscular. He had a bushy mustache that matched his curly, sandy blonde hair.

"I hoped you might introduce me to your famous protégé," Dan said. I walked forward to meet Dan as he asked. I suspected this was Dan Werley, the head football coach.

"Yes, it's about time the two of you met," John replied. "Kyle, this is Dan Werley, our head football coach. Dan, this is Kyle Martin. I guess I don't need to tell you who he is."

"No, I should say not," Dan replied as we shook hands. "The football world knows exactly who you are. John's also been talking about you since he met you last Thanksgiving. It's a real pleasure to finally meet you, Kyle."

"It's good to meet you too, Dan," I replied. "I've heard good things about you too."

"John's been overselling me, I'm sure," Dan replied.

"Not just from John," I said. "Coach Caffrey and Coach Burton told me you're a top notch coach when they heard that I was going to be student teaching here. Coach likes the work you're doing."

"Really?" Dan replied. "I know Walt pretty well but I wouldn't have thought I was on Coach Burton's radar."

"Coach Burton knows who you are," I replied. "We keep a close eye on high school football programs. He thinks you run a quality program."

"That's flattering to hear," Dan said. "I had an interesting conversation with four of my players this morning. They told me about a talk they had with you today about how your old high school prepares during the offseason." I nodded in agreement that they had talked with me. "Could you spare some time some evening after school to fill me in on what they do?"

"Sure, I'd be happy to Dan," I agreed. "When do you want to meet?"

"Would now suit?" Dan answered. "They're all fired up and want to start on this program immediately." Dan laughed. "When I have a group of high school kids fired up to do film study in the offseason, I want to encourage them as much as possible and get them to work."

"I understand," I said. "I was going over to Temple to do my work out but I can stick around awhile. Do you want to talk here?"

"Do you mind coming over to our weight room?" Dan asked. "I have to monitor the kids. Today is one of the days the weight room is open for the team to work out."

"Sure, no problem, Dan," I agreed. "I can go over to Temple after dinner. It isn't a problem."

John and I packed our brief cases and followed Dan over to the gym. I was surprised at the turn out. They had between 40 and 50 kids waiting their turns to use the equipment. The school didn't have nearly enough equipment to get half the kids working simultaneously. The kids were patient, waiting their turn. They certainly were putting a good effort into the workouts they did.

Dan, John and I sat down at a table at one end of the room and discussed what my Wolverines did each offseason to prepare for the following fall. They listened closely.

"That certainly explains some of the amazing things I have seen your old team do," John said.

"The trick is motivating the guys to put in that amount of effort," Dan said. "It's not easy thing convincing a teenager to put in the level of effort you are talking about. You told Dean, Mike, Bill and Tyler you would be willing to work with them setting up the film study sessions. Are you sure you have time for it?"

"I do," I replied. "I am not talking about running the film study sessions for them. I want to teach them to do it on their own. They need to take possession of this whole process. Can we sell the seniors on assisting the younger players?"

"I have six guys going on to play football in college," Dan said. "I should be able to sell them on helping the younger guys as helping them prepare for the next level, especially if I can tell them you're helping too."

"Excellent," I said. "What day would be a good day for the film study?"

"We do work outs on Tuesdays and Thursdays," Dan said. "Maybe Wednesdays after dismissal?"

"That works for me," I agreed.

"Who gets invited to this?" Dan asked. "Do you really include middle schoolers in your film study sessions?"

"We do," I said. "They start learning what is involved in serious football early."

"We'll have to skip that, at least initially," Dan said. "The kids from Tredyffrin/Easttown Middle School aren't too far away but the Valley Forge Middle School kids are three and a half miles from here. I don't have a way to transport them over to this building or home when they're done."

"Starting small makes sense at the beginning," I agreed. Dan, John and I discussed what I would need for the film study session. We agreed we could get things together for tomorrow. Dan called the kids together at the work out, introduced me and explained the film study sessions would be weekly, starting tomorrow. They seemed enthusiastic. We'd see tomorrow.

--oooOooo--

An e-mail from the Senior Bowl organizers confirmed the correction to my flight arrangements. I would fly out of Philly the following Saturday morning. I would most likely get to see friends on the flight. If I was scheduled to fly from State College, most likely Trevor, Shawn and Mitch would be on the flight too.

Wednesday fourth period John had me correct the Economics tests. He checked my work when I was done and recorded the grades in his computer. I reviewed the answers to the tests with the class during the first twenty minutes of fifth period. I was finally in front of students doing what I wanted to do! Yahoo!

John told me on the way to lunch that I had done a decent job my first time in front of the class. After dismissal that day, John took me down to the gym. Coach Werley had a room near the gym set up for video study. About fifteen football players were there when we arrived. The coach posted last year's and next year's schedule on the bulletin board so we could see what we were working with.

More players arrived while Coach Werley was setting up. Coach called one of the older students to the front. I recognized the face. He had AP U. S. Government and Politics seventh period with John. I couldn't remember his name.

"Mr. Martin, I would like to introduce you to one of our team captains, Taylor Fabre," Dan explained. "Taylor, this Mr. Kyle Martin. His football pedigree needs no further introduction."

"Wow, it's a pleasure to meet you Ky... , um, Mr. Martin," Taylor said. "Watching you play at Penn State has been inspiration to me. My dad, my brother and I watched all your games. Dad is a Penn State grad and big fan."

"I'm glad you enjoyed watching the games," I replied modestly.

"I hope I learn a lot from your brother Andrew," Taylor added. "I've committed to playing at Delaware in the fall."

"Good for you," I replied. "I take it you are a receiver."

"Actually Coach Keeler hasn't made up his mind," Taylor explained. "I'm listed as an athlete. I played wide receiver and defensive back here."

"Taylor played both positions well too," Dan added. "He was probably the best athlete on our team. Taylor has agreed to work with the younger guys on the film study sessions we're starting."

"That's excellent," I said. I gave Taylor a wink. "This is going to help you when you get to college. Knowing how to study film in depth is a skill you will need to master. Getting a head start now is going to make things easier for you in the fall."

Coach Werley called for everyone to take their seats. He introduced me to the crowd of players. He briefly explained what the team was aiming to accomplish through the video study and then excused himself. None of us wanted the school to receive a violation from the PIAA for the coaches spending too much time with the team.

I outlined what my team did from January to late March each season and how it helped us. I also let the kids know that my old team found that the people who attended the film study sessions tended to end up as starters too. Not because my coach took attendance, but because the time spent learning to improve our play and analyzing our opponents made us better football players.

We spent an hour reviewing their first game last year against Owen J. Roberts. They won a close game 34-29. I went through the video with the group, asking them to explain what worked and didn't work on each play. It took a little while but the group got the hang of what I learned back in Paradise. By the end of the session, the guys were having fun breaking down what worked and didn't last season.

"This was amazing, Mr. Martin," Dean O'Connell commented when we finished.

"Yeah, where were you three years ago when I started varsity?" Taylor asked. "I really could have used all this information when I started out."

"You'll be better prepared for next summer when you get to Delaware for camp, Taylor," I replied.

I headed straight home when I finished with the video study session. I didn't have time to get over to Temple before making dinner. It was my turn to cook that evening. I did my workout right after dinner so Penny and I could join her friends at the pub for Wednesday night's Quizo game.

I was pretty dead when I got up Thursday morning. Penny and I didn't get back from the pub until after midnight. It's damn hard to work on five hours sleep. Some of Wawa's high test coffee got me awake enough to get to school and not fall asleep while John lectured. I spent my time in the back observing for most of the day. I used the final period of the day to review my own lesson plan for tomorrow's lecture on the French Revolution and rise of Napoleon.

Traffic was intense on the way back to Philly. Max Solomon called while I was stuck in traffic. He wanted to warn me to wear a coat and tie for dinner. I gave Max Penny's cell number and asked him to call Penny to warn her. Max was going to meet us in front of the apartment building at 6:00 pm.

I got home around 5:15, leaving me enough time to clean up before meeting Max. Penny got home a couple minutes later. Both of us wondered where Max was taking us to dinner. We were out in front of our apartment five minutes early. Max hopped out of a cab when it pulled up to the front door.

"Hop in," Max said. He held the back door for Penny and me. He climbed in behind us. "Barclays's... 237 South 18th Street." The cabby took off for the center city restaurant. I had read about Barclay's Prime in the Inquirer food section some months ago. I knew it was one of the high end steakhouses that served top quality, aged steaks. I also knew from the review that their prices were through the roof. Thankfully, Max was treating us to supper. This beat one of the casseroles Penny and I typically made to stretch our food budget.

Barclay's Prime was as high tone as I expected. I was a bit underdressed in my khakis and sport coat. The restaurant had dark paneled walls and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Max, Penny and I had a glass of wine in the bar while we waited for our table.

Max ordered a bottle of red wine along with Kobe sliders for appetizers. Penny thought a steak was a little heavy for dinner but Max coaxed her into trying the Australian Kobe filet. He didn't have to coax me. I ordered one of the dry aged New York strips. Max had the same.

Max talked life philosophy with us while we waited for our meals. The two of us were likely to be quite wealthy in a few months. Max preached that we needed to be careful with our new wealth. Money had many wonderful uses but it didn't bring happiness.

Max cautioned us about our spending once I received my first check. I would blow through whatever I got if I bought new cars, houses or bling. A two year, good condition used car was better than a brand new car. Someone else could take the hit on the initial depreciation. Even though I was inclined to agree with Max, my eighteen year old VW Golf was going to need to be replaced sooner than later. Penny's six year old Nissan had plenty of life left, I thought.