Body Slammed! by Ray Villareal Read Free Book Online

baby carrots from his insulated lunch container. “Want some?” he asked the guys.
    Goose stared at the baggie. “Ugh, I hate celery. It tastes like crunchy, soapy water. But I’ll have some of your carrots.” He opened the baggie and grabbed a handful of baby carrots.
    â€œHey, don’t take them all,” Wendell complained. “They’re my afternoon snack.”
    Goose started to put some of the carrots back, but Wendell yanked the baggie away from him. “Keep them. I don’t want those carrots, now that you’ve gotten your dirty hands all over them.”
    Wendell had been working hard to lose weight, and it amazed Jesse how disciplined he was about his diet. When he first met him, Wendell weighed well over three hundred pounds. Now he was probably two-seventy, two seventy-five tops.
    Jesse was hesitant to take Wendell’s food, but he was hungry, so he helped himself to a baby carrot and two celery sticks.
    The guys arrived at the field house and changed into their pads.
    At three o’clock, Coach Blaylock blew his whistle and all the players lined up in rows. Riley and Mitch, two of the team captains, led them in stretches. After that, they performed a series of jumping jacks. They finished the last jumps, chanting, “S-M-I-T-H Sidewinders! Hoo-ah!”
    Next, they ran laps around the track. Bucky caught up to Jesse, breathing heavily. “ Quiero . . . tres . . . tazas . . . de té . . . por favor ,” he said between gasps.
    The players rested a bit and then split into groups, according to their playing positions. Coach Lawson, an assistant coach, called Sam and Jesse to the two-man blocking sled.
    â€œRemember, stay low. Don’t stand up straight to block,” Coach Lawson reminded them. He climbed up on the sled. “You need to have a good stance and good balance. Always be ready for the lineman who’s gonna try to run you over.”
    Jesse and Sam got in their stance, about two yards away. At Coach Lawson’s signal, they attacked the sled, first with their right shoulders, then with their left, while the coach rode on it.
    Next, the coach had them practice angle blocks. “ Always get a good block, either on the player across from you or on the one angled to you,” Coach Lawson told them. “A good center must be able to not only snap the ball, but to block as well.”
    He had Jesse and Sam face each other. When they were ready, Coach Lawson blew his whistle. Jesse’s foot got caught in a clump of grass, and as soon as he came out of his stance, he slipped and fell on his face.
    Sam laughed. “So you think you’re ready to take my place, Baron?”
    Jesse’s face burned red, but he didn’t say anything. He rose to his feet and retook his position.
    â€œOkay, let’s try it again,” Coach Lawson said, ignoring Jesse’s blunder. “Remember, push underneath your opponent’s shoulder pads, back straight and feet apart. Keep driving forward until I signal for you to stop.”
    He blew his whistle. Jesse and Sam charged at each other like two angry rams. Jesse dug his feet into the ground and pushed with all his might. But Sam, who was twenty-five pounds heavier, shoved him back, back, back, until Jesse lost his balance and fell on his butt.
    Sam laughed again. He reached a hand to pull Jesse up, but Jesse slapped it away and got up on his own.
    He hated being on the field. What did it matter if he practiced? Coach Blaylock wasn’t going to let him play. Jesse was ready to quit the team. But they only had two games left on their schedule, and he knew it would look bad if he gave up now. He would finish out the season, but there was no way he would return to the team next year.
    After practice, they stripped off their uniforms and showered. While they got dressed, Wendell asked the guys, “Y’all still coming over tonight?”
    â€œIt depends, Wendy,” Goose said. He