Friday...long long long long day

Well its here...KK's off to College... Alex helped a lot...he also talked a lot, ate a lot, climbed the wall, rode the exercise bike, and slept very little. He was great company....for being 9 years old.

He had a blast on campus....much happier than his aunt KK...who was very sad by the days end!

Alex assured her would visit her quite a bit....I don't think she was impressed!

Thursday Last summer practice before school starts

I dropped Alex off at practice today..didn't stay had a lot to do..KK heading to College Friday AM. Returned to practice in time to see the traditional end of practice sprints. Alex faired well in the sprints winding up 3rd from last in the first sprint and 4th from front in the last sprint. He Claims he had some great hits and tackles during practice But I wasn't there to verify...nevertheless he made it thru summer practices....Thata boy He confessed that his older brother Christopher said he would not stick it out...WELL HE DID ..tuff parts over now..and these 4th graders have a well coached good team...as a matter of fact During the season We may even play the 5th graders just to see how well we can do.

Well Alex is spending the nite with Grandpa...and Traveling with us as we take KK to Indian Weslyan Univ ...next phase of her life. Alex helped load the cars...see pics

holla

Weds...Scrimmage Tomahawks vs Ross Rams

We slaughtered them 6 touchdowns to 2 touchdowns...We scored on the 3rd play of the game and then our defense took over...We have a very good defense. Alex played quite a bit..offense and defense...no tackles yet nut he did have some AWESOME BLOCKS.

Once I saw him block his guy all the way down the field..."nice going Alex"

He showed a tad more aggression I assume my talks are finally sinking in.
" football is about running and hitting"...... period! I always say "JUST HIT SOMEBODY ..ANYBODY" "TRUST YOUR PADS" HIT FIRST AND HIT AS HARD AS U CAN"

He was proud of how he played I can tell..He talked all the way to UDF.
Today I saw a new Alex...More assertive , more aggressive, more running To get in on every play... think hes gonna be just fine now...I hope! Hes pictured with his good friend Cody..who also had some good hits.

Tuesday Practice..

Business as usual..On the way to practice we called Jason and Alex got to speak with him , afterwards I spoke with Alex in detail about hustling,hitting and tackling.
I think some of it must have gotten through because he did have a couple of good hits. At least more than he has done previously. The light still has not gone off in his mind that hitting is more fun when you are the one initiating it...but hey hes only 9 he's still playing 6 years before I even touch a football.
He's coming along just fine, gaining more confidence, and understanding the power of teamwork.
It also helps when the coaches are telling him the exact same thing that Grandpa is.
Well we have an impromptu scrimmage on Weds against Ross..This was unexpected..so it should be very very interesting..

The boys prefer scrimmaging other teams over playing against each other all the time.

Monday Practice last week of summer practices

Can u believe it..summer practices are almost over..seems like we just started doesn't it?
Today was a good practice...pretty easy after the BIG Loveland win.
Today I have pics of Alex getting ready...
First the practice uniform is laid out and then he suits up

Then pics of Alex doing jumping jacks, missing a tackle,Running at the end of practice

pretty uneventful tonight getting darker faster...no time for UDF tonight Had to get Alex straight home for dinner and bed.

Tomahawks vs Loveland

setting the stage last year Loveland beat us by 1 touchdown
Today......Payback is so so sweet...Tomahawks 28 Loveland 6

This was a much anticipated "BIG GAME"..so I had already prompted Alex to think that probably only the 1st string experienced players would be playing and that he most likely being new and inexperienced would not play in the game.....I was WRONG!

He was the very first 2nd string player called on to go into the game to play with the 1st string defense. Im in the stands and I notice the coach call his name "Burton" he runs to the coach , gets instructions, and runs onto the field...I was "PUMPED"

He got in the game and due to his excitement and hustle the very first play He jumped off sides and caused a penalty. No big deal really we only got penalized 5 yards but Alex was devastated when he came off the field..He really took the penalty hard he was crying, disheartened, sad, and embarrassed. Coach came to his side along with a few other players and comforted him. Minutes later he was back in on offense and defense..No more penalties "of course"

The game details were a blurr..Loveland had the ball first drove down the field to the 2 yard line, but they could not score against us. We got the ball back drove back up the field and scored with 24 seconds left to go in the 1st half.

2nd half we drove the ball fumbled...Loveland recovered....ran a pass play we intercepted and ran for another touchdown...I was screaming in the stands like a 4th grade cheerleader jumping up and down stomping my feet and pissing off all the Loveland parents sitting directly behind me. Who cares "I'M GRANDPA"

We then scored again when we had the ball . we were ahead 18-0. the league has a rule that any team ahead by 18 points has to take out their 1st string and play the 2nd string..so no team blows out any other team..its a good rule.
Finally we ended the game 28 - 6 they scored 1 touchdown against our 2nd string defense. "BIG DEAL"
Stephanie and Payton were at the game to see Alex play ..Alex looked happy to see them. After the game everyone went to a local wings place...Alex rode with Stephanie and Payton...I opted not to go..and went and ate at Cracker barrel then relaxing in a rocking chair...while savouring our BIG WIN!

How sweet it is!

One more thing : The cheerleaders were there and the boys got to rub through a a huge banner to start the game...just like BIG TIME COLLEGE PLAYERS...

Monday coming time to get back to work..practice, practice, practice

First Friday practice

It was a ghost town at the practice field,...we were the only team there, usually theres at least 2 other teams practicing..also there were very few parents you could tell it was Friday

However 3 good things happened today

#1 KK showed up to watch Alex the last 30 minutes of practice

#2 Alex got his official game jersey picture

#3 Alex's family friend "Sky" showed up again to watch Alex

The coaches ran a lot of defensive schemes today...preparing for our big important Sunday game against Loveland.

Its a very important game we must win.

blog ya Sunday
holla

UDF after practice

This is Alex's favorite part of the practice day.

Scoping out the ice cream choices..in gear of course!

Thursday Practice

Payton attended practice with us today...He was bored so I sent him off to play in the stands. Alex was ready for practice today and ran onto the field along with his buddy Drake. The boys caught passes,went through their exercises and split into groups. Lineman one way - Backfield the other.
Alex along with the lineman went and did drills in another field. The coaches have step up the pace a bit and is focusing more on aggressiveness and tackling. which is a good thing...The coach pulled Alex aside and worked with him on keeping his head up when tackling...something I harp on everyday.
After about 1 1/2 hrs the groups got together and mainly worked the first string defense against the 2nd string offense( offense was running specific plays of our competitor this coming week to get the defense ready...Alex was offensive guard)
Thursday's special..Cheerleaders arrived, boys watched them do a cheer..once again
u-know-who was right in front watching.Not long after... practice ended and we headed to UDF...Oh yea Payton was picked up earlier by his mom.This way I could concentrate on watching Alex. Our team looks really good if I say so myself
We have speed..and a few really good athletes which helps.
Pics: Alex running to a drill ...Cheereleaders,payton bored and playing in a lookout stand

Weds....NO practice

No Weds practice means.............................NO Weds blog!

yessssssssssssssssssssssss!

holla

Tuesday continued.....

This is what the parents do.....pretty exciting huh?

Also remember a few blogs back I mentioned Shannon, Payton liked her ....she's Drakes' 13 yr old sister...Shes always there supporting her brother. sorry I cut off her head.

Tuesday Practice..with Pics

Tuesday Practice ... uneventful except this time I have pictures...Taking pics makes the time go faster.The practices are basically the same now:
Stretches, hitting, tackling, water break, running plays, waterbreak, sprinting, ending huddle nd motivational talk.
Its pretty apparent that Alex's first love is not hitting but hes improving. At least now he holds his head up while tackling.
The pics here are of Alex sprinting, playing defensive tackle, playing safety, and standing with another first timer Drake his new friend.

Pics make this blogging thing easier..to be continued

holla

Monday Practice after the 1st win

The coaches worked the boys hard today.
They hit a lot, tackle a lot and ran a ton. The coaches said even tho we won Sunday we let down in the last 1/2 of the game so we need more conditioning..We are not the biggest team so we must simply outlast our opponents. Our next game is a BIG ONE!
back to practice...
During the last set of sprints Alex simply quit...he just stopped running ,fell to his knees, and started whinning....I was so shocked I was speechless...I still cant believe he just quit...He just quit...the coach came along and said lets go Burton Get up and finish you can do it...so he slowly rose and finished the sprint..Then guess what......They all had to run again..yep even little crying Alex...this time he ran the whole way , did not quit, did not cry and finished approx in the middle of the pack. After practice a parent brought some home made cookies...he was the first to get them and he had to run to them...
On the way to the car I simply said "Dont even say a word..."NO UDF , NO ICE CREAM"

"but grandpa I was tired" ...silence..."why cant we get some ice cream"...silence...."other boys were crying out there also"....I broke my silence " The other boys did not quit.... you did"

By this time we arrived home and I congratulated him on some decent hits but I also said if u quit running again Im leaving you there!
He replied sheepesly..."ok"

Tuesday's another day....

holla

Sunday ..1st official Game vs Sycamore

We won 16-0

Alex played in the 2nd half defensive tackle..he hustle and got it on the end of 1 tackle..
Most of the game he and Cody( his school sidekick)were watching the cheerleaders on the sideline..."Cody asked him which one he liked" I don't think he answered.
After the victory the whole team went to a sports bar and ate wings and fries in Uniforms of course!
Caitlin showed up at the end of the game with Payton so he also went with us to eat wings
The team/ coaches/parents were all pumped over the first IMPRESSIVE win.
I secretly spoke with one of the coaches and he said Alex has shown a ton of improvement from Day 1...Especially being so small and never having played before. They are good coaches and they no what kids are tentative about hitting or bring hit at first. Just that he hasn't quit is HUGE!!or even wanted to.

Next 3 games are HUGE and TUFF Teams We really need to win at least 2 of them to make the playoffs.

No time to savor the victory back to hard practices Monday.

Tomahawk football..."GOTTA LUV IT!"

Thursday Practice

We were almost late to practice because Alex was playing hiding seek with some friends across the street.
Thursday Practice is special..Every Thursday the cheerleaders come and they do a cheer for the boys ( See cell phone pics..Alex is in the front row #15 only boy with the red knee socks that's usually how I can find him on the field) He was the fastest boy over to see the cheerleaders.
Also on Thursday the moms bring a treat today was cup cakes that say beat Sycamore that who we play Sunday.

Back to practice ......they ran alot of pass plays and once again Alex was 2nd string offensive guard and 2nd string defensive tackle....Hes hanging in there. He will never get the chance to catch a pass or anything. but that s OK he already told me he wants to play next year.
Another week of practices done...Last scrimmage Game Sunday...11.30AM vs Sycamore

REGULAR SEASON Schedule
1 Sunday 8/24/08 1:45 Loveland #2
2 Sunday 9/7/08 12:30 Milford #12
3 Sunday 9/14/08 12:30 Mason #1
4 Saturday 9/20/08 3:00 Loveland #1
5 Saturday 9/27/08 3:00 Anderson #1
6 Sunday 10/5/08 12:30 Sharonville

let the fun begin...I think their team looks very good for 9 yr old boys...I also think Alex will get to play more than expected.

Weds Practice

Today was a great day ...1 hr before practice Alex got to speak with Jason on the phone we called him and he answered. Alex was excited and talked to him about 20 min. Mostly about football I think, I left the room so he could have his own privacy at least as much as a 9 yr boy could have.
It was good to see them talking , the only thing I heard was Alex saying " Dad do u remember what u promised me?"..I have no idea what that is.
It was then time to get dressed for practice.... Alex ,even at 9 can get all his pads on by himself...which is pretty impressive I attempted to take some pics of him doing this but my camera battery died...sorry guys I know you want pics.
On the way to practice he seemed excited about speaking with Jason.
We arrived early he caught passes and stretched and then they started doing up downs( running in place and falling on your stomach every time the coach blows the whistle)..they did this for 20 minutes straight it was brutal and disheartening to even watch I had to keep saying "this builds character, this builds character"
They were dead tired after that...but they still had 2 hrs of practice left.
Most of the practice they scrimmaged against each other ...Alex started at defensive tackle ...guess how many tackles he made.......

well guess.....

right .......zero, goose egg, nada. zip. none

now guess how many he almost made

well guess....

the exact same ...zero

however when they switched to offense he did block someone..but only because someone behind him pushed him into the block
My instincts tell me he has not quite got the jest of this hitting thing..or else he simply prefers not to
A friend of his showed up to watch him practice and talked my ear completely off. so I tricked him into running laps so that I could at least watch Alex. Practice ran 30 minutes late and the boys as punishment for mix ups had to do 20 minutes of leap frog over each other once again brutal. Parents were complaining more than the kids because they were all ready to get out of there. it was dark out
Alex's friend couldn't believe it " He says " Boy they practice harder than we do and I'm a 6th grader"

A talkative 6th grader " I thought silently"
I then drove Alex and his friend home and skipped UDF for the 2nd nite in a row. I think Alex was spending the nite with him.....I then rushed home to do this blog thing.

Tuesday Practice..

Alex stayed awake today on the way to practice......We were early so he got to catch passes and loosen up some.
Practice went as usual..however they ran alot at the end..so much that Alex simply stopped.....that's right he just stopped Out of 26 boys out there Alex stops ..dead tired, crying, hurting , bending over...the coach runs out and starts urging him on YOU CAN DO IT ! YOU CAN DO IT ALEX DON'T QUIT...so what did Alex do?...........................................................................................................he did it he ran it out.

After practice I say "what was that YOU cant just quit." he replies "Grandpa I was tired and my feet would not move anymore I was out of breath" so I simply said " So how could u finish if u were out of breath?" He says "I dont know"
I reply "Exactly...never let your mind tell you something that u cant do u can do anything and u just proved it"
No UDF tonite.. We met Terri and KK at Skyline for chili and coneys"Kids eat free plus KK wanted to show Alex off to some Skyline employees she knew.

He was beat but still wanted to come to my house for a root beer float..I said "maybe tomorrow grandpa is tired.. Ive been with you for over 6 hrs"

Monday's practice

Once again on our way to practice and Alex falls asleep...primarily because he doesn't want to go...he would much rather stay and play with his buddies at my house. perfect time for me to have teaching lesson I tell him " Alex the reason why u get tired like this before every practice is because u really don't wanna go and your mind is stressing over it because to you its work..same thing happens to grown ups before they go to work this is why its very important when u grow up to do a job that u like this way you will look forward to working and it wont be stressful..so its very important in school to try a figure out what u like even at your age because one day you may be able to do what you like and even make money doing it. ( like most teachers like to teach, most firemen like to fight fires most doctors like to fix people most mechanics like to work on cars.. I like to sale sportswear. get my point?' He replies " I would rather stay a kid?'
I respond " Good answer stay a kid as long as u can".
Then out of the blue he says "Grandpa u are kinda like my dad" I had to think for a minute and replied " yes I am cause Im your dad's dad I use to tell him all this same stuff when he was your age" that was that.
By this time we are walking into practice , we notice other boys just laying around in their car and looking tired...I say " look Alex see none of the kids wanna practice you aren't the only one" he smiled I think it hit home...

Practice was un eventful except Grandma Terri and KK showed up to watch him. he waved at them from on the field. Alex and 5 other boys had to stay over and do some extra drills for not paying attention in practice.
practice ended and we raced to UDF for ice cream.
Another memory made.

He was happy to see Terri and KK ..

Sunday Day of rest...........Right!!

.........Sunday Alex , Payton and I attended church. Alex wore his Game jersey and as he hoped he got lots of attention. Payton went to class and had a blast..he loves Sunday school. We three then went to the Tomahawk punt, pass and kick competition to cheer on Alex's teammates....There I was sitting in the hot bleachers no shade watching a ton of 9 year old boys for 2 hrs....oh yea need I mention with Payton. After 2 hrs I left Alex there with his best friend(Nick's) mom (he wanted to stay) and I scooted out with Payton who had a bunch of rocks he collected at the field.

On the way home he talked non stop bout wanting to play football like Alex...all I said is OK....OK....OK.....OK all the way home.

But I think he will be a better body builder ...check out the pics.

Jamboree Day...2 inner squad scrimmages

Jamboree game day...Tomahawk teams inner squad scrimmages all day long at the Freshman School ...official high school field, bleachers , fans the real deal...They even have their own little 4th grade cheerleaders...The boys got their game jerseys to play in and Alex is number 2...They also had team and individual pics taken today.
The boys were pumped about the games ...they looked like a real team. Red pants black jerseys they looked like little Gladiators...very Little gladiators
1st game we played Team 5 again...we won again 7 -0 Alex played quite a bit..offense and defense
the game lasted 30 minutes.
2nd game we played Team 21..we lost 6-0 actually it was a great game it was 0-0 up until the very last play of the game Team 21 did a trick play and threw a long pass to score a touchdown..prior to that they could not move the ball or score... They were pretty good but we held our own

Alex also played in game 2, but not as much...

Alex's mom and brother lil Payton showed up and watched him,but he did not know they were there.

Alex really did a good job and played a lot more than I thought he would. After the game we hit the concession stand...and went home...He was tired but excited by the win. He's attending church with me on Sunday and he wants to wear his team jersey...probably because he's seen some of the cheerleaders at church before....Boy a Church girl and a cheerleader that's like WAY WAY COOL!

After scrimmage practice

Coach worked them pretty hard so that they did not get too lazy because of their first scrimmage win...he had them doing leg lifts for 20 straight minutes...it was brutal
for those that don't know leg lifts are when you lay flat on your back , put your legs together and raise and hold them 6 inches off the ground...football players hate them...but it really hardens your stomach muscles...try it !

Alex had his legs practically straight up..the coach kept saying "burton get your legs down" he was squirming like a fish out of water...But he finally got them down.

after that they did their standard practice and ran sprints..oh yea every Thursday after practice the team gets a treat...... today they got root beer floats and cheese zip crackers. also they got their official game pants! red no stripes they will get the official game jersey Sat...AM Right before their team pics and another scrimmage. as a matter of fact they have 2 scrimmages Sat.

We skipped UDF he already had his treat

First scrimmage

Well ..here we go...1st scrimmage...another Tomahawk team ...Team 5 we are Team 4 ..Alex has class mates on Team 5 class mates that have been bragging all summer on how they are gonna beat Team 4 class mates that have been playing for at least 3 years..class mates that brought a ton of parents/fan support to this practice scrimmage to only see them lose.

that's right we won 12 to 6.

The teams were pretty evenly matched as far as I could see.
Everyone played , Alex played on the 2nd team he played offensive guard and defensive tackle.
He made a couple of good blocks and 1 part tackle and recovered a fumble...I think it fell in his hands while he was already knocked down...nevertheless he recovered it.

They were pumped after the game...shook hands with the other team and had a short running session afterwards..The coaches still yelled at them for some bad plays but all in all they did really good.I was pretty surprised .

We raced to UDF and had our ice cream treat...I cant call it a celebration because we do it after every practice...Our big Jamboree scrimmage is Saturday against the same team and then we rest and scrimmage another team...Sat will be a long day plus we also get team pics taken.

Its a great start...kids believe in them selves ..they didnt seem as tired as usuall go figure

Tuesday Aug 5 Football

We arrived early today...the boys got in line to catch passes.Alex caught 3 out of 5 passes. pretty good.
they then stretched and did push ups and the dreaded leg lifts. split into groups, started tackling , hitting. etc. water break...
They ran plays for nearly 1/2 the practice getting ready for their first inter squad scrimmage on Weds. Alex played mostly 2nd string defensive tackle...he got blocked and double teamed a lot..most of the time he was being knocked down and on his back however he did almost make one tackle....Prior to practice ending the boys had to run....they ran and ran and ran and ran...some were dropping, crying , moaning, quitting ..Alex quit one time but started back up because I was watching closely.....The running was hard but really good for them..
Alex was so tired he did not even take off his helmet ..i told him I was really prod of him running and not quitting...but he also needed to work on his tackling and being blocked skills.

We then hit UDF for ice cream...

Tomorrow..1st scrimmage...it will be interesting..I feel they are closer to being ready than not!

Monday Aug 4th Practice

A new week started....

Alex is late to practice( had a dentist appointment) I was already there ...he comes running in..
coach pulls him aside and they do a few stretches and exercises....then he gets right in line for tackling...and hitting.
They split off into groups...and continue learning techniques...next they all come together and run plays....Alex is in the guard position this time..He does OK...not firing out fast enough consistently.
After plays the whole team runs around the entire football and soccer field...out of 26 players Alex finishes 7 from last...not too shabby.
We then hit UDF as always.
They have a scrimmage this Weds..should be interesting.

This is Payton

1st Saturday practice

Picked up Alex.....(and Payton) at 7:30 am for the 9am practice...they were both fast asleep.
Alex woke up easy and was ready to go...Payton was tired and slow.
We came back to my place for pop tarts and juice and proceeded to practice.
Temp...75 degrees and very very sunny

I carried a lawn chair for Payton....Alex ran onto the field with a new friend he met named Drake
(another 1st year boy)
The team stretched, ran , stretched again, and then began tackling and hitting. They quickly split up into teams and started learning offensives plays and defensive plays.
Alex started out as a linebacker and then switched to offensive guard.
He made some pretty good blocks...and hits
In the meantime Payton was talking and playing with a 13 yr old girl he met named Shannon..which happens to be Drake's sister. After annoying her for the first hour I decided to take him to go pee in the woods and give her a break
He only sat in the lawn chair for maybe 30 minutes
Practice ended ..Alex and another boy had to do up/downs( kind of like running in place and falling over and over) for not hustling at one point in practice as punishment.
As a treat we went to Cracker barrel for lunch...he and Payton ate everything so I grandpa had to buy them a gift each...Alex got super bubble gum and Payton got a sucker....we all sat in the rocking chairs outside for 15 minutes...then we left heading home and to our regular Sat movies.
We stopped by and saw Terri and KK at work. Alex sold 2 football team sponsorship tickets at $5 ea...helps his team.

I also told him girls love buys in football uniforms...he grinned.

Note: I was unable to fully appreciate Alex's practice because Payton kept me occupied.
I told Shannon, Payton's new friend to take a picture of him because she may never see him at practice again.

As I'm typing this blog..I hear Alex upstairs teaching Payton football drills and tackling procedures ...They have pillows out and everything( Payton idolizes Alex)........Its real nice to hear .