Colliding Hearts

Chapter 15 | Not All Football Players Are Smooth

𝐀 𝐕 𝐀 𝐋 𝐎 𝐍 ' 𝐒   𝐏 𝐎 𝐕

Coach taps his foot against the floor as he sits behind his desk. His hand raises to take off his coach's hat before he puts it back on almost straight after. My eyebrow raises at his obvious nervous state, as I sit across from him with my notepad in hand. After coming back from the cabin a few weeks ago. Attending practices, classes, my job and the guys' football games has become the new normal. Professor Morgan had conducted mid-semester checks on our assignments and interviewing coach had been her idea. She wanted an overview of the team from the coach who had coached a lot of different athletes over the years at USC.

"Um...are you okay, coach?"

He clears his throat, sitting up a little straighter. "I'm fine. Just not used to being interviewed, I guess. I thought you'd stick to the players."

"Well, all the players I've interviewed speak highly of you and it's not just the players who are a part of this time, you are too. You've coached a lot of different athletes, and different teams you've coached have all had different ability levels. Produced many NFL athletes."

"So, this will go in your article?"

I nod my head and he scratches at his beard, who knew coach could be made nervous by a journalism student. "Ok, so as a coach when you're deciding or looking at high school candidates to join the USC team what do you look for?"

"Well, a number of things. Their talent and ability, what they're looking to get out of the team, whether they're interested in entering the draft. How well they would gel with the guys already on the team, team players really. The last thing we need on that field is a player who is trying to compete against his own teammates."

"I'm guessing not all the players will get along though?"

He shakes his head. "Of course not, between personal drama off the field with girls and most of them living in the football house where living together can get hard they don't always get along. But I make it very clear from the start, any personal problems off the field stay off the field. As soon as they walk onto that field, whether for practice or for a game, they leave it behind."

"Obviously, you won't win every game. I mean, the guys lost the last one, and the mood that night and the following practice was down. How do you guys get over that?"

"The team isn't perfect. No team is. There's no guarantee you'll win every game. I think losing shows the characters of the players. They need to bounce back, push themselves harder and think about what went wrong and how to improve. Usually, the practice after a loss is the hardest but they bounce back."

A knock on the door breaks us out of our conversation, and as soon as coach shouts for them to come in the assistant coach walks through.

"Sorry, didn't know you were busy," He leans against the door, holding a file in his hand.

"It's ok, I got everything I need for my article anyway between you and the players," I shrug, standing up and gathering my things.

"Ava, let's maybe not tell the team that interviews make me nervous. No need to give them a reason to think I'm not as scary as I need them to think I am," Coach coughs out and I chuckle before nodding my head and making my out of his office. Making my way through the building, I jump a little as Aiden appears at my side.

"Well, isn't this a surprise. What are you doing over this side of campus?" Aiden questions as we walk out of the building.

"Interviewing coach, my professor thought it would be a good idea to get his view on the team," I explain, and he nods his head in understanding.