Football Life

Training Camp

Dakota

I woke up today with a smile on my face. We were one step closer to the season opener. Today was Day One of training camp. For 2 weeks I'm committed to making sure I show the team that I'm good enough to make the active roster. It frightens me a bit, however, mostly because I know if I mess up or don't prove myself, I could be placed on the practice squad or released. Although being on the practice squad still means being apart of the franchise, I still want to be involved in the field. It makes me more comfortable being on the field with my teammates.

I was nervous, to say the least. It was nerve-racking knowing that my fate and future with the team is dependent on how I do for the next two weeks. Everyone is hoping that I fail, preying that I fall off and it is a lot to handle. I think I can do it, it'll just be more difficult.

I gathered the energy to roll out of bed at 6:00 am. The camp started at 8:30, so it was in my best interest to get up now. I got up and went into the bathroom to shower. When I exited the shower, I brushed my teeth and flossed. I got out and went to my closet to pick out some shoes and pants. I ended up choosing my black and white Nike cleats (For practice) and my navy blue Pumas. I also chose my Cowboys sweatpants what cuffed around my ankles. I went over to my dresser and picked a plain white t-shirt, slightly cropped. 

I applied lotion and my body oil before putting on some deodorant. I put on my clothes and decided to put my hair in 2 braids. I get my helmet and practice uniform today, so to make my life easier, I braided my hair up so it isn't a hassle to put my helmet on. I put on my shoes and grabbed my backpack before leaving my room.

I went to the kitchen to see Jaylon making us breakfast.

" You want your usual? Texas Toast with Nutella and fresh bananas and strawberries? Or swap Nutella for Avacado?" 

" Nutella is fine, I need sugar in me."

He nodded and passed my coffee cup to me. Every morning since I came, he makes me my favorite french vanilla coffee with creme and sugar. He finishes my breakfast and passes me the plate with my food on it. He grabs his coffee and food and sits diagonal to me at the dining table.

" What were you and Dak talking about at the bowling alley?"

" What do you mean?"

" You both just left me and Leighton to finish the round while you guys went and got food. What were ya'll talking about?"

I didn't want to talk about Dak with Jaylon. Mostly because I know that Jaylon isn't very fond of Dak for numerous reasons and also it just seems weird that he wants to know about every interaction I have with Dak.

" Nothing much actually, just about ourselves. He wanted to know more about me, that's all."

He kind of looked at me with a side-eye but got the feeling that I didn't want to talk about it anymore and chose to leave the situation alone. As we ate breakfast I was scrolling through my socials while he was on his computer checking his e-mails. 

The clock was creeping towards 7:20 and we needed to leave now to prevent being late to training camp. 

" C'mon Kota, we have to go," he said closing his computer and putting all the dishes in the sink.

I stood up and went over to the couch to grab my backpack, then to the refrigerator to grab my water bottle. We left the house, got in the car and made our way down to the Star to proceed with training camp.

When we got to camp we went to the locker room and this was my first time seeing all the guys in there. Me being me, I got nervous and followed Jaylon to our lockers. My mind raced and my instincts told me to just look down and not pay attention.