junior on the varsity football team. I was 2nd string on defense, and played behind a two-way (senior) player that also was our starting QB (great, physical athlete). I will admit that for the first several games, I had doubts that I really belonged on varsity (I guess in my mind, varsity was the show), and I wondered how I would be able to perform against SENIORS.

In our third game, late in the first quarter, the two-way senior player in my spot got shaken up a bit, and I had to go in. I felt somewhat overwhelmed. As it turned out, the other team's offense drove on us and got several first downs, and I really wasn't a factor in any of the plays. But then something happened internally, because they were driving, I mentally told myself just to let it go and fly. And that's what I did. On the next set of downs, I had two of the tackles, one being a crucial solo tackle on third down.

For the rest of the game, I just kept going all out, and sometime in the third quarter--I realized that I belonged and that I was indeed a varsity player. I even ended being the high point leader for our defense that night, and in practice the next week, coaches made the decision to start me so our QB would only play offense.

Likewise, a game like UCLA to a young team can do that. You come out and some point in the match you start playing well against one of the best, and your young players can start to see and feel that they indeed belong on the field. I hope that tonight was one of those nights.