Victory
A week ago my football team and I attended the funeral of our teammate Chase McDaniel.
The funeral was different than funerals I have attended in the past. Instead of going to a funeral with my family, I was going with my friends. There was no mom to wipe our tears. There was no dad to tell us that everything would be all right. All we had was each other. It was there that we realized there was only one way we were going to get through this - together.
The truth is that life didn’t care that we were in a time of mourning and sadness. Life moves on without a thought of what happened yesterday. Whether we liked it or not, we had a game to play Friday - a quarterfinal matchup with the #2 Buford. We came in Sunday, wiped our tears, and prepared our hearts for a battle. Written on the walls in the fieldhouse in green letters were the words “CHASEING PERFECTION”. Our goal was to be 15-0 and to bring a championship back to Carrollton. We didn’t know exactly how we were going to do it, but one thing was certain - we were going to do it together.
Friday quickly rolled around and nerves were high, to say the least. I have to admit that I was in the bathroom throwing up before kickoff. Around 9,000 people showed up for the game. It was one of the best atmospheres I have ever been in. I will never forget running through the banner on that Friday Night.
The game was close the whole night, but things took a turn for the worst when Buford converted on a fake punt on 4th and 11 from their own 38. They schemed me up perfectly; they threw it right over my head when I went to block the punt. They drove it down inside the twenty with two seconds left. The game was tied 21-21, and a field goal would give Buford the win. As their kicker prepared to end our season, Austin Waldrop, Terrell Carmichael, Nick Tuggle and I held hands while on a knee on the opposite 30-yard line. It was like watching the Titanic sink from a lifeboat. There was nothing we could do anymore. Nothing we could do to change the inevitable. I turned to Terrell, squeezed his hand and said, “Win together, lose together.”
The Trojans ended the season 12-1, getting beat by the Buford Wolves 24-21. To say we were devastated with the way our season ended would be a colossal understatement. The miracle season was over. Nothing we could do to change it. No way to go back. The Titanic had sunk.
With that being said, the season was ANYTHING but a failure. What we accomplished this year can’t be captured in a trophy or an undefeated record. I watched friends - brothers - grow up. I watched my teammates become interested in the person of Jesus Christ for the first time in their life. I saw average leaders grow into great leaders. I saw anxious players step onto the field with a sense of unprecedented confidence. I saw a divided community rally around a 17-year-old boy with cancer for no other reason other than that they felt love and compassion for him. I saw hard hearts softened. I saw a city wake up. These things can’t be captured in a trophy. Nonetheless, their presence is undeniable.
We didn’t win the state championship, and the truth is, that’s okay. God’s plan is not that we always succeed. Many times it’s that we don't succeed. If we succeeded all the time, then we would begin to associate our identity with our success. A problem arises when we think we are defined by our success because success is fleeting. Ecclesiastes says that no matter how much we succeed, success will never satisfy the desires of our hearts. It doesn’t matter how many friends you have, how many games you win, or how many state championships you earn; the only thing that will fill the void in your heart is the redemptive and unfailing love of Jesus Christ. There are no exceptions. There is no alternative. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no one can reach eternity without him.
I feel like this should be made known because leaving this out of the story of this team would be giving you an inaccurate testimony of everything we have been through. At Chase’s funeral, I watched the majority of our football team stand up when the preacher asked them if they wanted to give their life to Christ. Whether they made that decision with Christ or not is their personal decision, but I can’t ignore the facts - they stood up for Christ. I watched ten people give or rededicate their lives to Christ after Coach Calhoun spoke at an FCA event held for Chase. That is fruit in Chase’s life. People are coming to know Christ because of his testimony. He is making an eternal impact even though he is on the other side of eternity. Want to talk about victories? THAT is a victory.
The newspapers will write and the tweety birds will talk. “Another Disappointing Season for Carrollton” or “Another Third-Round Letdown for the Trojans” is what they’ll write in their columns and on their websites. Let them talk. Let them write. I know what is true. This season was a victory - not just one, but many. Yes, a lot was lost in the fire, but it’s in the fire where God refines us. Out of the ashes comes victory.
To be honest, I don’t know how we are going to get through the rest of this year without Chase. I don’t know how we are going to get past this week knowing that we will never play as a team again. But I know Jesus is with us, and know that ALL things work for the good of those that are in him. I don’t know how we will do it, but I know that whatever we do, we will do it together.
Chase the Victory #42
