The Season That Never Was

Coach Leroy Willis stops to close his eyes, pat his dog on the head, and think about the year thats gone byfinding comfort in the good things his football team accomplished during a difficult year. There was the routine: At every practice, he whistled the young men to the middle of the locker room, where they all took a knee, talked about the practice schedule, and any problems. Every time, they closed with a team prayer. There was the not-so-routine, such as when Ricky approached him with tears in his eyes, saying, Coach, I dont know if Im going to be able to play next season. When he found out the reasonthat his girlfriend was pregnanthe gave him the best advice he could think of, advising him to take some time right then to talk to the Lord about it. It wasnt always just the players: When one of his coaches told him he was going through a divorce, he was shocked, but he provided as much support as he could. After all, the team was a family. Even though it might not have shown up in the win column, Willis finds comfort in looking back on The Season That Never Was.