Miasmatic Review

Boopie the football star.

Boopie has decided he is going to play football for the school this year, which I have mixed feelings about. Until he decided to play Flag football this summer, he really showed no interest in playing football.

For the last couple of years he has been playing soccer. He hasn’t been the greatest player on the field, but he was decent. I went to games to support him, but I never got into soccer. During the games I would get lost as to what was going on. To be honest I think soccer is a boring game that is used as a punishment in third world countries for lusting after your neighbor’s dog. When Boopie said he wanted to play football, I was elated. It’s a sport I can follow and enjoy. I can go to the games, support my son and know whether or not he did something wrong.

On the other hand I’m afraid for my son’s life. This is full tackle football, not flag football. At practice yesterday I saw some of the kids he’s going to be playing with and against. Some of these kids look like they have been playing football for years now. A couple of them look like they could bench 150; remember these are 12-13 year olds. Boopie on the other hand is small for his age. He’s generally the shortest kid in his class, and I think he weighs 65 pounds soaking wet. When unloading the car after grocery shopping he has a problem lifting a 12 pack of pop.

When talking to him about football, I made sure he understood this was tackle football, not flag. I explained that these kids are going to be doing everything in their power to tackle him. (He wants to be a running back) His response to me is that he won’t get tackled, he’s “too fast and agile”. He has convinced himself that no one will be able to catch him. I’m pretty sure that in his head he is spending his signing bonus he gets for going pro after college.

While at practice I watched him compete for a running back position. Much to his chagrin, he was not the fastest boy on the field, and definitely not the most agile. Plus the two boys that I saw who where faster and more agile then him, where also bigger and stronger. When they where running scrimmage plays I witnessed Boopie get tackled by his own offensive line not once, but twice. He ran into them and fell to the ground.

I’m trying to be a supportive parent, and I want him to enjoy the game, but I don’t think the boy is running back material. We’ve talked and I’m going to work with him, and try to get some weights for him to work with, but I don’t know if it’s going to help this season… or next. I just hope that Boopie doesn’t experience his first broken bones this year.