Why I Enjoy Football
By Harrison Gu (Grade 7)
Football is often viewed as a violent sport. Players face a lot of pressure and stress, especially when losing; it’s easy to get injured from gameplay, and sometimes it’s a repeating pattern. However, many people still choose to play football, despite the risks. Why do people play football instead of other sports?
Football isn’t just a physical game, in fact, it requires as much strategic thinking as in chess. Players resemble the pieces on a chess board, and the team tries to pick the best move to advance the ball. In my practices, we spend a significant amount of time learning different strategies and how to coordinate in order to execute the strategies. We sometimes have “fakes” in our plays, and sometimes turn to places the other team wouldn’t expect us to be in. Many people think that players are just inflicting pain on one another, however, in reality, they are targeting their opponents for specific reasons.
Once the plays are a success, and someone in our team has the ball, they run. That is the feeling I enjoy; getting the attention of everyone, and getting chased for the ball. You hold the possession everyone wants, and you're playing a risky game of tag. If you fail, you get tackled, if you succeed, you score points.
When you score a touchdown, not only do you get a lot of points but you also get to celebrate the win with your team. The crowd chants your name, your teammates are excited that you got a touchdown, because it’s hard to pass five big linemen chasing you. You beat a whole team! You outrunned a bunch of tigers!
What if you get injured? Get back up! The risk of being injured is much lower than what people expect, especially for middle school football. Before games, you usually do conditioning, which helps you prevent injuries. Even if you do get injured, sports medicine doctors will help you get back on your feet using treatments.
When I first started playing football, I have to be honest, I wasn’t the most enthusiastic person on the team. I was scared in fact. However, during football games, I was sick of not getting a tackle (I used to be a lineman). One day I decided to change that. I penetrated through the running back. That feeling put a smile on my face.
Football isn’t just a game, it’s a way of life. You fail, but you learn, and you may succeed next time. You fail again? Find out the pattern of what’s going on. It might take a long time, however, once you’re there, you realize how many mistakes you have overcome. Football has not only taught me life lessons but everyone who plays the sport. We want to repeat that moment, and continue learning. That’s why people, especially me, enjoy football.