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I smiled at her. “I hope so.”
The pre-game ceremonies concluded, and both teams took the field. The crowd noise rose to a crescendo, and thousands of camera phones flashed during the opening kick-off. Then Dallas Lockett and the Stallions offense walked onto the field.
“COME ON LUKE!” I screamed.
On the first play of the game, Lockett faked the hand-off to the running back and dropped back to pass. He floated the ball to Luke, who was going deep on the first play. The defender was all over him, but Luke managed to reach up and catch the ball with his fingertips. But the play wasn’t over; the defender stumbled and fell while trying to tackle Luke, who now had open field ahead of him. He outran two defenders who were closing the distance and glided into the end zone for a touchdown on the opening play of the game.
Our section went nuts, screaming and jumping and cheering. Even Theresa, once Blair explained to her what had just happened.
But the 7 - 0 lead didn’t last long. The Vikings moved the ball down the field on their possession, scoring a quick touchdown to tie the game. Then, after running back Dominic DeMarco fumbled the ball, the Vikings scored another touchdown to go up, 14 - 7.
The entire game was like that, back and forth. Every time the Stallions scored, the Vikings answered before we could blink. It was like watching two heavyweight prize fighters going at it in the ring, pummeling each other with blow after blow.
I spent my nervous energy by partaking in the free drinks in the suite. I didn’t remember the half-time show; I was busy pacing inside the suite, and chatting with Luke’s family. By the fourth quarter, I was good and buzzed—and unlike Luke after the AFC Championship game, I wasn’t faking it.
Luke played well in the first half, but he came alive in the fourth quarter. He juked and spun and avoided tackles. He stutter-stepped and seemed to get open on every play. For a while, it felt like he and Dallas were playing catch by themselves; the rest of the offense might as well have not been there. We were sharing a suite with the family of Kincaid, one of the other wide receivers, and they jokingly complained that their guy wasn’t getting any passes because Luke was too good.
With two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Stallions were winning, 42 - 41. They were on the Vikings forty-yard line, and had all their timeouts remaining. Blair was explaining the situation to Theresa: “We need about ten yards to get into field goal range. Or we can run the clock out. But a field goal would be good, because it extends our lead. One point is too close.”
“Field goals are worth one point, right?” Theresa asked.
“No!” Alex snapped. “Only after a touchdown. When they happen by themselves, they’re worth three, which would give us a four point lead.”
Theresa made a dismissive gesture. “There are too many rules.”
The next play, Dallas tried to hit Luke on a button route. But Luke turned around a second too late, and the pass bounced off his hands. “That was dumb,” Mom said. “They should be running the ball, to keep the clock ticking.”
Sure enough, they handed the ball off to the running back on the next play, then the play after that. Now it was third down, and they still needed four yards to get a first down—and to get within field goal range.
The Stallions called a timeout. I resisted the urge to get another beer. I was a nervous bundle of energy. When I attended all his previous games, I was his bodyguard; I had a job to do. Now, I felt like a helpless bystander. I didn’t like sitting here, unable to control any part of the situation.
Come on, Luke, I thought.Come on!
The Stallions huddled up, then formed up on the line of scrimmage. The roar of the crowd rose to a level we hadn’t heard in the game up to this point. Time seemed to stand still as Dallas crouched down behind the center.
The ball was snapped, and everyone jolted into motion. Dallas faked a hand-off to DeMarco, then immediately turned to his left and threw the ball to Luke. I held my breath as the ball spiraled in the air, leading Luke downfield. It looked like it was passed too far, Luke wouldn’t catch it. But he leaned forward and caught it at the last moment, stumbling like he was going to fall.
“YES!” I shouted. They had the first down, and were now in field goal range.
But Luke didn’t go to the ground. He stumbled for three steps, then suddenly cut to the left. The unexpected change in direction caused two Vikings defenders to slam into each other, and then Luke was taking off. Screams and cheers rained down on the field as Luke passed the twenty-five, then the twenty. The fifteen, then the ten. He dodged one final tackle, then dove the last yard into the end zone.
The referee held up both arms.Touchdown.
We all lost our minds, screaming and jumping up and down and hugging each other. After the extra point, the Stallions were ahead, 49 - 41. There was still a full minute remaining on the clock, and we all stood up and nervously watched the Vikings’ final drive. But after four straight incomplete passes, the game was over. The Stallions had won.
As the clock hit zero, my eyes found Luke down on the field. He was hugging his teammates and celebrating. Tears ran down my cheeks as I watched the scene. They had won three straight Super Bowls, the first team to ever do so. They also completed their perfect season. A flawless 20 - 0 record. To emphasize the historic achievement, the record flashed across every screen in the stadium.
“Are those tears of joy, or sadness?” Momma asked.
“Joy,” I replied. “Pure, unmitigated joy.”
“I knew you were rooting for Luke,” Alex said.
“I would have bet you were pulling for the Vikings,” Blair said.
“I like the Vikings,” I explained. “But Iloveyour brother.”
“We love you too, baby,” Momma said, pulling me into a group hug.
