I (keith) played football and wanted to play, my Father tells me, since I was six. Not to brag but I was really good. I played until my senior year in high school and loved to play. I was not built for college, too small, so I really felt I waisted some time with this game and did not spend enough time playing baseball which I loved also but not as much as football and would have been more suited to play beyond high school. So when my first born began to love baseball I tried to steer him in that direction and keep him away from football as much as I could. Alas growing up in the south he begged to play and all his friends were going to so we chose flag football. And wouldn't you know it, he is really good also. He may even be better than me. He ran nearly all our touchdowns and even caught a few. But his ability to run with the ball is truly athletic. It is something you are born with and coming from someone who can do it, I am able to see the talent. He can feel where to run and how to cut without me telling him how to do it. We would get in a bind and Coach Eric would say "just run Britton" we would and he would score. He of course loves it and the natural ability makes him love it even more. I am so proud of him, but I am more proud of the way he plays the game. He is respectful and obedient, something that was missing in many of the teams we players and coaches we played against this year. In one game we needed a score and we called Britton to the left. (Really a complicated offensive system) He ran and got stopped and was upset and one of the other kids on the other team called him a loser and he was crying. As I fixed his flag I told him to not worry about that kid and what he said and focus on the game because we are going to need him in a minute. He dried up is tears and did what I said and kept playing. Two plays later Britton made a tremendous catch for a touchdown that helped win the game for us. He talked about how I told him what to do and how he did it and in the end it helped him overcome the adversity of the moment. That is a lesson that not all sports can teach a young man. He then began to really love all football. He watches college and pro. He knows teams and players names and collects football cards and memorizes them. ( I never loved it as much as he does) So we took him to his first Alabama football game. UA vs Chattanooga. We walked around got him a stick on UA tatoo and a cool alabama hat. We ate pizza and coke in the stadium and UA of course won. Afterwards we went to the quad and guess what Britton did. He rounded up a bunch of boys and got a football pick up game going. We left and stopped at the Original Dreamland and ate ribs. It was a great day. So it looks like he is a full fledged football addict. Looks like we have many years of football to go. I look forward I think most to be able to pass on the knowledge of the game to him but also to have opportunities to pass on more of those life lessons as we enjoy this game together.
I will always be proud of you son.
Love Dad
