章 21: 021 Breaking out of Chaos
Li Wei met Beteman's gaze, his eyes shining with determination.
"The main team thinks they can easily suppress us. They are the privileged, they have bright futures, and their careers are full of promise."
"But they forget that this is competitive sports where anything is possible. Until the game is over, the outcome must always be questioned; this is football, a sport that relies on the power of unity to determine its course."
"Yes, perhaps their individual skills are superior to ours, but in terms of understanding tactics and studying opponents, we may not necessarily be at a disadvantage. This is the key to changing the game."
"Hey, Batman, since it started, we have to see it through to the end. Maybe we can't make it to the professional arena, maybe we don't even stand a chance, but this is our youth, our life, and we should be the ones to write its ending."
"Whether to choose to dwell in sadness and bitterness, hesitating, or to choose to burn brightly without reservations and without regrets, the choice is in our hands."
"So, let's truly enjoy it."
Li Wei extended his right hand.
Beteman felt a surge of passion. He had almost given up, running alone without seeing any goals or direction, and even began to question the meaning of continuing to practice and strive in his senior year.
But now, he knew.
Maybe, he was just seeking an ending for himself, to put a period at the end of his youth, then say goodbye to football and face new challenges in life.
So, this practice match was his last stage to shine unreservedly.
Beteman looked at Li Wei and placed his right hand on top, his smile blossoming.
One hand, two hands, soon, eleven hands were all stacked together, shouting in unison.
"Roar! Roar! Crimson Tide Roar!"
The fighting spirit was high.
Then.
Li Wei pulled Beteman aside and lowered his voice, "They're all watching me now, almost everyone believes we'll definitely start with a running play."
After all, they were the Crimson Tide Storm, and just like the main team, Jacobs had started with a running play, but it hadn't worked well because they were too familiar with each other, using the same playbook, the defensive group had seen through it right away.
Beteman was stunned, "What should we do?"
Li Wei laughed, "You're the quarterback, you should be asking yourself that."
Beteman was a bit sheepish.
Li Wei patted his shoulder, "Fake a pass and really run. You need to trust yourself. After the ball is snapped, make a quick short pass gesture to catch them off guard, then you decide on the spot. If there's a chance, don't hesitate and just go for it; if not, don't panic, I'll appear on the right side, and you can just toss it to me."
The handoff between the quarterback and the running back doesn't always need to be hand-to-hand; sometimes it can be a short lob over some distance. This is a fundamental aspect of a diversified offensive strategy.
After all, if the running back always immediately takes the football from the quarterback's hands, the defensive group's judgment and response become much more straightforward; they wouldn't need to worry about the wide receivers and could simply shut down the running back.
Beteman quickly caught on, "A feint."
Perhaps Beteman wasn't a uniquely talented player, and his chances of going professional were slim, but his strength lay in his solid, steady approach to everything.
Beteman immediately followed up, "Do you need to clear the field or create chaos?"
"Chaos. Since they've already figured we'll start with a running play, we need to create chaos and win from it," Li Wei's eyes gleamed sharply.
The offensive group lined up, ready to go.
Football is a game of turns; each offensive drive ends with forty seconds before the next drive begins, allowing the offensive group time to re-strategize. Legends like Peyton Manning often read the defense and adjust strategies about ten seconds before the snap to catch their opponents off guard and gain an advantage.
Beteman wasn't Manning, and he didn't plan to change tactics at the last second before the snap, but he was highly focused, taking in every position of the defensive group.
As Li Wei had said, the defensive group was pressing forward aggressively, clearly betting that Beteman wouldn't dare to pass, especially not a long pass to the backfield, so they created a numerical advantage up front.
Whew.
Beteman calmed down, focusing on the game.
So did Li Wei.
Li Wei observed, taking in the complex positions of the defensive players, trying to find patterns within the chaos and pinpointing key spots, then in his mind's three-dimensional view, he searched for a route to break through—
To Li Wei, this was all too familiar.
In the past three weeks, Li Wei had not been idle, constantly using the training system to engage in Adrian Peterson model training.
Now was the time for real combat application.
"Attack!"
Beteman's voice rang in his ears, Li Wei's muscles, tightened to their limit, fully extended as he suddenly thrust against the ground, sprinting not toward Beteman but diagonally to the right front.
His target—
the gap between Humphrey and Allen.
At the same time, the entire offensive line also pushed and shoved the defensive line to the right, thereby Li Wei could see his targeted range slowly compressing, defenders flooding in like a deluge.
However!
They did not press forward.
Especially Foster.
Clearly, they were caught off guard by Beteman's gesture to make a quick short pass, their steps which were just about to fully press forward abruptly halted, not just the lineman, but the defensive line's attempt to apply pressure hit a wall too.
It was just a moment.
Half a second?
Maybe even less than half a second.
Beteman turned around, with no time to carefully find a passing target in his haste, took a quick glance and then turned his gaze toward Li Wei.
Li Wei: Oh no.
From the corner of his eye, he captured the immediate change in Allen's expression and movements.
Beteman's feint was too superficial, hastily executed; the quick turn and direction of his gaze betrayed his intentions, Allen, intensely focused, immediately picked up on the slightest hint despite facing some obstruction, his second reaction was very fast—
Li Wei.
The killing intent from Allen, firmly locking on Li Wei.
Li Wei was waiting for Beteman, his speed not fully unleashed, taking small adjusting steps, though he noticed Allen, he had no time left to change the tactic.
A pause, a turn.
Li Wei stood on the midpoint of the right side of the field, looking toward Beteman, who tossed the football to him; Li Wei smoothly caught the football into his arms.
A thrust.
Power, ignition, the strength of his calf muscles fully unleashed, with a burst of energy pushing off the ground to propel his body forward.
Ahead, the narrowing gap was chaotic and crowded.
But through Li Wei's eyes, he could see a fleeting gap.
Ignition, acceleration, exertion—
On his left, he could see a figure stumbling and sprawling with open arms, lunging towards him.
It was Allen.
Li Wei was both calm and composed.
A step, lunging forward.
A step, thrusting off the ground.
Watching as Allen's figure enlarged in his pupils, then Li Wei had already used the momentum of his run-up to leap into the air.
A jump.
Soaring!
Allen was dumbfounded, watching as Li Wei entered within his grappling range, but the next second Li Wei made a vertical leap, escaping the grappling crisis.
Damn.
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