American winner takes all

Chapter 68 Rainstorm
Ethan opened the curtains, but did not see the sun rising as expected.

There is a hazy sky outside the window, and I am afraid it will rain heavily today.

While having breakfast in the restaurant downstairs, Ethan met the Manning family again. All four of them were wearing sportswear and looked like they had just returned from exercise.It is estimated that he was led by old Manning to start physical training early in the morning.

Behind the talents of the three brothers that amaze everyone, it is inseparable from the accumulation of ten years of hard work. With such a family atmosphere, it is difficult to become a bad player.

On the other hand, the same goes for other players. The hotel gym has been full early in the morning these days, and even Ethan's good friend Pat is no exception. He is never hesitant when it comes to working hard.

Maybe, Ethan is the only exception. It's not that he doesn't work hard, but the way he works hard is different...

·
As the Eastern team players began to board the bus, the Eastern team's star head coach Robert Davis chatted enthusiastically with the elder Manning.

Compared with Bob, his coaching resume is not bad at all, and even more prominent.He has led his team to five state championships and two national championships. In addition to coaching, he is also the vice principal of Warner Robins High School and the president of the Georgia High School Football Coaches Association.

Just after the Eastern team left on the bus, the Western team members slowly came out of the lobby.

Compared to the Eastern team, the Western team players were obviously more relaxed, and head coach Bob put almost no pressure on everyone.

Ethan in the crowd was held by his good friend Pat's shoulders. Looking up at this moment, he saw the gloomy sky and thick clouds covering Orlando like a canopy.

In the car, Bob reminded everyone to put on rugby shoes with hard soles and rubber spikes.

He even asked Ethan specifically: "Young man, have you ever played ball in a heavy rain?"

Ethan not only surprised everyone with his outstanding performance in the quarterback test, but also because of the selection rules, he will play in the fourth quarter, which is crucial to the outcome, plus his game experience is not enough. Of course, Bob would have to ask extra.

Ethan shook his head.

Bob didn’t say much, and just asked Pat beside him to tell him some more precautions.

But he was already sighing in his heart, and somewhat regretted the previously announced selection rules. Originally, he just asked Ethan to sit on the bench voluntarily, but unexpectedly, it was self-defeating.This time in the All-Star Game itself, the Western team did not have an advantage, and now they encountered an unexpected situation.

It's far away now.

·
Half an hour later, the Citrus Bowl in Orlando was buzzing with people.

As a historic football stadium built in 1936 with a seating capacity of 63000, it was once the home of the Orlando Thunder and is now the home of the NFL's Orlando Predators (1991-2013).

In addition to the NFL, it has also always been the venue for NCAA football competitions. The "Citrus Bowl" is held every year, with the runner-up or No. 3 of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and the Big Ten Conference (Big Ten) competing each year.

The name of the Citrus Bowl comes from the fact that Florida is the largest citrus producer in the United States, and the trophy is also a large citrus made of crystal.Participating teams can receive US$450 million in remuneration.

Under the instigation of the on-site host, the audience began to wave. With a roar, the air column machine and the fire column machine spewed out white smoke and flames rhythmically, pushing the atmosphere of the scene to the climax.

This game will be fully televised by NBC TV station. It is also the first time that the All-Star Game will be broadcast live nationwide.

The broadcast specifications are naturally not comparable to ordinary high school games. More than ten cameras, including sideline cameras, aerial cameras, and special effects cameras, are on site to ensure that every detail of the player holding the ball can be presented in real time.

Before the athletes took the stage, the cheerleading teams from the East and West came on stage first. The West team was naturally Timber Creek High School. Ellie stood in the front row and put on a brand new all-star cheerleading uniform. She put on exquisite makeup and looked slender. Her exquisite legs were covered with flesh-colored leggings. She held her head high and looked confident and sweet.

"Let us welcome the boys of the Western Conference All-Stars!" the host Tom Hammond's voice once overshadowed the audience.He is a professional sports host on NBC TV. He used to be a commentator for the Olympic Games, and later became a professional host for the NFL and NCAA...

·
"75 yuan and 23 cents, cash or card?" Mia whispered, looking at the TV hanging from the ceiling of the supermarket...

"Take a rest." Catherine put down her pen, and Jennifer nodded blankly next to her. Her brain was still digesting the mathematical formula just now.

"Oh, no, the game has started!" Catherine glanced at the Casio watch on her wrist and immediately realized something.

"Then let's watch it together. The football game is pretty good, isn't it?" Jennifer remembered the game she had watched before, then habitually opened the drawer and took out a pack of "Cheese Flavored Doritos".Catherine couldn't help but twitch her nose twice...

"It's begun, it's begun!" Flea said excitedly. Led by him, several Norman players skipped this afternoon's training and secretly squatted in the locker room, waiting to watch Ethan's All-Star game.

At this moment, there are all kinds of snacks, fried chicken, barbecue, and of course beer in front of them!
The door suddenly opened and Thomas walked in.

"Sure enough, it's hidden here!" He frowned slightly.

Several players immediately tried to hide the beer, and Coach Thomas strictly prohibited the players from drinking during the day.

"But, today is a good day, it's okay to make exceptions occasionally." Thomas instead sat among a few people and stretched out his hand.

"Give me a can too!"

It's fun to watch the game having a beer with the players.

·
As one of the quarterbacks, Ethan stood in the first row and led everyone behind him to rush out of the runway. The roaring and tsunami-like cheers in his ears became more real than ever.It was completely different from the shouts of thousands of people at the Niccolò Stadium. The huge sound seemed to have substance, mixed in the air, and penetrated into every inch of skin.

Wherever you look, there are dense crowds of spectators.

At this moment, Ethan felt as if he was in the center of the world.

He liked this feeling of being sought after by thousands of people... He couldn't help but close his eyes.

"They are waiting for us." Pat beside him couldn't help but pull Ethan's jersey.

Ethan only belatedly realized at this time that the entrance ceremony was over, and hurriedly trotted to the sidelines.

"It seems that Ethan O'Connor, the youngest in this All-Star lineup, has not fully adapted to the professional football (rugby) field. He seemed to be intimidated by so many enthusiastic spectators." Event commentator Chris Collinsworth Si followed.He is now NBC's regular game commentator. He has played for the Cincinnati Bengals for eight seasons, three All-Stars and two Super Bowls. He just announced his retirement five years ago due to an ankle injury.

"It's completely understandable. After all, today's Orange Bowl is like a tsunami. The only problem is the weather. The audience should prepare raincoats in advance..."

At the same time, the members of the Eastern Team also began to enter. This time the cheers from the audience were obviously stronger than before. Ethan could even feel some slight pain in his eardrums...

With the commentator's warm-up and the cheers of the audience, the game started as scheduled.

The first player of the Western team to play in the first quarter was black quarterback Tommy Frazier. He has excellent physical fitness, speed advantage, and good passing ability. He is a typical "dual-threat quarterback" , a quarterback who can both pass and run the ball, and the counterpart is a "pocket quarterback" who is better at passing, such as Ethan's current good friend, Pat Barnes.

Eason feels like he should be more of a dual-threat quarterback.

What he is more curious about is what technical characteristics Peyton Manning has.

In other words, there is something about him that I can learn (copy).

Boom, rolling thunder suddenly exploded, and Ethan saw that players from both sides had already taken the field.

The Eastern team launched the first attack in the game. Payton was like a commander on the battlefield, choosing short passes as the main and high-frequency fast break tactics. The Eastern team's defensive team was also quickly mobilized, and those who were watching the game on the bench Ethan could clearly feel that the speed and impact of both sides were completely different from the previous games he had experienced.What I saw was dazzling and addictive.

At 2 minutes and 10 seconds, the Eastern team got off to a good start with a touchdown pass from Peyton Manning. It already had the prototype of the "two-minute drill" that will be very personal in the NFL in the future.

Next it was the Western team's offensive team's turn.

Tommy Frazier also used his signature running ball attack in the second gear, choosing a straight charge from the center similar to that of a fullback, and successfully got the first attack.

Ethan, who was watching the game from the sidelines, could see that the middle route chosen by Tommy Fraser was completely different from his own, and it was also different from the ground penetration route he learned from Munster.

It can be said to be a brand new offensive line, and it also allowed Ethan to learn an offensive method that he had never imagined before.Ethan closed his eyes and memorized the route in his mind.

Offensive skills +1.

However, this route has its advantages and disadvantages. It relies more on the body to fight hard, and uses a lot of one-arm blocking, which requires frequent physical contact with the defensive players. Not to mention, the hard collision is very physically and physically demanding, and the average quarterback I really don’t dare to try it easily.

This also coincides with Pat's evaluation of him "draining all his potential in college."

On the other hand, Peyton Manning played very smartly and never took a step out of the pocket. Sometimes when he saw the linebacker approaching, he actually knelt down and gave up the offense.

He is protecting himself carefully.

But even so, the speed of the attack was not slowed down much.He can always find the gap in the defensive team, even if it is only a few tenths of a second, and successfully pass the ball.

Ethan felt like he didn't even use his full strength!

On the other hand, the Western team, although they said it was "just an exhibition game", Tommy Fraser and Brad Ott, who played in the first two quarters, were full of energy and showed the most confident running and ball running. A long pass, but the Western team still missed a touchdown.

At the end of the first half, the Western team trailed the Eastern team 14 to 21.

"Ethan, your mission in the fourth quarter...don't lose too badly." Pat laughed at midfield and felt a little sweat for Ethan.

"Don't fall behind too far in the third quarter." Ethan responded with a smile.

It was Pat's turn to play in the third quarter.

When Ethan returned to the court again, he found that it was pouring rain, and a rain curtain appeared under the eaves of the bench.Not only did the visibility become lower, but the lawn also became slippery. Some players didn't pay attention and slipped when they came on the field... Ethan tried to throw a ball and could clearly feel that the rugby ball was moving at a slower speed under the influence of heavy rain. Angle has a certain impact.

Bad weather is a big variable in the game.

　感谢读者吃软饭打赏100点。感谢大家投的推荐票。感谢张明政聪、Zero1985、我沃奥喔、清薄荷、我是一只大虫、金色独角兽、先生不在摘星揽月去了、书友20220207165550080、光耀星星、神之月牙（2张）、等候爱情何时（2张）、能否再引之、辉夜修罗、飞在天空的王、海梦观月、元观（2张）、书友20230226145051791送出的月票。

　　
　
(End of this chapter)