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b6#f$qT,w\ O$#"lZNFzLf ^AO̱#{K\J~uʝėAϓ)U=W$oEieDZ&%omu;-qMtnqd$A%:(}+'yS^` WGZfrI9>Ri$Rn *٩sU ָjP;6Jq?QYIAwW#~8Kz}­wOMC5i H鷵u1$Z㢿>[6Gqvv.˽k}a ]".>lrMm5475?ugiv]^]/Nin+V3If5 IftUg;ےy2 I>y*1]79Hߠh~zt1QrzpBJc6৸J=_P=Ou)Lą0\W%eԱH 3)@?]k8Y/yrG~3Ecx\:cD+ڊ,3yMl|}y k#r.B@`=HҸjr:WjKb.7,HFp;/BPWvc ק%WLQ@BgWJ>Q*VM|WE&1bsUfsͻڳ sap n ڻayɶ2FbsZhVKn.Ld֣@fU"pkkNaqs+nqU="LsV7hpqX$i%@r?x ۙM#q#\ *:zu>\Ev׬&[^cŮO8xMjYMe5Gc|O-׈d&򓞧<Ί˃KO{ıaEx"<-۞]o^VJ@V銎1,hL.kJKcHM(Zc\Uu_ެcuʜrpk'N\5M4y$5F£j [ :{B`~g5OH&^bv6IŽ?zp*3}Zf !E ;aEKj֛b]ji!8A9t-I]PSVmɌ4d48yങi18 *u{%~^ұ]ѤՌ4K|tIZi"s7 +5&U=/4 \zQy"hdx)̬t>zM+y-#a?ҽ7cyxjN'v^O.q8o%nMt= Crz7n]gnvitQoHk)J.@I]yăW>ٮp7Hɸ jMN zӍy)tي|-zOSX!sP!eU\B?YamL[hgـ7p@-խST]ШL3㑃ן^k˂''Mm9ipyufJiAJGJhK+ᕽ5O~.2⹀8Hҭ$c]fKm1t 0hQvDrjҝTz A:/"g#r{G^wB7:CҼW 'x\ e_+cS먬 5M gqU")0 u6nm_$f_'Rkm߬?LlI^ZqF's?ʹ{?_B~HgF<\pp ȮuxC}ܚ z҇փisy'iJ)OJlƥUk|7c5W+'op"? n^L\5yBu(cm had a new coach and was very optimistic.&nbsp; We beat them 28-0.&nbsp; When we stood next to them before the game I noticed that they were the same height as us but their jersey sleeves were half empty (not enough muscle).&nbsp; I took a second glance and saw that the entire team was too lean.&nbsp; As I turned to my players I said, "Boys, this is going to be a lesson in weight training."&nbsp; The game was not without event.&nbsp; Our running back, Yohance Humphrey, ran for over 200 yards but tore a corner off his medial meniscus.&nbsp; After being "scoped", he had to sit out for three weeks to heal.&nbsp; It seemed that God had a lesson to teach us.&nbsp; If we did not have a real sense of faith, we could have gone over to the dark side of despair.&nbsp; We had to keep our eye single to the glory of our goal.&nbsp; Now that we had lost 2 All-State players to injury, we had to decide how to use smoke and screens to hide our weaknesses.</P> <P>Our coaches convinced our players that they were going to have to pick up the slack.&nbsp; Our goals were team goals!&nbsp; So we prepared for the team that was third place in our conference.&nbsp; We did not allow them to cross the 50-yard line the entire second half of the game.&nbsp; The first series of offense we lost our All-State offensive tackle to a knee sprain.&nbsp; We did not skip a beat!&nbsp; We put in our second string offense tackle and he did a great job!&nbsp; Our kicker just kicked a 40-yard field goal to go ahead with 50 seconds left.&nbsp; Somehow, they managed to drive the ball down to our 23-yard line.&nbsp; With time running out while signaling for a time out, time expired.&nbsp; The place erupted with kids jumping all around.&nbsp; But the referees put one second on the clock, saying West High did call a time out before the clock read 00:00.&nbsp; With that second on the clock, they kicked a 23-yard field goal to win the game.&nbsp; Another test for the Mustangs.&nbsp; The only thing I could tell my team was God had something in mind for us. </P> <P>Now we had lost three All-State players but we shut out the next team by rushing for 268-yards using 10 different backs.&nbsp; Even though we had some key players out, due to injuries, the team improved and continued to win.&nbsp; Our All-American running back had four carries for 76-yards, but was still limping.</P> <P>The play-offs started with a few of our hurt players coming off injured reserve.&nbsp; Star running back, Yohance Humphrey and All-State player Roger Patterson had recovered from knee injuries and joined a team that won two games without them.&nbsp; Our experience really paid off this year.&nbsp; Before, it seemed like we were asking people to give blood at the hospital.&nbsp; We kept getting better through the play-offs, even winning in a snow storm.&nbsp; But it was not over yet.&nbsp; The Semi-final game also came down to the wire.&nbsp; Our running back ran for 311 yards and looked like he was about 90% in comparison with his usual game performance.</P> <P>The state championship game came down to the two best teams; champs and runners-up from last year's performance, Chugiak's Mustangs and Palmer's Moose.&nbsp; Each team had two great backs, two excellent quarterbacks and each offense accustomed to getting its way on the field.&nbsp; The defenses on each team were loaded with talented players.&nbsp; Each team had healed from earlier injuries.&nbsp; The team who wanted it the most and who had prepared the best and the hardest during the year would walk away with the trophy and title of state champions.&nbsp; There was never any doubt that we wanted to do everything in our power to win.&nbsp; We believe that first you must win in the weight room.&nbsp; When we had Dr. Greg Shepard to Alaska to speak to our players, he asked us if we wanted to win.&nbsp; The question is a touchy one.&nbsp; We had lost the l