October 3, 2018

By EJ Nichols, Burlington Township, NJ

Mr. Dube’s Journalism class is going to be bursting with student content this year, and we are excited to introduce Elijah “EJ” Nichols as our first contributor of the year. Here is is firsthand narrative of his first Wolverine football game, which took place on September 9.

–WOW! First collegiate game of my career and I scored two touchdowns, each at a different position. I was not as nervous as I thought I would be going into the game but I honestly did not expect to perform so well. I threw multiple blocks that freed my running back for big gains and a touchdown. Our team looked like we’ve been playing with each other for years. It was a beautiful sight to see, and a lot of us were shocked.

Curry College (the team we played), beat Bridgton Academy last year so we were coming into the game as underdogs. After the kickoff, I felt a load jump off my shoulders because my friend Myles had a great return. After that I knew that we could hang with these college guys. We drove down the field and coach called a play where I was designed to block for the WR. I went to block the corner and instead of the WR doing what he was supposed to do he ran the wrong route! It screwed up the play but something told me to turn around towards Ruth, our QB, so I did and he threw me the ball in the corner of the end zone and I snagged it dragging two feet “NFL style”. I scored the first touchdown of the season and I was elated.

After that our defense, who played phenomenal, forced a turnover and returned it to the 2 yard line. My best friend Jha’mil King scored soon after and we were super hype. It seemed so easy but we were trying to stay focused because we didn’t know if our opponents were really trash or if they were just having first game jitters. Our defense came out again and shut them down. The defense played with a sense of urgency and everyone seemed to have a nose for the football. I believe the defense scored 4 touchdowns!!! That is absolutely unreal and I have never been apart of a team in which the defense was responsible for 4 touchdowns.

Our offense did a pretty good job too. I got to play running back for the first time and I got a special play called for me where I run right and then throw it deep to the WR. When I ran the play the defensive end came off the edge and almost tackled me but somehow I managed to spin off of him and find my WR Cam Peach downfield. I launched it 40 yards down field and Cam Peach ran for 20 more before getting sniped from the mountains. So much for my passing touchdown. It’s a shame because my friends from back home challenged me to score in all 3 positions and the only thing keeping me from achieving that goal was that sharpshooting sniper.

Later, in the second half, I got to play running back again and this time I rushed for a touchdown! It felt good to run through the line of scrimmage and break away from all the defenders charging my way. This was a fun experience for me overall but it was kind of boring for all the guys because the final score was a lot to a little. It surely wasn’t your usual final score in a football game but we were happy with the victory. I know I am looking forward to the better competition approaching deeper in the schedule and I believe my teammates are also. Coach was satisfied with the win but in film he pointed out a few things that we must get better at if we want to continue winning football games. The team will continue to work hard to get better during practice in hopes to sustain the winning streak!