Sprint, then sprint again, truly reaching the limit of a hundred-meter dash. It was as if there was an invisible membrane in front of him that he could only break through when his speed reached its peak. The burst of energy made him feel the exhilaration of his muscles burning, and he could hear the sound of the wind whipping past his ears.
Although Lu Ke's top speed was only a 70, his absolute speed wasn't his strong suit. But his ability to change speed and accelerate in a long-distance run was slowly changing his physical ability. In high-intensity games, Lu Ke's stamina was gradually building up.
After sprinting past the non-existent finish line, Lu Ke, who felt like he was soaring, slowly came to a stop and began to walk around the edge of the field.
"Bambi." Ted Ginn Jr., who was stretching his limbs and muscles not far away, called out. "Why do I feel like the warm-up today has been increased?"
Lu Ke was drenched in sweat, looking as if he had just been pulled out of the water. He wiped the river of sweat from his face with a towel and nodded with a laugh. "It's not much more. We just added some footwork drills."
After the bye week, the daily training routine had changed again. One of the changes was that footwork drills were added to the long-distance run with speed changes. After the hundred-meter sprint, Lu Ke began to practice his lateral and zigzag movements. The main purpose was to train his footwork stability in crisis and extreme situations.
For example, when the pocket quickly collapses or is about to be broken, rookie quarterbacks often panic. They not only lose the opportunity to look downfield, but they might also trip over their own feet in a panic, resulting in a dead ball.
Lu Ke's mentality wasn't a problem when faced with a crisis, but his footwork and body didn't always keep up with the rhythm. The "Absolute Footwork" special skill only had two uses and wasn't a catch-all solution that could be used at any time. So, training his footwork stability was very important.
Looking at Lu Ke's nonchalant and indifferent expression, Ginn was slightly stunned. He laughed wryly and shook his head, simply saying, "God," and didn't know what else to say.
He saw Logan Neuman who had just arrived at the training field. Ginn quickly called out, "Hey, didn't you start training with Bambi? Why are you just getting to the training field? I think you're already way behind."
Logan waved his hands, looking disgusted as he pointed at Lu Ke. "I think besides the Texans' Watt, no one can match this guy's training volume. I just do strength training with him. I still do my other training at my own pace, or I'm not sure if I'll have the energy to finish my other training tasks."
"You mean your ability isn't as good as Bambi's?" Marcus Lynch and Aldon Smith also entered the training field right after. Marcus immediately started to mock him. His simple words seemed to be loaded with meaning, as if he was hinting at something.
Logan just glanced at Marcus and understood instantly. "Get out of here! My ability is ten times, no, a hundred times better than Bambi's, okay? Do you want to find out? I don't mind showing you!"
"Gross. You two aren't going to..." Aldon looked disgusted and quickly moved away from Marcus. He exaggeratedly moved his eyes back and forth between Marcus and Logan, and everyone on the training field burst into laughter.
Looking at Aldon approaching, Lu Ke laughed and patted him on the shoulder. "How about it, want to train with me? Last week, Patrick was complaining that your defensive position was terrible. It was unwatchable."
As a first-round rookie, Aldon had high expectations. But after the season started, Aldon, who was a rotational player, hadn't been able to keep up with the rhythm of professional games. He was barely at a standard level. He couldn't be called a bust, but he hadn't reached the expected height either.
Now, the team was also urging Aldon to keep up with the training rhythm. However, Aldon, who seemed cheerful and easygoing, was very stubborn. He never listened, just like most Black players whose professional attitude needed improvement.
Aldon immediately frowned, as if he had just seen the dean of students. He held his nose and turned around, jogging away. Even without saying a word, his vivid movements made everyone burst into laughter.
"Bambi, you need to take a shower. You look like you just crawled out of a sewer," rookie player Colin Jones from the defense called out. He received a raised middle finger from Lu Ke.
"Attention, everyone, attention!" Amidst the laughter, the coach's voice was completely drowned out. Bobby Engram had to blow his whistle. The "bip bip bip" sound interrupted the noisy training field. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw the team's bosses gathering together.
Jim Harbaugh, Patrick Willis, David Akers, and Jonathan Goodwin walked in one after another, looking like a grand entrance of a boy band. A head coach and three team captains appeared at the same time. The atmosphere became tense as confusion arose.
The other coaches on the sidelines also walked over and looked at the four with questioning eyes, not knowing what was going on.
However, this didn't seem like the best time to talk. The three captains and the coaches stayed a step behind, gathering together and exchanging glances. Only Harbaugh took a big step forward, attracting everyone's attention.
"Is everyone here?" Harbaugh said in a loud voice as he scanned the crowd. He mumbled, "A few people are missing, but it doesn't matter."
Wednesday's practice wasn't too strict, so it wasn't a big deal for players to arrive at different times. Besides, it was still fifteen minutes away from the official start of practice, so it was normal for not everyone to be there.
"After the bye week, we're going to get busy with games again. I want every player to focus and not be complacent. Our current position is good, but it's not safe. I want to make the playoffs, and not just for a one-and-done visit. I want to go further. So, in the second half of the season, I need everyone to give it their all."
This was the first time that Harbaugh had officially stated his goals and vision for the season after joining the San Francisco 49ers. The playoffs, and not just the playoffs. If this had been before the regular season started, everyone would have thought Harbaugh was being overly ambitious. But now, the situation was completely different. Not only did they not scoff, but they were also filled with ambition.
"So, we need to be united," Harbaugh paused for a moment without much hesitation. "Just now, the three captains and I discussed and reached a consensus. Starting this week, the eighth week of the regular season, the offensive captain will be Lu Ke."
Lu Ke was standing in place, wiping away the sweat that kept dripping. Then, Harbaugh casually dropped a bombshell. In an instant, all the players' eyes shot towards Lu Ke, landing on his shoulders. It completely caught Lu Ke by surprise.
But before Lu Ke and the other players could react, Harbaugh continued to ramble on as if he hadn't just announced a major change within the team but a simple training task.
"I'm not sure when the captain's jersey will be ready. I'll inform the team later. But before this week's game, I'll officially report it to the league. So, for this game, Lu Ke, don't forget that the league's official photos and the coin toss at the beginning of the game are your responsibility..."
Harbaugh's voice gradually began to lose meaning, seeming to dissipate into the air. Lu Ke looked at Goodwin for confirmation, not knowing what was going on.
Goodwin, however, gave him a relieved smile, nodded with certainty, and then made a fist, giving him a thumbs-up. Akers, who was standing nearby, also gave him a thumbs-up and mouthed the word, "Captain."
Willis stood in place like a black gorilla, expressionless. He slightly lowered his chin, and his burning eyes seemed to say: "Work hard. Don't slack off. Otherwise, I'll personally teach you a lesson and let you know what it means to be a captain."
At this moment, Lu Ke finally felt the reality of it. But what did being a captain mean? What should a captain be responsible for? Lu Ke had no idea. It was as if he had entered a completely new field.
Logan and Marcus, who were standing nearby, both walked over and patted Lu Ke on the shoulder, greeting him with a laugh. "Hey, Captain." Then, the other teammates also came over to congratulate Lu Ke. The entire team was full of joy.
When Parys Haralson arrived at the training facility, this was the scene he saw. All the players were high-fiving Lu Ke, and the atmosphere was festive. Not knowing what was going on, he grabbed a defensive player and gestured with his chin towards Lu Ke. "What's going on over there?"
"The coach just announced that Bambi is the new offensive captain."
"What?" Parys felt like he had been struck by lightning. He just stood there, stunned. "How is that possible? Then, what about Jonathan?" Although the team was on the winning track, and everything was moving in the right direction, and all the problems seemed to have vanished, Parys still disliked Lu Ke and even rejected him.
"He agreed. All three captains agreed."
Parys's brain froze. He stood there, dazed and at a loss.
Then, Colin Kaepernick arrived and happened to hear the whole conversation. His eyes were blank, and he didn't even notice that his training bag had fallen to the ground.
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