Over the Cooper family weekend, the task of looking after the children fell to George.
He was currently lying on the sofa, comfortably sipping beer and watching a replay of this year's Super Bowl.
Similarly, he had also heard the news that the Medford Team was playing an invitational match today.
When Georgie and the other two returned, George pretended to ask casually, "Georgie, how was the game today?"
Although he had been treated unfairly last year, George had continued to pay attention to the team's development.
The team was like his "child."
Judging by the team's performance last year, this team, into which he had poured so much effort, already showed signs of taking flight.
"Not good, we lost to St. Patrick's High by eleven points..." Georgie replied truthfully.
"What?" George, who was expecting good news, could barely believe his ears. He sat up straight and asked incredulously, "How is that possible? What is Wayne doing?"
George knew about St. Patrick's High; it was a completely obscure team from the surrounding area.
So, he thought that with the current strength of the Medford Team, even if the players played with their eyes closed, they couldn't possibly lose to the opponent.
"Coach Wayne is currently busy with his divorce..." Because of the loss, Georgie also held some resentment towards the current coach, so he didn't hesitate to reveal all of the other's gossip.
"This... alright—"
Listening to Coach Wayne's recent struggles, George, also a middle-aged man, felt quite sympathetic towards him, so he didn't comment too much.
Then, he took a big gulp of beer and asked his eldest son, "Tell me the specifics of today's game."
Georgie, seeing his father asking for a favor, cunningly eyed the beer in his father's hand.
His meaning was obvious...
George immediately understood his eldest son's thoughts, and promptly handed him a bottle of beer, cautioning, "Be smart, don't let your mother see it later."
Georgie, who successfully got to drink some beer, truthfully recounted the entire situation of today's game in detail.
"You didn't lose unfairly..." After listening to Georgie's vivid description, he analyzed, "When St. Patrick's High adopted a localized defensive strategy, you should have changed your tactics.
Aaron could have used a long pass in midfield to send the ball to the opponent's backfield. Then, with the protection of the fullbacks, the wide receivers or running backs would have had a complete chance to bypass the opponent's second line of defense...
And I remember the team added many good prospects last year, and half a year has passed, yet you haven't given them a chance to play..."
George was indeed a professional; with only limited information, he successfully found a way for Medford to break out of their predicament.
At that time, the Medford Team's situation indeed only required Aaron and Sam to swap positions to dismantle St. Patrick's High's two lines of defense.
If that didn't work, they could also send in new players to try their luck when they were at a disadvantage in the third quarter.
Beside them, Mike, who was sitting with Paige, saw George's unwilling expression and asked, "If you were in charge of this game, what would you do?"
"If it were me..." George thought seriously for a moment and said, "Based on the current situation of the Medford Team, I would divide them into two groups in advance..."
Due to their good performance last year, the Medford Team now has about a hundred members.
Such a foundation allows them to select talents optimally and divide the team into an offensive group and a defensive group.
"On the defensive side, a defensive line could be formed with Sam as the core. Compared to a running back, that guy is more suited to be a defensive tackle..."
George continued with a clear mind, "A good defensive group can give the team more opportunities to try things out. As for the offensive group...
Aaron's ability is not bad; most teams can't stop him."
At this point, George specifically glanced at Mike.
Based on last year's performance, Mike was the best candidate for quarterback in George's mind.
Because he still had deep feelings for the team, George's analysis this time was exceptionally detailed.
With emotions running high, Mike also took the opportunity to invite him: "Do you want to go watch next week's game live with me?"
"This..." George didn't expect Mike to extend an invitation under such circumstances, and he said uncomfortably, "Let's talk about it then—"
To say he didn't want to watch the game live was simply impossible.
It was just that ever since he was fired from the team, George's life had not been going well. With a loser's mentality, he was now afraid to go to school and "embarrass himself" in that state.
The more he cared, the more he feared.
"OK, I'll come call you before the next game." Seeing that the other person was not being sincere, Mike directly made the decision for him.
...
Time quickly passed to Monday, and students discussing the football team's invitational match from last weekend could be seen everywhere in the school.
The deeper the love, the harsher the criticism.
The Medford Team's terrible performance also led to all the team members being scrutinized.
And as the head coach, Wayne also couldn't escape, and many embarrassing stories about him were dug up by the students.
Even his family matters were brought up for ridicule.
However, after people vented their dissatisfaction, their attention still focused on the school football team's next invitational match.
After all, no matter what, it was their own team.
At this time, many people began to miss Mike. Anyone with discerning eyes could see the contributions he made to the team last year.
In this atmosphere, time once again came to the weekend, the day of the Medford Team's second invitational match.
When Mike arrived at the Cooper family house, Georgie was already dressed in a sports short-sleeved shirt, clearly prepared to watch the game live.
Beside him were Missy, who had changed into a cool little dress, and a reluctant Sheldon.
As for Georgie, he had already gone to school ahead of time.
"Let's go—" Mike hugged the enthusiastically rushing Missy, then smiled and said to everyone.
"Wait." Just when it was time to leave, George felt a bit nervous again.
After showing an apologetic expression, he returned to his room.
Soon after, George, who had put on a large jacket and a baseball cap, reappeared before everyone.
"Alright, let's go." George, wrapped up, seemed to have found a sense of security.
However, in late March in Texas, the outdoor temperature was already quite high, and deliberately wearing a large jacket made him stand out a bit.
Looking at the other's self-deceiving appearance, Mike shook his head slightly and ultimately said nothing more.
So, including Paige, the group of one adult and three children took George's ride to the school.
On the Medford school field, although the students were disappointed with the football team's performance last week, many still came today to support their school's football team.
"Come on, let's go to the team's preparation area, it's better for watching the game there." In the crowd, Mike protected the three youngsters as he pushed towards the Medford team's preparation area.
As Mike was already a reserve member of the team, bringing people to the team's preparation area was not a violation.
Behind him, George, who had returned to the familiar ground, looked around with a complicated expression.
Then, he once again pulled down his baseball cap and followed Mike's pace ahead.
"Hey, Mike!" In the preparation area, Aaron greeted him and then told Mike about the team's situation: "Our opponent this time is Little Garden High School, and if we can't defeat them, then our situation will be terrible..."
The purpose of the spring invitational tournament is to assess the capabilities of various teams.
Therefore, generally, the invited teams' strengths will not differ much.
And the Medford Team's poor performance last time, which was essentially a warm-up match, also had a very negative effect.
It made many high-level schools consider refusing their invitational spots.
The strong remain strong, and the weak remain weak.
As a team that was among the top ten in the state last year, if Medford cannot invite opponents of the same caliber this year, it will be a huge blow to the team's reputation and the players' morale.
Therefore, in this match against Little Garden High School, a weaker team, Medford not only needs to win but also needs to win impressively.
Aaron, who was under great pressure, also wanted to discuss the team's future direction with Mike, his powerful future teammate.
However, just as he was about to delve deeper with Mike, his peripheral vision caught sight of a familiar figure: "Co-Coach—"
George, who had neglected his physical fitness, had gained a lot of weight in the past six months, and combined with his oversized jacket and the low brim of his hat, Aaron almost didn't recognize him.
"Long time no see, Aaron." George, who had already prepared to be recognized, now looked up and showed a gentle smile.
"It really is you, George!" Aaron was both surprised and delighted. Seeing this familiar face again gave him a great sense of security.
On the other side, the veteran players who also noticed the situation here came over one by one, surprised and greeting him.
"Alright, there's still a game later, you guys go prepare first. I'll go talk to Wayne." After comforting the enthusiastic players, George walked towards Wayne, who was below the tactics board.
If he could, he wanted to help the other party get back on their feet and lead the team out of its slump.
This was something George had seriously considered before coming.
A bad soldier is just one bad soldier, but a bad general leads a whole den of bad soldiers.
George, who had once been a head coach, clearly understood the role a head coach plays in a team.