Jay's eyes were glued to the entrance tunnel, feeling the buzz in the air. "They're coming, they're coming..." He couldn't hold it in any longer. Jay jumped up, fists pumping, yelling like a madman. All his energy just exploded right then and there.
And he wasn't the only one.
Sixty thousand Bruins fans in the Rose Bowl shot to their feet. The sea of blue and gold jerseys looked like an ocean under the golden sun, just epic. The waves of people were rising and falling, the blue rolling endlessly, and the whole place was going nuts!
This wasn't just some regular cheering; it was a full-on roar, shaking the earth, making it feel like the Rose Bowl itself might crumble. The noise was so loud it made your blood boil, adrenaline kicking in like crazy!
Jack and Annie were stunned, eyes wide at the scene. In just a blink, everything had changed. They slowly stood up, taking it all in. The roaring crowd was like a wildfire, the air buzzing, and even their blood felt like it was boiling—no, it was racing.
Jack was a bit lost, his eyes scanning the field for Luke.
"Number eleven!" Jay seemed to get what Jack was looking for and shouted, "Number eleven!"
His voice was tiny against the roar, like an ant in a hurricane, but Jack caught it. He quickly scanned the field. In the huge stadium, the players looked tiny, like they were in a world of miniatures.
Number eleven. Jack found him and quickly nudged Annie, shouting in her ear, "Number eleven, Luke is number eleven!" Even Jack didn't realize his voice was shaking, a big grin spreading across his face.
In the crowd, Annie spotted number eleven. Before she knew it, she covered her mouth, eyes tearing up. She felt so happy, like she was floating on air. She raised her hand and joined the crowd in shouting.
The noise was deafening, the whole Rose Bowl was like a thunderstorm, everyone adding to the chaos!
Jeff's brain was on fire, his whole body buzzing, just shouting and shaking like crazy, "Number eleven, I know number eleven! Watch, that's our key to victory, number eleven!" No one paid him any mind, everyone was too busy cheering, but Jeff didn't care. He kept shouting, jumping, going wild.
In the chaos, Jeff glanced past Nate and saw a familiar face—the guy who left early in the last game, causing a bit of drama. He was here too.
Jeff raised his chin, like saying: I told you, we'd be on the Rose Bowl field! I'm not a traitor for leaving early! Then, Jeff ignored the guy, waving his hands and shouting even louder.
Danny felt the heat of Jeff's gaze and got the message, chuckling to himself. He didn't say anything, just looked at the field and whistled. He didn't care about being mocked; as long as the team won, he was cool with it!
He missed the last win, but he wasn't missing tonight. This was the big moment, time for number eleven to shine again!
"Hey folks, welcome to the live broadcast of the 2011 Rose Bowl." Kirk Charleston was back at the commentary table, but tonight he had company. His colleague was right there next to him.
The Rose Bowl is a big deal. Besides local California radio, major networks like ESPN were broadcasting it live. This was a national stage, a chance for every player to show off.
This game was huge for Kirk too. It was his last gig for the local LA station before moving to Fox. Starting next week, he'd be commentating for Fox TV, starting a new chapter. So, Kirk was hoping for a perfect ending to this game.
"Today's game is between the UCLA Bruins and the Wisconsin Badgers..." Kirk kicked off the intro like a pro. When he saw the starting lineups, he paused for a sec. "Kevin Prince," the Bruins' starting QB. Kirk couldn't help but think back to the Avalis American QB from the last game. It was just a quick distraction, and he snapped back to his professional self. "Today's matchup is gonna be an offensive showdown, like the Hulk versus Iron Man. Expect a scoring frenzy."
But when the game started, it was anything but.
Both teams were playing tight and nervous, on both offense and defense. Mistakes were all over the place, and the game was choppy, making it hard for anyone to get hyped.
First, the Badgers' QB Scott messed up. After two ten-yard gains, he threw a routine short pass that got picked off, losing the ball at their own forty-one-yard line. The other team just needed a little push to get into field goal range.
But the Bruins couldn't capitalize. Kevin was super jittery, dealing with a blocked run, an incomplete pass, and a sack that almost turned into a fumble. They dodged the fumble bullet, but the sack cost them eight yards, knocking them out of field goal range. They had to punt.
Almost half of the first quarter went by, and neither team managed to get past midfield. The game was so dull it was putting people to sleep. Even the die-hard fans in the stands were looking bored.
In the middle of this stalemate, the Badgers finally broke through. Their offensive line, which had been killing it all year, opened up twice, creating a path. The running back ran for twenty-three yards and twelve yards. With Scott's three successful passes, they quickly pushed into the opponent's red zone.
The red zone, the ten-yard area before the end zone, is where a ten-yard advance can lead straight to a touchdown, hence the term red zone offense.
A four-yard pass completion and a running back breakthrough later, the Badgers scored the first touchdown of the night. With six minutes and thirty-three seconds left in the first quarter, the "0:0" score finally changed. The visiting fans went wild, their loud cheers showing off their dominance. The home fans fired back with boos, and the previously dull Rose Bowl came back to life.
After nailing the extra point, the Badgers were up "7:0."
But the Bruins' next drive was a disaster. They went three-and-out at their own twenty-yard line, not moving an inch in under two minutes, and had to punt again. Then they watched the Badgers' powerhouse offense, which had dominated the Big Ten, effortlessly push to the Bruins' twenty-seven-yard line. The Bruins' defense barely held them off.
The Badgers didn't get a touchdown but easily kicked a thirty-seven-yard field goal, making it "10:0."
With two minutes and forty-eight seconds left in the first quarter, the Bruins, who had been on the back foot, finally woke up. After Kevin's consecutive running back rushes, a surprise pass to Logan resulted in a long run, covering forty-three yards before getting tackled at the opponent's eighteen-yard line.
In the next drive, two short passes worked, gaining nine yards. On third down, they decided to run, and Marcus not only got the one yard they needed but kept going, covering the remaining eight yards to score a touchdown! The Bruins finally broke their scoring drought, bringing hope back to the Rose Bowl.
After the extra point, the score was "10:7," with the home team trailing.
The whole stadium went nuts, not just the sixty thousand home fans but also the ten thousand neutral fans. Everyone started cheering because the game was finally heating up. Now, the Rose Bowl was starting to look like the annual spectacle it was meant to be.
The score didn't change for the rest of the first quarter. After switching sides for the second quarter, the Badgers scored another field goal, this time a forty-one-yard kick, extending their lead to "13:7." But the Bruins quickly fired back with some solid play.
In a series of relentless drives, they balanced passing and running perfectly, taking six minutes to push into the Badgers' red zone. But they got stopped at the one-yard line. Three failed attempts left Kevin staring helplessly at the end zone just beyond the one-yard line.
The one-yard line was a tough call. Should they give up the drive and go for a field goal on fourth down, ensuring at least three points to narrow the score to "13:10"? But with the end zone so close, settling for three points after six minutes of offense seemed like a waste.
What should Kevin do?