Varsity Insider: I'm ready to play
Editor's Note: Reed Spiller is a senior at Portsmouth High School and a fullback/defensive lineman on the PHS varsity football team. He helped the Clippers reach the Division III championship game in 2006, the program's first season in Division III. Reed's Varsity Insider column will appear each week throughout the season.
It was the most painful and heart-wrenching thing I've ever had to experience. In fact, it was more painful than the actual injury itself. Two weeks ago I dislocated my shoulder in a preseason scrimmage against Marshwood High School of South Berwick, Maine. I was being tackled on the outside when I reached the football out with my left arm to gain an extra yard. Instead of falling and rolling on my stomach, the entire weight of my body came down on my shoulder joint with my elbow stuck on top of the ball.
I've taken Physics, and I knew that that formed an uneven see-saw, of which I was caught on the wrong side. POP! Just like that, dislocated shoulder. I knew as soon as I landed something was wrong, and when I stood up, the lack of movement from my hand confirmed my assumption. Immediately I swore, and then jogged off the field, figuring that someone could fix the joint on the sideline and I'd be good to go. But when the trainer told me that the law did not allow her to re-locate it, I ended up in the Emergency Room at Portsmouth Regional Hospital, where the doctor told me I was out for two weeks.
My first thought was, "OK. I have 10 days to get this thing healed for the first game." But that was the high school football player talking; the college player in me knew there were more games to be played and a future to consider. It was a tough decision. Rest my shoulder and miss the home-opener under the lights, or risk re-dislocating it and be sidelined for a minimum of a month.
And so I spent Friday night in a sling on the sideline, for the first game in four years, pacing back and forth with nervous energy, and screaming my head off until I went hoarse. The most difficult part of that night was watching my teammates struggle out on the field, and not being able to sacrifice myself for the team. I enjoy getting bruised and battered in the game, and the violence and intensity is something I live for. Not being able to partake in that was an enormous burden, but the feeling of absolute helplessness was even worse. Sitting out was one of the most difficult things I've had to do.
Fortunately though, my services were not even necessary. Thanks in part to HUGE performances by several first-time varsity players, the Clippers were victorious over the Kennett Eagles 18-6. Kids stepped up and surprised many people. Their hard work led to a stifling defensive effort, and an offense that moved the ball with efficiency. However, offensive mistakes led to 65 penalty yards and missed opportunities in the red zone.
Our focus in practice this week has been attention to detail and preventing those costly errors. They will be some points of interest this week against Pembroke Academy. Portsmouth will face the Spartans on Saturday in Pembroke. Thankfully, I've been medically cleared to play Saturday, so no repeat of last week. Pembroke is a good team that put up one hell of a fight against Plymouth in its opener, so we will be ready to play. Hopefully I will be ready too. After all, I've only been waiting nine long, painful, excruciating months, plus a week, to knock heads in a real football game. We'll have to wait and see.
