Varsity Insider: Searching for an identity
Editor's Note: Matt Gambill is a senior at Dover High School and a wide receiver/defensive back on the DHS football team. His Varsity Insider column will appear each week throughout the season.
It is difficult to swallow a tough loss like last weekend's game. We lost a battle in overtime to the Alvirne Broncos that potentially shattered our playoff bid. The game ended on a failed two-point conversion, giving us the loss, and Alvirne a huge confidence booster going into a pivotal part of their season. They were a good team that fought hard for the victory even when we had the momentum late in the game.
The game itself was full of twists and turns. We fought back to put ourselves in position to come out on top; however the reality is that they wanted it more than us.
At this point in the season it is very tough to say where we are as a team. I trust that every one of my teammates wants to make the playoffs. It is going to be a difficult task to pull off, but I know this Dover team will not give up. In order to find a way into the playoffs we must truly find out who we are as a team. We have played in three games decided by six points or less, lost two games to the best two teams in the state, and beat a rival.
Some of those games our defense showed up and some our offense showed up. When our offense isn't clicking for four quarters it is tough to win against anyone, especially in Division II. When our defense struggles it is tough for our offense get anything accomplished because our backs are to the wall. We tend to make a lot of mistakes early in the game that hurt us late.
I will be the first to tell you that everyone on the team makes the same amount of mistakes, including myself. Everyone preaches about being perfect when in reality nothing is perfect, but when you focus on doing your assignment the end result is perfect. If we could find it in ourselves to eliminate the mistakes we make early in the game then the game will become a lot more fun. By eliminating the early turnovers, missed blocks, and penalties our road to the playoffs will become easier.
We as a team need to find it within ourselves to figure out who we want to be and where we want to go. A team that fully understands its priorities is going to be a successful one.
