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🕑 Added 2025-04-22 05:58:21 +0000 UTCThe Supreme State of Science
Chapter 22 – Testing Football Practice
"Did that idiot just ignore me?" Verónica thought as she watched Jimmy walk past her indifferently. The smile that had graced her face vanished instantly, and instead of maintaining her usual charm, she felt an overwhelming urge to curse.
From the perspective of this "Queen Bee," someone daring to ignore her so blatantly wasn't just disrespectful—it was a direct attack on her ego.
Next to her, Alison, the girl accompanying her, immediately realized the situation wasn't looking good for Jimmy. She knew all too well how dangerous it could be to earn Verónica’s disdain.
Quick to react, Alison stepped in to defend Jimmy with a diplomatic smile.
“Jimmy is a pretty peculiar guy…” Alison didn’t want her best friend's friend to be harassed, so she said, “He’s kind of small to be on the football team... That could put a lot of pressure on him.”
Verónica looked at her questioningly. She had also noticed the small exchanges between Alison and Jimmy just moments before. However, between accepting that she didn’t have enough charm to capture a guy’s attention or accepting her friend’s excuse, she clearly preferred the latter.
Watching Jimmy’s back as he walked away, Verónica said with a magnanimous air, “Forget it. If he just joined the team, he must be pretty nervous.”
Then, she played with her short golden hair and, with her trademark superiority, returned to the group of cheerleaders.
From a distance, Jason Davies had been watching the interaction between Verónica, Alison, and Jimmy. Seeing the boy talking to the goddess of his dreams sparked a flame of jealousy inside him.
Jason had already had issues with George Jr. before, partly due to his inability to stand the arrogant attitude of the little genius Sheldon at school. Because of that, they had ended up fighting on the court.
And now Jimmy, who had suddenly become good friends with the Cooper brothers, also seemed to have a special connection with Alison—the girl Jason was in love with.
Watching the scene unfold, Jason couldn’t hold back anymore. He rolled his eyes in annoyance, walked over to the team captain—who was warming up alone—and whispered, “Tommy, that new guy dared to look at your girl in a pretty unpleasant way. Want me to help teach him a lesson?”
Tommy, the captain of the football team, was considered by everyone to be the ideal match for Verónica. In fact, even though there had been rumors about them, none had been officially confirmed.
Though Jason wasn’t exactly bright, he knew how to play the game. Approaching Tommy was a smart move. If he could get the captain not to step in, he’d have a clear path to make Jimmy’s life miserable.
Of course, for that plan to work, there had to actually be something going on between Tommy and Verónica.
However, after hearing Jason’s words, Tommy frowned and responded seriously:
“Verónica and I don’t have the relationship you think we do. Besides, Jimmy is someone the coach values a lot. I hope you won’t provoke him.”
Tommy knew Jason’s nature and didn’t want a personal issue interfering with the team’s training. It was clear that Tommy loved football and respected the talent of new players like Jimmy.
Jason, disappointed, could only nod with a fake smile. “Don’t worry, I won’t cause him any trouble.”
As Jason walked away, Tommy shook his head in resignation.
Football isn’t an individual sport. To get good results, the team needs unity and a positive environment. It’s not worth keeping a troublemaker like Jason if there are other players willing to cooperate.
Meanwhile, Jimmy and George Jr. were still stretching near the field when Coach George approached them. Hanging around his neck was a new golden whistle that shone under the sun—a small gift Jimmy had given him the day before.
After signaling George Jr. to continue warming up, the coach turned to Jimmy and asked excitedly, “Jimmy, how much do you know about football?”
“Thanks to George Jr., I’ve already learned almost all the rules on the field,” Jimmy replied confidently.
“Very good,” said the coach, satisfied with the boy’s preparation. Then he added, “And what do you know about the position of ‘running back’?”
In American football—take the NFL, for example—the running back is an offensive player who lines up in the backfield and is primarily responsible for carrying the ball on running plays to gain yards and move toward the end zone. Running backs can also catch passes and block.
But to George, Jimmy might be his bullet on the field, thanks to his athletic build—something he hadn’t noticed before. Puberty, after all, brings big changes to students.
Jimmy knew a bit about the role; from George Jr., he’d learned that running backs are usually divided into two types: power runners and agile runners.
Power runner: Strong and uses their body to push forward in short-yardage plays. Often used as a battering ram in close-quarter situations.
Agile runner: Doesn’t need specific physical traits but must have speed and flexibility. They excel at finding gaps in the defense and gaining lots of yards on the outside.
In the current team, the big guy Jason was a power runner. Jimmy, on the other hand, was a more agile type.
Jimmy remembered what George had explained during their self-study sessions and answered correctly.
“Good,” Coach George smiled and continued asking, “What do you know about the safety position?”
“Safety: On the defensive side, the safety lines up deep on the field, acting as the team's last line of defense.” Jimmy gave another correct answer.
“Great! Since you’re already wearing the gear George lent you, you can train with the rest, but put on this jersey.” George said as he unfolded a large blue jersey with the number 27 in yellow letters.
On the football field, there are strict rules about what uniforms each player must wear.
Numbers from 20 to 49 are reserved for offensive and defensive backs—running backs, halfbacks, corners, and safeties.
It seemed Coach George had already decided what position Jimmy would play on the team.
After Jimmy put on the uniform, Coach George blew his whistle at the center of the field to gather everyone.
Once assembled, Jimmy quickly glanced around and noticed the school football team had about forty to sixty members.
However, many of them wore jerseys with no numbers.
Obviously, these were students who just wanted academic credits and wouldn’t play in official games—commonly known as the Benchwarmers group.
Jason was also among the crowd, and when he saw Jimmy wearing the number 26 jersey, his expression darkened even more. He didn’t like that a newcomer got an official jersey so quickly.
Next, the team underwent an hour of intense physical training.
During this time, the players with numbered jerseys pushed themselves much harder. Those who were only there for credit could rest if they got tired.
Jimmy’s physical condition was above average—even compared to starting players who truly had the potential to make it to the big leagues—which was impressive for boys between fifteen and seventeen years old.
Although he ended up breathless after the high-intensity session, he also felt invigorated.
Just as he was wiping off sweat and taking a break, a figure suddenly charged at him and shoved him.
Caught off guard by the force, Jimmy stumbled but managed to stay on his feet. When he turned around, he saw a burly teammate looking at him arrogantly.
The boy was wearing the number 26 jersey.
He seemed surprised that he hadn’t knocked Jimmy down, but still said in a provoking tone, “New kid, don’t think you can slack off just because Coach George has high hopes for you. Be more careful next time.”
After throwing out the threat, he walked away without waiting for a reply. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, he slipped back into the crowd.
