Strangely enough, as soon as Mike and his group started their journey back, the heavy rain stopped.
The four returned to the familiar Medford Town, accompanied by a beautiful rainbow across the sky.
Hearing the roar of the car, Missy joyfully ran out.
When she saw Mike get out of the car holding a gift box, she excitedly pounced on him, hugging his leg, and sweetly said, "Mike, you're back!"
Mike looked at the little girl with sparkling eyes, ruffled her hair, and praised, "Missy, your hairstyle today is really nice."
Upon hearing the compliment, Missy happily stepped back two paces, smoothed her hair, and said, "Really? Meemaw took me to get this hairstyle yesterday. I also got a beauty package. Feel my face, isn't it smoother?"
Missy's little face didn't need any beauty treatments; yesterday, when Connie was getting her own beauty treatment, she just put a face mask on the little girl to humor her.
"Oh, and I ate several ice creams yesterday. I even saved one for you, but it melted later, so I ate it for you." Missy chattered on energetically, eager to tell Mike everything she had done yesterday.
"Our Missy is so amazing. Thank you for helping me finish the ice cream." Mike looked at the cute little girl and praised her again with a smile. Then he waved, "Come and see, I brought you Barbie Aisha."
Missy, who received the pink Barbie doll, couldn't hide the joy on her face. After giving another hug, she hugged the gift box, which was half her height, and cheered excitedly.
On the other side, Mary and Connie also came out of the room to welcome George and the others back.
Seeing Sheldon, who now had a smile on his face after their outing, Mary felt relieved and gave her husband a big hug.
The moment he received his wife's affirmation, George also smiled. He truly felt that this weekend wasn't bad at all.
Soon, the leisurely weekend ended, and it was Monday.
Today was the day Medford High would challenge Austin High.
Due to the importance of the event, the school specially prepared a spectacular fleet of buses today, carrying all the teachers and students towards Austin Gym.
In the most luxurious bus at the front, sat all the Medford Football Team members and their two coaches.
At this time, the atmosphere inside the bus was heavy, and the team members were no longer as lively as they had been last week.
This subtle low pressure continued for two hours until the convoy arrived at Austin Gym.
Austin, as the capital of Texas, may not be as economically prosperous as Houston, but in terms of cultural heritage, it is absolutely unique.
Looking at the huge, chessboard-shaped gymnasium in front of them, all the students gasped in amazement.
"Alright, stop looking." George glanced at Austin Gym twice, then reminded the players, "We need to hurry up and prepare."
Because of the two-hour drive, it was now very close to the game time.
Upon being reminded, the Medford Football Team members gathered their focus and followed George through a special passage to the preparation room.
The spacious, independent room had a tactical board and a miniature tactical sand table.
For the Medford Football Team members, who came from a small place like Medford, everything was so new.
It seemed that just visiting here would make losing the game not so regrettable.
"You all rest here for a bit, I'll go outside and check the situation." George settled the players and then walked out.
For a new competition venue, someone needed to scout the situation beforehand to avoid any awkwardness when entering later.
After George left, the team members relaxed again, gathering in twos and threes to chat.
It was as if they wanted to use this method to drive away their unease.
Seeing that no one had the proper mindset for a game, Aaron finally couldn't help but walk to the front.
He tapped the tactical board, attracting everyone's attention, and then loudly demanded, "Are you just going to accept losing the game like this?"
Although the players hadn't said it aloud before, they had actually prepared themselves for a loss.
After all, their opponent this time was Austin High.
However, Aaron's action of bringing the issue into the open caused all the team members to lower their heads, not daring to meet his gaze.
This was a sign of guilt.
"I'm not willing to accept it! Why should we be weaker than others? Is it just because we're from a small place—"
Aaron expressed his unwillingness, then his tone shifted, becoming even more excited, "Show your fighting spirit! As challengers, we're not afraid of losing, so what else is there to fear!"
"Well said!" Mike chimed in from below.
He had long been dissatisfied with the defeatist atmosphere in the team. How could they give up easily without even fighting?
Seeing the team members all raising their heads, Aaron shouted loudly, "Medford—"
"Victory!"
"Medford!!"
"Victory!!!"
"We will win—"
...
Previously, the Medford High Football Team, due to their unsatisfactory performance last year, had always played as challengers at the beginning of the season.
At that time, the Medford players were like people with nothing to lose; they dared to fight and were not afraid of failure.
However, after securing a spot in the top ten, it was as if a shackles had been placed on them, and they no longer had the same fearless momentum as before.
Of course, this cannot be blamed on any one person; the newly rich also need time to adapt.
It can only be said that Medford High had not yet cultivated its own "culture of victory."
...
Outside the door, George had already returned after completing the courtesy procedures.
He waited until Aaron had finished motivating the players before pushing the door open.
After patting Aaron's shoulder, George said with some emotion, "It was my dereliction of duty before, not properly supervising you all. But it's not too late now, we still have a chance…"
This year, the Medford High Football Team entering the state's top ten was George's best achievement since he took charge.
Such a good achievement, coupled with the school's preferential treatment, made George feel a bit complacent.
And George, who had not collected information on their opponents beforehand, even if he realized it now, could not come up with a good strategy to deal with them.
Therefore, he could only re-emphasize the Medford Football Team's most proficient playstyle: the dual-core interweaving tactic.
Afterward, George also told the players about the entrance situation and precautions.
Soon, there was a knock on the door; it was almost time to enter, and the usher was already in position.
"Kids, this is the stage you deserve. Enjoy this game, no matter the outcome, you are all my heroes. I will be cheering for you from the sidelines—"
George watched each player walk out of the preparation room. When it was Aaron and Mike's turn to leave, he patted them heavily on the back, as if imbuing them with energy.