A couple other firsts I need to share.
Friday was M’s first high school football game as a student. I think the night may have set an unreasonable expectation for the next four years.
CHS played Noblesville, a large, suburban school that generally isn’t very good at football. It was an utterly perfect night, in the low-70s at kickoff with a steady breeze, into the mid-60s by the time we left. More like late September than August.
CHS scored easily on their first drive, got a stop, threw an INT, got another stop, ripped off 20-straight points before letting Noblesville score, then got another quick score right before halftime. They looked awfully good on offense – their running back had two absolutely ridiculous TD runs, one that was for 77 yards and the entire defense, and they had an 80 yard catch and run for a score – plus they were dominant on defense, constantly forcing NHS into third and longs.
I say this game might have set an unreasonable expectation for M for a few reasons.
First, NHS was, by far, the weakest team CHS will play this year. CHS traditionally plays a brutal schedule and there is a chance they won’t win another game until deep into September. Also, while CHS is one of the most storied programs in Indiana, they’re in the midst of a rough patch. They were forced up two classes because of the “success factor” instituted a few years back. They are naturally a 4A school but moved to 5A, then 6A, then back to 5A because of their tournament success (and then lack of success). They were supposed to move back to 4A this year but the state athletic association decided to adjust the success factor in July and suddenly CHS is still in 5A.
Most of all, though, is their talent level is down. They cranked out Power 5 recruits for years and won seven state titles in nine years thanks to that. They just don’t have those kids right now. They have a lot of mid-major and FCS level kids, but none of this year’s skill position kids are going to Ohio State, USC, Notre Dame, or other schools where their best players have gone over the last decade.
But the important thing was that M enjoyed the night. We were sitting where we could kind of see her and she always seemed to be having fun. She spent time with friends from St. P’s, new friends from cross country and her classes, and then a few times we saw her standing with and talking to girls she didn’t know before the game. She has had absolutely zero problems adjusting socially, just as I expected.
C was the only family member who didn’t make the trek to the game. Instead, she joined a bunch of her classmates at the Bishop Chatard game. I was proud of her for wearing her Cathedral shirt. I like a kid that can subtly stir the pot!
The other first? We already had our first sick day of the year. All three girls have been battling colds but L had to stay home yesterday. I believe this might be the earliest sick day in family history. She nearly threw up when she tried to take some medicine before school so we figured that was a good enough reason to keep her home. She spent the day adding to her Minecraft world and seemed to be doing better, but she couldn’t fall to sleep last night because she was coughing so much. She ended up sleeping upright in a chair, which seems kind of awful. But she made it to school this morning and I haven’t gotten any calls from the nurse so she must be hanging in there.