"Go, go, go… Maintain the formation… Linemen, pay attention to blocking…"
After the timeout, with George's shouts from the sidelines, the Medford Team players launched a small offensive surge.
It turned out that in a head-on clash of solid strength, the Medford Team was indeed much stronger than their opponent.
Accompanied by the continuous cheers of the spectators, by the end of the second quarter, the Medford Team players, having recovered their form, had established a sufficient lead in the score.
Returning to the rest area, a rare smile appeared on their faces.
"Well done! Kids! Keep up this form, you're the best…"
After encouraging the players, George used the halftime break to continue assigning tasks: "In the second half, we will still use the 'long and short ball tactics.' Aaron, pay attention to controlling the game's rhythm… Linemen and tackles, pay attention to your positioning, I want you to be able to block the quarterback at any time…"
The long and short ball tactics could be described as mediocre, but this tactic excelled in its stability, making it very suitable for strong teams to dominate weaker ones.
The Medford Team, having regained their confidence, did not need to resort to unconventional strategies; they only needed to play steadily to secure victory in this game.
"Did everyone understand what I said?" George asked loudly after confirming the tactics for the second half.
"Understood, Coach—"
The players, who had developed trust in George, responded loudly.
"Very good, there are still a few minutes left, everyone take a quick rest." Unbeknownst to him, George had already taken on the role of the team's head coach.
Behind him, Coach Wayne, who was lying flat under the tactical board, was unaware of the impending crisis.
At this moment, he even had the leisure to consider where to drink after the game.
At the same time, an disguised old man in the audience watched everything that happened there.
…
The halftime break ended, and the still enthusiastic Aaron led the players in shouting their slogan:
"Go, Medford, go Wolves!!"
"Go, Medford, go Wolves!!!"
In the third quarter that followed, although Little Garden High attempted to change tactics, they still couldn't make much of an impact in the face of the huge disparity in strength.
When Aaron, once again, with the help of his teammates, sent the football into the opponent's end zone, the long-suppressed audience outside the field was completely ignited.
A lead of more than ten points meant that the Medford Team had effectively secured the victory in advance.
"What's there to cheer about? Statistically speaking, Medford's strength is greater, and victory is inevitable…" In the rest area, Sheldon watched the audience excitedly losing themselves and expressed his complete incomprehension.
"What do you know? This is a battle of honor…" Missy, infected by the atmosphere, scorned Sheldon, then shouted towards the field: "Go, Georgie—!"
"Barbaric sport…" Sheldon shook his head, about to find a reason to refute Missy.
However, suddenly feeling raindrops on his face, he ignored everything else and cried out in terror: "Oh no! It's raining! It's raining…"
Getting wet in the rain would lead to illness, and Sheldon disliked the feeling of being sick.
"Don't be nervous, Sheldon. I'll take you to shelter from the rain right now." Mike, feeling small raindrops falling, calmed the panicked Sheldon.
The transition between spring and summer is the season for frequent showers.
At this moment, the sun was shining brightly, and there were no dark clouds gathered, indicating that this was a temporary sun shower.
Such rain would not be heavy and would not affect the normal progress of the game.
Of course, considering that Paige and the other two were still children and their physique was not as strong as adults, Mike protected the three little ones, pushing through the crowd towards the teaching building to take shelter from the rain.
"Tom…" Under the eaves of the teaching building, many female students gathered to seek shelter from the rain. When Mike arrived, he unexpectedly found the disguised old principal in a corner.
"Shh—!" Principal Tom made a shushing gesture, then quickly shook his head.
Clearly, he was here to secretly observe George this time, so he didn't want too many people to recognize his identity.
On the field, as the game progressed, the shower showed signs of intensifying.
In this situation, George's large jacket and baseball cap today happened to be a stroke of luck.
At this moment, he wasn't concerned about himself; instead, he was braving the heavy rain, continuously cheering on the players on the field.
As for Coach Wayne, who should have been doing this job, he had long since disappeared to find shelter from the rain.
The pattering shower came and went quickly.
Not long into the fourth quarter, this sudden shower stopped.
Along with the fresh air, a colorful rainbow appeared in the sky after the rain.
…
"We did it…"
The final whistle blew, and the Medford Team players, who had won by more than twenty points, cheered and embraced each other.
They desperately needed this victory.
Afterward, the group rushed back to the rest area, surrounding George, sharing the joy of victory.
"Hey, Mike, did you see that? We won—!!" Georgie, seeing Mike approaching, was about to rush up for a hug.
"No, no, no." Mike reached out to stop him, showing a look of disgust.
Georgie, who had played a football game in the rain, looked like he had rolled in a mud pit.
Mike didn't want to hug a mud man.
"Mike, we successfully did it." Heaven knows how much pressure Aaron had been under before this game.
At this moment, a happy smile also appeared on his face.
It could be said that the victory in this game was also of great significance to Aaron.
"Congratulations!" Mike said with a smile.
"No, congratulations to us." Aaron corrected him.
Strictly speaking, Mike was now also a member of the team. Thinking that the team would get better and better, Aaron's smile became even brighter.
After a round of celebrations, the game segment moved to the final handshake between the two head coaches.
Since Coach Wayne had not yet returned from sheltering from the rain, all the players looked expectantly at George.
If possible, the players hoped George could be their head coach.
"Alright—" Due to the urgency of the situation, George could only meet the expectant gazes of the players and walk towards the center of the field.
"Congratulations on your victory."
The head coach from Little Garden High, although still somewhat unwilling, was convinced after witnessing the Medford Team's true strength.
"Thank you, your pre-game tactical preparation was also very good." George straightened his clothes and extended his hand to shake the opposing coach's hand.
Afterward, the two also exchanged insights about the game.
And when the two turned and walked off the field, it also signaled the official conclusion of this invitational match.
"Kids, please continue to work hard…" George, who had relived the coaching experience, reluctantly bid farewell to the players: "I should leave now—"
"Wait, George. There's good news waiting for you in a bit." Mike was preparing to reveal the truth to him.
George's performance earlier was probably seen by the principal. If nothing unexpected happened, his return as head coach should be a certainty.
"What good news?" George asked in surprise.
At this moment, Aaron, who seemed to have realized something, showed a surprised expression again.
And just as Mike was about to explain, the student council president led a group of volunteers to the team's rest area.
"Mike and Mr. George, the principal has asked you to come to his office…" The student council president looked around and continued to ask: "Oh, where is Coach Wayne?"
"Here, what do you need?" Coach Wayne, who had been somewhere unknown, finally rushed back after the game ended.
"The principal also wants you to go." The student council president informed him.
"Georgie, please help look after Paige and the others…"
Mike, knowing what was about to happen, arranged for the three little ones, then turned to George and said: "Let's go, we'll go see the principal."
"Oh? Oh…" George, looking puzzled, followed Mike's pace and whispered: "Do you know something?"
"It's good news, you'll understand in a bit." Mike kept him in suspense again.
If conditions allowed, it would be better for the principal to deliver such good news to George in person.