This last week has been crazy busy hence my delay on my game recap but I figured I might be wise to get this one complete before we play in the next round. We knew that the 1st game we had played against Tacoma had been a dog fight and had expected more of the same. We also knew that this game was again going to be in the 90s which is never easy to play in. We played this one at Renton Memorial Stadium which is the same location we played our pre-season game against Team Mexico. When we were in the locker room it had the feeling of everything coming full circle.

We had made a huge push to sell tickets for this game. Each ticket sold equals revenue that can help us in the event we travel for additional games. We did well selling tickets on GroupOn and it seemed to pay off in the stands. It’s also important to create a playoff atmosphere and our fans came out in force.

We started the game with a strong first drive on offense but ended up just short of scoring. The defense played well and created turnovers early that put the offense in good position. We missed on a couple of deep balls that would have been huge plays but kept after it. We were finally able to connect with a couple of those bombs that got us into the red zone. We ended the first half up 20-0.

We went into the locker room at half time and we were happy to be up but also not happy that we left points on the field. So we came out in the 2nd half determined to put the game out of reach. Our offensive line really stepped up and created lanes for the running backs that started to pick up larger chunks of yardage on the edge. Defensively, they were down and tried to throw the ball a lot more but we were able to keep pretty good coverage and keep everything in front of us.

Towards the end of the game, I dove to make a tackle and while I dove, felt my right calf cramp so I came out for a couple of plays. Cramping is absolutely annoying. I had drank water and Gatorade all week long and did what I needed to do to prepare for the heat. Sometimes though, there’s not much you can do. You are just losing more than you are retaining. I also tend to play the game very hard so I lose a lot. I have decided to try pickle juice. Yes, pickle juice.

For those that don’t know this is an actual thing. Select teams have been using it for years to stave off cramps. The science is still out on the why but it has been proven effective. The BYU team swears by it.

Every year that I play is another year of wear on my body. I’m currently 31 but have 9 years of wear and tear. That’s thousands of hits to my body. That plus age means each year I play, it becomes harder and harder to recover. So each year I make a point to try something new in order to combat that. I think you have to be creative if you want a long career.

This week we will be traveling down to sunny San Diego to take on the Surge. The Surge have historically been one of the top teams in the country. They have won a lot of games and have rings to prove it. I personally hold a lot of respect for both their players and coaches.

Thankfully, it will be around 70 for this game but I will be trying this pickle juice thing out. I will need both my calves working so I can produce on the field. I will definitely update after what it exactly does if anything. I figure if a religious school like BYU is religious about pickle juice, then there must be a good reason.

We all leave Friday for San Diego. Should we win we would advance to the conference championship.