Eric Taylor lay in bed; he just could not sleep. He had a lot on his plate now with State Championships with the Lions in the next couple of days, Tami's offer at Braemore, the SuperTeam, Julie getting engaged to Matt. It seemed like wherever he went, decisions had to be made. Sure he was happy for Tami and wanted her to have success in her career, but maybe he did not want to let go of Texas. Maybe he did not want to leave his great Texas coaching days, to maybe not even becoming a football coach in Philadelphia. Did they even have football there? His mind with what if`s and he just could not take it.
After laying in bed for a couple more minutes, desperately trying to go back to sleep to make sure he had enough sleep to work the next day, he just could not close his eyes. He sighed and rubbed his eyes, looking over at his wife of 18 years who was sleeping peacefully. He knew she was going to turn down the Braemore offer and even though he should have been happy; he just wasn`t. He quietly slid out of bed and went to the living room to watch some game tapes.
When he got there, he stumbled upon a photo album and a couple of home videos. He chuckled slightly to himself and took a seat on the couch. He picked up the album and began to flip through it, looking at his wedding pictures, Julie and Gracie`s baby pictures. Time was just going by way too fast. He closed his eyes and gave a deep sigh. He watched a couple of the videos and found himself chuckling at the silly things Julie used to do and realized that as much as he did not want to let her go, he had to accept that his little princess was growing up and there was not anything he could do, but be there for her. Matt was a good kid and he treated Julie right and that was all that mattered. He slowly got up, went back to his room and lay beside his beloved wife, slowly drifting off to sleep.
The next morning...
Eric's phone started to ring. He groaned and waved it off, but his phone kept on ringing and Tami eventually woke up.
"Don't pick it up" groaned a very sleepy Tami.
Eric gave a little laugh and pulled himself out of bed to answer the call. Whoever was calling this early in the morning better have been important. He half-heartdly stumbled into the kitchen with his cell phone in his hand. He rubbed his eyes and flipped it open.
"Coach Taylor."
"Eric! It's Buddy. Listen I know it's early, but I need you down here in an hour or so to sign the contract" the annoying Buddy Garrity boomed.
"First of all, lower your voice. Second of all, it is 7 in the morning Buddy, what is wrong with you? And lastly, what contract?" Eric was growing impatient with this Head Booster who seemed to always had terrible timing when trying to talk to him.
"The contract Eric! The SuperTeam! Best of the Panthers and Best of the Lions? My own Buddy Jr. is on the team, can you believe that? Told you he'd love football. Now can you come down or what?"
"Buddy, never call me this early in the morning unless it is an absolute emergency and I mean it. I have State soon and I need my rest. Do you understand?"
"I'm sorry, I hear ya friend. See ya in your office soon. Have a good day now"
Eric flipped his cell phone shut and gave a big sigh. He walked over to the kitchen table where he saw all these letters from Braemore and could not believe his eyes. He knew that they wanted Tami, but he didn't know that they wanted her that bad. On the desk he found dozens of letters and couldn't help but be proud of his wife. These people wanted her. They appreciate everything she has done for those kids and want her. Man did it burn a hole in his chest for making her say no to her dream, but now it was starting to make him doubt his dream. Did he really want to put up with Buddy Garrity and the town of Dillon for the next five years?
Tami emerged from the bedroom and stumbled into the kitchen. The phone call Eric just got woke her up and she figured she should probably just start the day now. She squinted her eyes who werern't used to the light and saw her husband just as he finished talking to whoever the hell was on the other side of that phone call.
"Who was that" She asked him, wanting to know who in God's name would call that early.
"Who do you think?"
"Well I don't know and I am not in the mood for guessing games right now so would you please just tell me" She didn't mean to be a little mean, but whoever called better have been dying on the road to call that early.
"Buddy friggin Garrity that's who".
Tami closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them slightly and just looked around. She knew this was in her future, Buddy Garrity just ringing up the house, disturbing the peace.
Eric looked at her and had an itch that maybe, just maybe, Tami wouldn't be happy living here. That maybe Dillon wasn't the place they were going to settle in; at least not yet. He waited a few lingering moments before he told her what Buddy wanted. He knew she was going to try to be happy, for the family's sake, but what if she couldn't?
"He wanted me to go to the office soon to sign the contract. Before I go up to State."
He looked down, not daring to face her hurt eyes just yet. He knew she didn't want to make him feel guilty, but she truly was sad about losing Braemore to five more years of Dillon. Maybe even the rest of their lives in this small little Texas town.
"Today?" with hurt, anger, sadness in her voice. That contract meant five more years of this, whatever it was. She knew five years was the kind of deal they've been looking for their whole life, to just settle down. She knew she was asking a lot of him to just pick everything up to move to Philly, but it was her turn wasn't it? 18 years a coach's wife. Wasn't she entitled to at least once dictate where the family would live. Did she not deserve that after moving countless times for him. She knew that was selfish to think, and moving to Philidelphia would be the biggest thing of their life.
She understood that here, Eric was a Texas State Champion Coach. They knew his name miles away, but what if she wanted a piece of that. For people to know her as the Dean who actually changed student's lives, not just the Coach's wife. There, Eric might not even get a job as a coach. He might even have to just be a teacher, something he hasn't done since the earlier years of their marriage when he was just an assistant coach. Football was their life and no matter how hard she tried to deny that football was all Eric had, like those boys in high school, she knew that it was everything. Without football, Eric would fall. Without football, he might even get depressed teaching history and not what he loved. Without football, as hard as she didn't want to admit it, their family would fall apart. Football might be the reason it stretched them apart at times, but it was always the thing that brought them together.
She realized they were both still standing in the kitchen, not saying anything to each other. She slowly looked at his eyes and thought she saw a hint of guilt. She knew that even though she said no, Eric wasn't happy. She knew that if she had said yes, he still might've not been happy. He wanted what was best for her, their marriage and their family. What if Philidelphia and Dillon weren't the answer?
"I'm taking Gracie Belle to see Santa Claus today." And with that she turned and left Eric standing there in the kitchen.
On the way to the fieldhouse
Eric slid into his SUV and backed out of his driveway. Julie was over at Matt Saracen's house, Tami and Gracie were seeing Santa Claus at the mall and he was going to get his team ready for State. They were leaving that afternoon for the Cotton Bowl, home of the Dallas Cowboys. Over the past four seasons, not including the current, he got to witness his team then, the Dillon Panthers, go to the State Finals. They actually won State the first year of his head coaching position. Eric Taylor and his coaching career have come a long way from this Lions State game. He deserved this. The Lions deserved this. Vince Howard deserved this. He knew they had big odds to win, but he was never a cocky guy. He coached every game with the same mindset, The result of the game is in God's hands. You just simply help hHm reach that goal and hope to come out on top. Sometimes you have to lose to win and win to lose, but it's how the game is played that matters most.
Heck even Coach Crowley deserved this. He will always remember what that Coach did for the lions and for Eric Taylor. When Eric had no hope left for the team; bunch of criminals and a crazy assistant coach, Crowley saved him from falling. He quit a winning team to help Eric because he knew that in the long run, Eric would kick the Panthers ass and he needed support. Crowley put all his eggs in one basket and now he was days away from the State final with the best Texas coach and role model. Crowley wanted to work with someone who was real and coached football with heart, and thats what Eric Taylor does; he coaches with heart and his players play with heart.
Eric turned up the volume on Slammin' Sammy Meade.
"Coach Eric Taylor is days away from the State final with a Dillon team. He is leading the last season's underdogs East Dillon Lions who were 2-8 to Dallas, Texas; where they will play their hearts out. After being exiled to the low-budget, full of criminal team called the East Dillon Lions, some wonder how on earth he did it. How did he build a team from scratch with no resources or equipment? How did he manage to go undefeated for 7 games this season and only lost 1 game leading up to this state final? Some hail Eric Taylor as a Kingmaker and a Kingmaker he just might be. Let me tell you if there was anyone who could've coached this team and make it this far, it had to be Eric Taylor. He is truly a phenomenal coach who has a lot of heart, a lot of skill and a lot of winning seasons."
Eric chuckled lightly at how he was being complimented from someone who spent his days bad talking how crap the Lions were and how the Panthers were still the number one team. Funny how the Panthers failed to make the playoffs in the two years that Eric was at the Lions. Even though he might've had more struggles with the Lions than the Panthers, he loved how he built the team from the ground help. How someone like Wade Aikman who had everything couldn't deliver and how Eric had next to nothing, but still rose to the top. Eric wasn't a vain man, but he was proud of himself for proving everyone wrong and clearly showing they made a mistake replacing him.
Sammy Meade started recaping some of the Lions' games and soon came the questions from the "fans".
"This is Sammy Meade, requesting questions on whoever might have some on the Great Eric Taylor and how he beat all odds and is now almost at the top of the long awaited mountain. How he was replaced by someone who had the money, had no resources on the other side, but still manged to make it to the State finals. You gotta wonder, how on earth does he do it? Some say he's a Kingmaker, able to do great things wherever he is. Some say he got lucky while others think he is the greatest coach in the state of Texas, maybe even the country. I am ready for the calls, who is the first caller?"
He turned up the volume slightly, wanting to hear what these people wanted to say.