Forget Yale; 'The Game' Is Really Friday Night at Penn

In the HBO hit series Game of Thrones, the most climactic episode in all six seasons has been the second to last. The ninth episode has always been the bloodiest, most exciting, and most important episode in the 10-episode seasons. Season six’s penultimate episode was highlighted by one of the most beautifully filmed battle scenes of all time.

Murphy Key to Crimson Achievements

Growing up, my dad coached practically every sport my sisters and I played. Starting with tee-ball, he coached every season of baseball I played up until 7th grade when I began playing travel ball. He was at the forefront of a movement to get football at the park where I played, and when we finally got a team in 5th grade, he was the head coach of all my teams and continued to coach even after I went to high school. On top of that, he coached my younger sister’s travel softball team that went to the USSSA World Series.

The importance of having a good coach cannot be understated. From the NFL to recreational leagues, coaching trumps athleticism nine times out of ten.

No Contact Zone

Anyone who has ever played football has gotten hurt. Be it a broken bone, concussion, or just a bruise that stings a little the next day, football players repeatedly come home with aches and pains. That’s the nature of such an inherently violent game.

Personally, I can’t count the number of injuries I sustained playing football. In fifth grade, I started playing as a running back and defensive end. Eventually I settled as a safety and receiver in high school, playing three years on varsity and starting for two. So for eight years, every fall morning was tinged with a little bit of pain as I tried to recover from the previous night’s practice. I broke my finger, sprained my ankle, separated my shoulder, and had more bruises than I could count.