Strategically despise the opponent, but tactically value them.
Li Wei’s nerves were completely tense too.
From the start, Li Wei used a move similar to the Marseille Turn to stop abruptly and shake off Allen, actively breaking toward the left side where Foster was, but this time Allen’s second reaction was outstanding. Even though he was off-balance, he managed to trip Li Wei’s lower leg with his arm, sending Li Wei’s forward momentum into disarray.
Stumbling about, he failed to shake off Foster immediately. Even though Li Wei reacted quickly, changing direction, he still got caught in the pincer between Foster and Humphrey. This was where Li Wei truly felt frustrated.
He saw a gap. With a prompt brake to control his steps, he tried to make Foster and Humphrey collide into a heap, then he tried to circle around Humphrey’s outside, knowing that even if Jackson had stepped up to intercept, there was still a chance.
However, it was this fleeting opportunity that he couldn’t control with his sudden stop, resulting in Foster and Humphrey getting a solid hold on him.
After being surrounded, Li Wei still tried to break free and continue charging forward. Seeing that Foster and Humphrey’s unsteady center of gravity didn’t allow them to fully capture him, with him possibly breaking free at any moment, it was Jackson who arrived in haste that eliminated Li Wei’s last struggle, and finally Li Wei fell regretfully to the ground.
Three big guys piled on in this spot.
Li Wei was still clenching his fist in frustration—
Even in this play, he still had a chance, just a little bit, just a tiny bit more.
But it had to be admitted, the impacts of football, the breakthroughs, and the offense against defense were truly tough and explosive. The solid and meaty collisions made resounding thuds with each hit, and the confrontations of strength fully ignited the adrenaline.
Yet unexpectedly when Li Wei stood up and turned around, what he saw was a sight of people picking up their jaws all over the field, the silent scene seemed to have pressed the pause button, which made Li Wei stunned. Was he in a ’Flash’ state because his speed was too fast that it made everyone else seem to have stopped?
Li Wei gave an apologetic smile and shouted to Burns, "Sorry, Coach, I didn’t perform too well this time."
Almost choked on his spit, "Rookie, are you serious or is this trash talk?"
Li Wei couldn’t help but smile, "If this is trash talk, isn’t your reaction a bit..."
Even though Li Wei didn’t speak out, Allen caught on immediately, looked to the sky sheepishly and coughed twice, then looked down at Li Wei again, "If that’s you not performing well, then our defensive group has some serious reflecting to do."
Despite the embarrassment, Allen started to explain in all seriousness, and then Li Wei began to understand.
Burns had said that football is a turn-based game, so how should turns be defined?
Each time on offense, the offensive team has four downs to advance the ball. If they can advance ten yards within those four tries, they gain a fresh set of four downs to continue advancing the ball. The cycle repeats until reaching the end zone.
Correspondingly, it’s the job of the defensive team to stop the offense from advancing those ten yards within the four opportunities, thus ending the opponent’s possession and completing the turnover of the ball.
If the offense fails to cover ten yards in four downs, the possession ends and the ball turns over where it lies, meaning the defensive team brings out their offensive group to start their offense from that spot.
That’s why, in order to avoid ending the four downs fruitlessly and at a disadvantageous position that puts their subsequent defense in difficulty, the offensive team often only plays three downs and switches to the Special Duty Group on the fourth down, performing a punt kick to push the opponent’s next starting position as far back as possible.
Of course, the offensive team can choose to play out all four downs, and if they fail, they simply hand over possession from where they are.
However, there is a special case.
After the third down, if the offense is close to the end zone, they may choose to bring out the Special Duty Group, not for a punt but for a field goal. If the football flies over the goalposts at the end of the end zone, they score.
These rules make up the core of the football game, the turn-based offense and defense battles.
Despite Allen’s hasty and messy explanation, and Humphrey and the others’ cacophony of interjections hardly helping, Li Wei still got it—
What seemed complex was actually clear.
Actually, it’s quite simple to think of a football game as an alternating turn-based offense and defense confrontation. While soccer constantly switches between offense and defense, football is marked by every ten yards with a limit of four downs. If the offensive team succeeds, it continues its offense; otherwise, the defensive group gains possession of the ball after a successful down.
All other details are further refinements based on this framework, but they don’t hinder the understanding of football.
Li Wei had a sudden realization. "So, the fork at the end of the end zone isn’t just for decoration."
Humphrey and Foster and Jackson: ...
Allen burst out laughing. "Right, that’s the goalpost."
"In football, there are three ways to score points."
"First, entering the end zone, touchdown, six points."
"Second, kicking a field goal from any range, three points."
"Third, if the offensive team is tackled in their own end zone by the opponent, not only does possession change hands, but it also results in a safety, two points."
"Oh, right, after each touchdown, there’s a chance for extra points, two options."
"Choose to kick, place the ball on the fifteen-yard line in front of the end zone line and then kick it; succeed, and you add one point. Choose to go for a touchdown, place the ball two yards in front of the end zone line and then score a touchdown; succeed, and you add two points."
This time, Allen’s explanation was much clearer.
Li Wei had another realization. "So, football does actually involve using the foot... wait, field goals and kicks should be done with the foot, right?"
"Haha." Allen laughed heartily. "Right, and there are also punts and kickoffs, all done with the foot."
So that’s how it is. It seems football can retain the word "foot" in its name, no need to compete with handball for a title.
Humphrey looked at Allen, then at Li Wei, and couldn’t hold back. "Hey, so now you realize why we were so surprised, right?"
Li Wei blinked, the picture of innocence.
Humphrey clutched his head and let out a cry, "Rookie, we only need to advance ten yards on each offensive play, and the average gain for a running back is less than five yards. But you, on your first two attempts, had fifty-yard rush touchdowns, and on the third attempt, while we went all out, you actually forced out a new first down!"
Li Wei slightly lifted his chin. "So ’first down’ means a new set of four offensive opportunities, right?"
Looking at Li Wei’s eager, casually inquisitive expression, Humphrey looked skyward as a wave of helplessness washed over him, then he slumped his shoulders, "Right."
That was the reason for the astonishment in the stadium—
In that third instance, Li Wei weaved and dodged his way through heavy collisions and forcefully advanced ten yards, a display of strength and ferocity that was decidedly impressive.
Li Wei waived it off modestly, "Just occasionally, occasionally."
Foster’s face wore a mournful expression. "It better be. If it happened often, I think you’d be the nightmare of every defensive lineman and linebacker."
Before he finished speaking, Foster saw the eager look on Li Wei’s face and slapped his forehead, "Sorry, you don’t know what a defensive line and a linebacker are, right? My bad."
An awkward yet polite smile.
Allen laughed again, "You delivered as promised, I really danced three times in a row. Rookie, well done, welcome to the Crimson Tide Storm."
With that, Allen raised his right fist for a fist bump, facing Li Wei squarely—
Open and honest in the face of his own defeat.